The World of English

II – Reading Test

Name No. Class Date

You are going to read a text about six good reasons to study abroad.

Top Reasons to Study Abroad

1. Expand your worldview

Geography lessons are great and everything, but you will learn so much more about the world through
actually living in a different culture and talking to people. It can be easy to be caught up in your own bubble
and to not see what is happening all around the world. Living abroad will broaden your horizons and will
automatically ensure that you meet people from a different culture than your own, making you a more
5 worldly, sympathetic and interesting person to be around when you return home.
2. Boost your language skills
Moving abroad can also do wonders for your grasp of a foreign language. If you’re immersed in a particular
language, you won’t be able to help improving your proficiency at it: something which will put you in an
excellent position for an international career in the future. These language skills can, of course, be taught in
10 a classroom, but there’s nothing like practising with a native speaker to really improve your abilities.
3. Boss your job applications
Putting your study abroad experience on your CV is highly attractive to both future employers, as it shows
that you are willing to take on challenging opportunities and are independent minded. It shows them too
that you are open-minded and care about what is going on in the world outside of your own country.
15 4. Learn about a new culture
There is no better way of understanding a different culture than actually living there. Travelling abroad can
certainly teach you this – especially if you take time to visit museums and heritage sites – but you will
experience the culture of a place in far greater depth if you actually live there. Plus, with a new culture
comes delicious new food to taste and this can certainly be a major bonus of living abroad.
20 5. Make incredible friends
Moving abroad for studying will also open up avenues for making so many interesting friends that you’d
never meet at home. Whether you make friends with other international students – and enjoy working
through the fun challenges of living abroad together – or residents of your new country, I guarantee you
will meet some incredible people during your studies and open up yet more avenues for travel in the
25 future.
6. Find a new home!
Finally, there is a chance that you will fall so in love with your new home that you’ll want to spend more
time there in the future, and maybe even settle down there. You never know until you try it. Bearing all of
the above in mind, I hope you can see that studying abroad can bring huge advantages to your social life,
30 career and general happiness. So, what are you waiting for?

https://www.immerse.education/guide/10-reasons-study-abroad/ (accessed in January 2021)

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1. Match each word in column A with the synonym in column B. There are two extra synonyms.

Column A Column B

1. prepared
a. broaden (line 3) 2. knowledgeable
b. worldly (line 6) 3. anxious
c. grasp (line 8) 4. understanding
d. willing (line 14) 5. enlarge
6. mundane

2. What do the following expressions mean? There are two extra options.

Column A Column B

1. in a much better way

a. “caught up in your own bubble” (line 2) 2. to a greater distance
b. “in far greater depth” (line 19) 3. remained isolated
c. “open up avenues” (line 22) 4. give new opportunities
5. encourage to travel

3. Choose the correct option (a, b or c) to complete the sentences.

3.1 According to paragraph 2, if you live abroad, the improvement of your language skills…
a. won’t be of much help.
b. might boost your choices of working abroad.
c. will be done mostly in a classroom.

3.2 Paragraph 3 tells you that studying abroad might improve your job prospects because…
a. you won’t need an attractive CV.
b. You will meet future employers.
c. you will come across as tolerant and bold.

3.3 Paragraph 4 states that living abroad will allow you to…
a. learn a different culture from the inside .
b. learn a different culture by visiting museums and historical sites .
c. travel through heritage sites.

3.4 Paragraph 6 implies that by living abroad you may eventually…

a. decide to move permanently to a new country .
b. find a partner for life.
c. never want to try it again.

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