Working and studying abroad as a PhD

Dear readers, first of all, thank you for being here once again!

I have a question for you: how many of you are currently living abroad? Or how many of you have lived abroad?

(Photo my own, of the beautiful village of Unterägeri, where I lived my last three years in Switzerland.)

I’ll share my story briefly, for those who don’t know it:

• I was born in Canada and stayed there until I was eight.

• After that, we moved to Greece where my parents are originally from and stayed there until I was 30. So I finished school and did my undergrad in English language and literature at the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki.

• I moved to Switzerland at 30 and stayed until last year, when I was 44, and I worked and did my Masters degree 7 years ago.

• I now find myself mostly in Greece for now for family reasons and who knows what the next years will bring 😀I still work with my employer in Switzerland and continue with my PhD.

So essentially living abroad was Switzerland for me, as Canada was my birthplace and grew my country of origin.

I moved only for work at first, but I knew deep down I wanted to do a Masters and PhD at some point. Which I did!

When applying for my PhD, because I wasn’t sure I’d be accepted to a Swiss university, I was also applying to other countries: Norway, Iceland, Sweden, Finland, Estonia and Lithuania. These countries had the programs I was interested in - and I was excited and scared in equal measure.

I was excited to apply and happy to get to know a new place - I was researching these countries and so happy! But at the same time, a tremendous fear overcame me:

• How would I leave Switzerland? I loved it so much, it’s my favorite place and perhaps home to me more than another other country I’ve lived in. Which is weird, as I have zero connections to Switzerland - no relatives, no having lived there before, nothing.

• How would I leave Switzerland - fear 2: I didn’t want to leave my niece and nephew behind. I really am present in their lives in any way I can. I have my other niece and nephew in Greece too, but then in a completely different country, I’d have none of them near me.

• How can I get used to another country? As much as I love Switzerland, it took me quite a while to get used to it at first and the new system it presented as well. And at 39-40 (my age of applying), I’m not sure how flexible I’d be - I could even have surprised myself, but I really have been a person who likes to have roots in one place - up until a year ago or so.

• How expensive would the new country be? Finances have always been a concern for me, as for many people who are dependent on themselves and have no support from other sources. Plus, I would have no funding in Switzerland, so I had to check what oppportunities I’d have in other countries, if any. In addition, I was researching the cost of living - rent, insurance, everyday expenses and so on.

Thankfully, I managed to stay in Switzerland and start my PhD there - working full-time on the side at my amazing job with my amazing boss - but who knows?

Some day, I may be elsewhere. Lately, I’m having pangs to go to Turkey. If you know me even a little, it’s a big love, I feel so comfortable there, I have friends who are like family. Postdoc? Maybe. There, or in one of the countries I mentioned above when I was looking for my PhD.

Who knows? As I grow older, you would think I’d like to continue having roots in a place, but I’m trying to broaden my horizons, trying to tell myself that I’ve adjusted to various places and I can do it again.

Whatever happens, you’ll definitely find out here!