Five things an online Masters whilst travelling taught me.

It will soon be three full years since I last stayed put somewhere in this world for longer than 8 months. In that time, I have visited over 15 countries and had some amazing experiences.

Five months ago, I started studying a Masters in Applied Psychology on-line, part-time. So far I’ve studied in Ecuador, Chile, and Argentina. Soon the list will grow to Uruguay, Belgium, Spain, England, Israel and Russia.

I’ve experienced remote and awesome places, I’ve studied in hostels (Patagonia) and cozy small apartments in high-rise buildings (Santiago). I’ve studied in buses and awesome outdoor settings. It has been a beautiful experience, and I wanted to share some insights for anyone considering something similar:

Studying on-line while travelling is cheaper than studying on campus.
You have a wider choice of universities for your degree. You can pick a high-quality university abroad that is cheaper than something of similar quality in your country (USA, I’m talking about you!). Furthermore, if you had to study, for instance in Liverpool, your cost of living could be over twice as expensive compared to picking a cheap travel destination, such as Mendoza where I am now. Not to mention London or New York. The money you save can be used to run excursions deeper into the country of your choice.

Studying on-line is quite possibly harder than studying in person.
I found that on-line class participation is closely monitored and strictly enforced. You cannot get away with simply submitting good coursework and hope to get good grades. The workload estimate that your enrolment advisor gives you for the course must be at least doubled to get an accurate estimate. The workload was estimated at ten weekly hours and yet I often do over 20 hours a week. On the flip side, learning is greatly enhanced by this process.

E-textbooks are not quite as widespread as they should be. So plan ahead.
For my current course, I had trouble getting my hands on the required textbook. In the last two courses I was able to buy the e-book on-line but this particular textbook was unavailable in e-format. It surprises me that the university did not make sure that it had an e-format, considering my coursemates come from many remote countries. I knew shipping to Argentina often had extensive delays due to customs, but I was pleasantly surprised when my book arrived with a short and sweet 2-day customs clearance. It didn’t stop me from panicking (and daydreaming) a little beforehand.

You are often tempted to take a “study break” so you can travel more extensively.
Travelling is awesome, and I often wish I could do it full time. My thirst for adventure knows no limits. The fact that I almost missed out on getting that last textbook prompted my mind to plan my awesome 13-week vacation with awesome trips such as going back to rock climb Los Arenales. I was a bit disappointed when my textbook arrived, and my study break plan was crushed. However, I quickly regained focus as I remembered how awesome studying while travelling is.

Studying while travelling should become more widespread, it’s simply awesome.
Travelling teaches you lessons that you cannot learn in the classroom. If you study on campus, your freedom is taken away from you. You must regularly visit your university, and long trips abroad are left only for short vacations.

Also since there is only so much travelling & exploring you can do in one day I often see travellers relaxing by watching telly or browsing the net. This time can more productively be used to study and get a degree!

Why wait until you finish your studies? The same can be said about your degree, why postpone it until after your travels? You never know what your circumstances will be either after completing your degree or your travels, so just go ahead and kill two birds with one stone!

I hope this blog entry helps someone on their way to an awesome adventure without abandoning their academic pursuits.