How to Build a Community Abroad: Ana Gomora’s 5 Tips for Studying Abroad

By Molly Malick (BA 25)

Here at Grace College, we value building community with cultures around the world. We believe in the importance of interacting with other ways of life, and have every student complete a cross-cultural field experience. 

Many students choose to go on a Go Encounter, a short term trip led by Grace faculty and staff to “encounter” a different culture. Another way students meet the cross-cultural requirement is through studying abroad. In fact, a few degrees, such as the world languages major, require this as part of their curriculum. 

Ana Gomora Hunsucker, a junior transfer student majoring in world languages and minoring in international business, studied abroad in fall 2024 at South Korea’s Handong Global University. Gomora advocates for students to step out of their comfort zone and into another culture by sharing her tips for studying abroad. 

Gomora recommends learning as much of your destination’s language as possible in order to communicate as efficiently as possible. As a world languages major, one of the first steps Gomora took in preparation for her time abroad was to study Korean. 

“I learned the alphabet before I went so I could write and be able to read signs,” said Gomora. “Could I understand what I was reading? No, but I had a good idea.” 

Gomora took the time to learn the basics of the language so that she could get around the city much easier than if she had waited to be thrown into the language with no foundation.

A typical day in Korea for Gomora consisted of walking to campus, attending classes, and exploring the area with friends. Another one of Gomora’s tips for studying abroad is to give yourself the freedom to walk around without a destination. It opens you up to the possibility of spontaneous conversations and finding places you may not have.

Gomora would grab a cup of coffee from her favorite campus coffee shop, Apple in the Tree, buy a snack at another stand, and begin walking with her friends, no matter what the weather was. They trudged along under the motto that “There is no bad weather, only bad clothes.” 

Ana wasted no time throwing herself into the local Christian community in Korea. She began attending Pohang International Community Church the first week she arrived 

“You’ll find Pastor Richie on campus,” said Gomora. “Or rather, he’ll find you.” 

Pastor Richie ensured every willing international student on campus was involved in the church and felt like they belonged. He would let internationals know about church events and personally ask them if they would like to participate. This allowed Gomora to contribute to the culture and community and therefore helped her feel she belonged there. 

“Pastor Richie would say that this was not his church,” said Gomora. “It was our church.” 

Gomora emphasized integrating yourself into the community when sharing her tips for studying abroad. She did this in a number of ways, such as joining clubs.

She became a member of one of her school’s dance troupes, Zizzy, as well as the Taekwondo club, Cheonpung Haesae, after being approached by members looking for recruits. 

“It was really fun,” said Gomora. “I met a lot of sweet people through those groups.” 

Immersing yourself in the culture’s community helps you adjust to their way of life while simultaneously meeting new people. 

One of the most important lessons to keep in mind while abroad is to keep an open mind. Culture shock is real and can make you critical of customs that seem foreign to you. It’s important to take a step back and think clearly about whether your critiques of the culture are valid, or if they’re merely a result of the adjustment process. 

It’s important to reach out to people during this time. Gomora explained how it’s especially important to connect with other international students if you feel like this. International students understand better than anyone what you’re going through, and you’ll be able to encourage each other. Thankfully, this phase likely won’t last long, and you’ll be enthralled by the culture once more. 

Living abroad is all about opening yourself up to new experiences and people; don’t worry if it takes time. Put yourself out there, and enjoy what life has to offer across the world. 

After reading these tips for studying abroad, are you itching to go? Consider our exchange program or even our international communication minor, which sets you up to study abroad in Hungary at Károli Gáspár University, the largest Protestant college in Hungary. Studying abroad goes both ways– if you are an international student wanting to study in America, we have more information on enrollment available.