Can I study abroad if I'm not in college?
Submitted by Shelby Church on 07/16/2016.
Question Details
Do I need to be enrolled at a college (even just a community college or something) or can I just go into directly studying abroad?
Do I need to be enrolled at a college (even just a community college or something) or can I just go into directly studying abroad?
Answer
It might be a little trickier, but you can definitely study abroad at a community college. Your school might not have it's own study abroad office or programs, but you can apply through a third party provider, or just enroll directly to a foreign university, which ends up being a little cheaper. This article has lots more information about that: https://www.gooverseas.com/blog/direct-enrollment-the-secret-to-studying-abroad-cheaply
You could also contact local universities near you to see if they have any programs that welcome community members on their faculty-led trips. We have several programs like this where community members are guest students for the summer.
Nope, you don't have to be enrolled! There were various students we learned about in my program in Costa Rica, Sol Education Abroad. One woman was in her 60s, returning to study and live in Heredia. Others were college graduates, and others in the past have been non-traditional study abroad students.
Sol has programs in Argentina, Costa Rica, Mexico, and Spain.