Upon Re-entry

Although it may seem like a long way off, UW-Platteville Education Abroad suggests that parents start thinking now about their student's return to the United States after the program ends. Students often go through a phase of "reverse" or "re-entry" culture shock when they return home, which can be sometimes more challenging than what they went through abroad. They expect to go through adjustments in foreign countries, but do not always realize that life has continued on without them at home and there may be changes for which they were not prepared. As with culture shock, one way to alleviate the difficulty of re-entry shock is to keep the student aware of what is going on at home. Students often go through periods of mild depression once they return home because of feelings that no one is interested in what they experienced in their time abroad.

Faced with questions such as "How was your time in...?" a student often can only answer "Great!" before conversation moves on to another subject. Encourage friends and family members to ask more specific questions like "What were the best things about living abroad? The most difficult? What places did you visit? Are people's daily lives the same as in the United States? Do you have any pictures?" Have a party where the student can show off food, customs, and souvenirs from their travels. Not only will such questions and activities remind students they had a worthwhile experience and help them to readjust, it will help others in the community or family learn more about the world.