Do you want to learn American English by going on a student exchange to the United States?Count on us!
The United States of America is one of those nations that has a lot to say for itself. It is an economic, scientific and sports power, among other things, with a culture that sets the tone in the world and has managed to dominate the different social media, making it clear that they are not afraid to express themselves as they are and what makes them what they are, with all their virtues and flaws, always showing with their heads held high how proud they are of their beloved country. In this article we will tell you the five main advantages of studying English in the United States on an exchange program.
1. It is an English-speaking country
Although to date The United States has no official languageEnglish is certainly the most widely spoken language, so you will practice this language from sunrise to sunset, especially if your exchange program is in one of the northern states, where there is less Spanish-speaking population. The advantage of this is that the student is forced to get by speaking English; the downside is that if he or she does not have basic knowledge of the language, he or she may have difficulty communicating at first.
For this reason, it is recommended that exchange students take at least a basic language course in their home country before traveling to the United States. This can be done at an educational institution or through a mobile application such as Duolingo. The important thing is that when they arrive in the country they know how to communicate in the most fundamental aspects.
2. It has the most commercial English version
Google, Apple, Microsoft and Amazon are just a few of the billion-dollar companies headquartered in the United States. These and many others speak primarily American English, which is not too different from its counterparts in England, Canada and Australia, among others, but it has its particularities, and if the person doing an exchange in the United States is interested in being employed by a local company, speaking English the way an American citizen does can help him or her create a better rapport with any human resources manager.
3. It is full of places of interest and activities to do.
Not everything in life is work and study. Another advantage of studying English in the United States is that the cities of this country never rest: there is always some activity or event in which you can get involved and have a great time, at the same time that you learn the vocabulary that Americans use during the most dissimilar situations: ordering a meal, buying tickets at a theme park, asking for a light to light a cigarette or asking someone out has its own way of doing it and, although the English courses teach dialogues for many of these occasions, if you do it like an American you will earn extra points while you are in that country.
4. High ethnic and racial diversity
In the United States, there are neighborhoods where groups of immigrants of the same nationality live. This is an advantage for exchange students and foreigners, since they can contact groups of people who have the same origin as them and, although it is not the same as being in their homeland, it definitely helps them to alleviate a little bit the homeland sickness.
Naturally, it is not ideal for the exchange student to spend most of his free time in a place where people speak his language, as this would slow down his learning of English, but he may do so on occasional occasions when he feels he needs more of his home country. The United States offers exactly that possibility: there are so many people from so many cultures that an exchange student should never feel helpless.
5. The possibility of building a bright future for yourself
Participating in an exchange program in the United States not only allows you to do all of the above, but will also give you a great professional endorsement. First, the fact that a résumé indicates that a person has studied at a U.S. institution creates a favorable distinction with respect to persons who have taken similar courses in their country of origin. The reason for this is that any job recruiter knows how valuable an American education is in general, plus someone who traveled in order to obtain academic training went the extra mile over someone who obtained it locally, and this is what many companies want: workers with leadership who go above and beyond in everything.
In addition, going on exchange in the U.S. could be the gateway to obtaining U.S. citizenship. This is easier said than done, but if you are competent at what you do and qualify to apply for a type of visa, you may end up getting it. Or that you become a citizen because you fall in love with and marry someone who has U.S. citizenship. You never know!
