Helen

About Helen’s program:

• Program: USF in Russia Summer 2017, 4 week program, language courses

• Program cost: About $5,000 that included 2 courses, housing in a dorm at the university, weekend trips, and field trips along with the courses

Advice from Helen:

• Take advantage of the resources the school you are staying at offers. For example, Helen often ate at the cafeteria because it was cheaper.

• Note what things your program fees cover. A lot of her transportation costs were included so she did not need to budget much outside of this.

• Haggling can help when buying souvenirs at local flea markets.

• Opening up a separate bank account to keep track of travel expenses verses normal personal expenses helps you stay organized with your finances. However, Helen only did this a few days before her trip and wishes she did it early since they gave her a temporary card. She had to use her other account in the end since she that card had a chip.

• Having someone at home that can help take care of issues that arise is helpful. Helen was unable to make her usual car payment because the website did not work in Russia, but luckily she was able to ask her mother in America to help process it.

• Her phone service provider (Sprint) worked well internationally and was not as expensive to use overseas as her friends services were.

• Looking at online reviews, and asking local students and professors who had visited previously were all good sources of advice on things like what to pack.

How Helen afforded her trip:

• She talked to financial aid and realized she received the Pell Grant that could apply to the program. She was very glad she talked to them because they helped her figure out how she could pay for the trip.

• She even received a refund, which helped her pay for in country expenses like food.

• She got a job working very early shifts (5am!), which was quite challenging but she was able to save up a lot from it.

• Every time she got paid she deposited that money directly into her trip savings account. Her semester financial aid covered her normal expenses leading up to the trip. Helen kept a list on her phone of the amount she needed and subtracted from it each time she was paid.