In this third podcast, you’ll be asked to do a bit of contingency planning in preparation for your time abroad and coming home afterwards. This third podcast encourages you to take a proactive approach to preparing for your time abroad. It asks you to reflect on what you might need, both practically and emotionally. You'll also think about what you can do to help the whole experience go as smoothly and enjoyably as possible, and consider briefly the re-entry process on your return home and what you want to have achieved by the time you get back.

This second podcast encourages you to think about the different stages of culture shock and some of the potential difficulties you might experience. This episode focuses on the main stages of culture shock and suggests some of the signs and symptoms to look out for. It also makes some practical suggestions about coping with common thoughts and feelings associated with each phase.

The aim of this first podcast is to help you to begin to reflect on some of your thoughts and feelings about your time abroad as an Oxford undergraduate. This first podcast on preparing for your undergraduate time abroad as a student at the University of Oxford focuses on how you’re currently feeling about going overseas, and how you might start to prepare emotionally. The podcast asks you to reflect on some of your previous experiences of transition and change, to explore some of your conscious and possible unconscious motivations, and how these might be influencing your current thoughts and feelings about your time abroad.