Hien Vo Ngoc

FPT University, Ho Chi Minh City – Vietnam

There are many different ways to learn English effectively, and joining English courses abroad is one of them. FPT University is implementing this method to improve students' English ability, contributing to strengthening the internationalization and globalization of this international standard university. From the actual research at FPT University, this article mentions the great benefits of the method, including (1) Students have a favorable environment to practice using English, (2) Students learn to live independently , (3) Enhance the experience of student life, and (4) Besides English, students have many opportunities to learn about many other things. In addition, the five most common challenges related to this method of English improvement were also found to be (1) Program costs are high, (2) Lack of confidence in the ability to use English, (3) Participants must get out of their "safe zone", (4) Participants must be away from loved ones for quite a long time, and (5) Participants may face safety risks. Since then, combined with the author's research, some suggestions have been made so that the program's quality is improved, more students can know and participate in the program.

Abroad, benefits, challenges, English courses, learn English, students

1) Al-Khasawneh, F. M. (2017). A genre analysis of research article abstracts written by native and non-native speakers of English. Journal of Applied Linguistics and Language Research, 4(1), 1-13.

2) Chelliah, S., Khan, M. J., Krishnan, T., Kamarulzaman, M. E. B. M., & Goh, N. E. (2019). Factors influencing satisfaction and revisit intention among international exchange students in Malaysia. Journal of International Education in Business.

3) Hendrickson, B., Rosen, D., & Aune, R. K. (2011). An analysis of friendship networks, social connectedness, homesickness, and satisfaction levels of international students. International journal of intercultural relations, 35(3), 281-295.

4) Mohammed, M. H. (2018). Challenges of learning English as a Foreign Language (EFL) by non-native learners. International Journal of Social Science and Economic Research, 3(4), 1381-1400.

5) Mupenzi, A. (2018). Educational resilience and experiences of African students with a refugee background in Australian tertiary education. Australasian Review of African Studies, The, 39(2), 122-150.

6) Ngọc, T. T. M. (2014). Đạo đức sinh viên Việt Nam thực trạng và giải pháp. Viện Hàn Lâm Khoa học xã hội Việt Nam, Khoa học xã hội Việt Nam, 2.

7) Nguyen, H. C. (2019). Motivation in learning English language: a case study at Vietnam national university, Hanoi. European Journal of Educational Sciences, 6(1), 49-65.

8) Nielsen, K. (2014). Study abroad: perspectives on transitions to adulthood (Doctoral dissertation, University of Sussex).

9) Rao, P. S. (2019). The role of English as a global language. Research Journal of English, 4(1), 65-79.

10) Sasaki, M. (2007). Effects of study‐abroad experiences on EFL writers: A multiple‐data analysis. The Modern Language Journal, 91(4), 602-620.

11) Trentman, E. (2013). Arabic and English during study abroad in Cairo, Egypt: Issues of access and use. The Modern Language Journal, 97(2), 457-473.

12) Trilokekar, R. D., & Kukar, P. (2011). Disorienting experiences during study abroad: Reflections of pre-service teacher candidates. Teaching and Teacher Education, 27(7), 1141-1150.

13) Twombly, S. B., Salisbury, M. H., Tumanut, S. D., & Klute, P. (2012). Study Abroad in a New Global Century--Renewing the Promise, Refining the Purpose. ASHE higher education report, 38(4), 1-152.

14) Vo, H. V., Ho, N. D., & Ho, T. K. Y. (2020). A study on the most common challenges of reading comprehension faced by General-English students in TRS501 course at HCMC FPT University (Doctoral dissertation, FPTU HCM).

15) Walkinshaw, I., & Oanh, D. H. (2014). Native and non-native English language teachers: Student perceptions in Vietnam and Japan. Sage Open, 4(2), 2158244014534451.

16) Wang, I. K. H. (2018). Learning vocabulary strategically in a study-abroad context. In Learning Vocabulary Strategically in a Study Abroad Context (pp. 231-268). Palgrave Macmillan, Cham.

Volume 05 Issue 02 February 2022