Beyond fluency: Exploring language acquisition and personal growth of students studying abroad

This study explores the intellectual and personal development of English Language students in study abroad programs, with an emphasis on the benefits of immersion in the target country. Thirty students from the University "Ukshin Hoti" Prizren, enrolled in graduate and undergraduate studies abroad, were interviewed and surveyed using questionnaires to show their attitudes and experiences. The findings show that immersion helped significantly in acquiring the language. This is consistent with the fact that most of these students, having begun learning English at primary level and self-assessed themselves as already being well-equipped before studying abroad, further built a solid foundation through immersion to excel in English. Studying abroad was regarded as a gateway to career success, and as making them more marketable in the global employment market by providing them with bilingual competence and intercultural awareness that is needed in workplaces that are ever more globalized. The case study informs an understanding of how study abroad provision can have an influence on students' future engagement with the language. Participants reported substantial improvement in their capacity to think in English more directly rather than translating from Albanian - a measure of the effect of study abroad on language learning and individual transformation.