The second step, determining the duration of the trip, was different for me than for most.

A close friend of mine recently spent time abroad in Spain. She went with the intention of staying for the four month semester, but didn’t come back for six months. She spent the last two months traveling and having the time of her life. Her experience inspired my decision to study abroad, so when it came time for me to book my trip it was already in mind that I would stay longer than my program.

Factoring in living, transportation, and food expenses, I determined that I would be able to stay in Europe for approximately three extra weeks. With this timeline in place, the search for affordable flights began.

I recommend using Kayak to find the best assortment of flights. This site also assists with hotels, transportation, and vacation packages. What I found to be the most helpful was the Flight Alert feature. By entering your preferred airports with your departure and return dates, you can set up email alerts to send daily flight prices.

Additionally, the site helps predict when it is the best time to buy the flight. If they believe prices will decrease within the week, they will advise you to wait. Conversely, if they are confident that the prices are at a low they will encourage you to buy.

This step took me two months to complete. Now, my flight is purchased and everything feels more real. As I get closer to my departure in January 2014, I am getting more excited and spending hours online researching Italy. My program page has tons of helpful information, but I have explored beyond that as well.

Some of the most helpful sites I have found so far through Michigan State University cover pre-departure planning and financing your study abroad.