You want to study abroad. Your parents are not sure. Somewhere between those two things is a conversation that feels harder than it probably needs to be, and if you’ve been avoiding it, you’re not alone.
Most students who don’t end up going abroad don’t fail to go because the opportunity wasn’t there. They fail to go because the conversation with their parents never quite happened, or it happened badly, and then the deadline passed. This post is about making sure that doesn’t happen to you.
It covers the specific objections your parents are most likely to raise, the arguments that actually work for each one, and how to approach the conversation in a way that feels like a plan rather than a plea.
Why this conversation feels hard
Before getting into talking points, it’s worth naming what’s actually happening in these conversations, because the surface-level objection is rarely the only one.
When a parent says “it’s too expensive,” they often mean more than one thing. They’re worried about the cost, yes, but they’re also wondering whether this is a reasonable use of money compared to other things the family needs, and whether you’ve thought it through seriously or whether it’s an impulse. When a parent says “is it safe?” they’re not just asking for statistics. They’re asking whether they can trust the program, the structure, and the people who will be responsible for you when they’re not there.
Understanding the layer underneath the stated objection changes how you respond to it. The goal isn’t to win an argument. It’s to give your parents enough specific, credible information that their concern has somewhere to go other than “no.”
Objection 1: “It’s too expensive.”
This is the most common one and the one students feel least equipped to respond to, because they often don’t have the full financial picture themselves.
Start with the actual number, because your parents’ mental model of what study abroad costs is probably based on the semester-abroad version, which runs anywhere from $15,000 to $25,000 when tuition, housing, food, and travel are factored in. A short-term, faculty-led program like GLO runs between $3,500 and $6,000 depending on the destination. That fee covers accommodation in 4-star hotels, group meals throughout the program, every company visit and cultural excursion, and faculty leadership from start to finish. The flight is separate. Day-to-day personal spending is separate. But everything else is in the program fee, which makes the sticker price and the actual cost much closer than the semester-abroad number your parents may be imagining.
Then bring the scholarship information. GLO offers two scholarships that students can apply for simultaneously once enrolled: the Founders Scholarship, which is need-based and specifically designed for students who need financial support to make the trip happen, and the Digital Ambassador Fellowship, which awards students who document their experience during the program and pays out after completion. Applying for both at once is not just allowed, it’s the right move. The winter program scholarship deadline is October 15. The summer deadline is March 5.
If the cost still feels like a barrier after that conversation, mention the payment plan. GLO allows students to spread the program cost over installments rather than paying everything upfront. The question shifts from “can we afford $5,000 right now” to “can we manage this over a few months,” which is often a completely different answer.
Come to this conversation with the numbers already looked up. Parents who feel like you’ve done the research respond differently than parents who feel like you’re asking them to figure it all out.
Objection 2: “Is it safe?”
The honest answer is that international travel involves risk, faculty-led programs significantly reduce that risk compared to independent travel, and your parents are right to ask.
What usually reassures parents most is not a general statement about safety but a specific description of the program structure. GLO programs are faculty-led from departure to return, which means a professor travels with the group for the entire duration and is available around the clock. Students do not navigate a foreign country independently. The itinerary is pre-planned. Company visits are organized in advance. Accommodation is confirmed. There is 24/7 support from GLO staff throughout the program.
That structure is meaningfully different from a student booking their own flights and figuring out a hostel in a city they’ve never visited. Most of the scenarios parents imagine when they worry about “safety abroad” involve a student alone, lost, without support. That is not what a faculty-led program looks like.
Send them GLO’s parent safety guide after the conversation. A Parent’s Guide to Study Abroad Safety and Support Systems is written specifically for parents, covers the support infrastructure in detail, and answers the questions most parents have but feel awkward asking directly. A post-conversation email with the link signals that you’re taking their concerns seriously rather than brushing them off.
One more thing worth saying directly: the countries GLO operates in are not dangerous. Japan, Iceland, London, Paris, Cape Town, and the European cities on the program are all places your parents would probably visit themselves. The worry is often more about the unknown than about a specific credible threat.
Objection 3: “Will it affect your grades or delay your degree?”
Short-term programs handle this objection better than any other kind, and it’s worth making that point explicitly.
A GLO program runs 10 to 14 days. It is scheduled during winter break or summer, which means you are not missing classes, not falling behind on coursework, and not adding time to your degree. You leave after your last exam of the semester. You return before the next semester starts. Your academic timeline is completely undisturbed.
The credit question is separate. Many universities allow students to earn academic credit for faculty-led programs through a credit approval process involving your academic advisor. It varies by institution, and the honest answer is to check with your advisor before the conversation with your parents rather than after. Coming to the conversation with “I’ve already checked and my advisor said X” is significantly more persuasive than “I think I can probably get credit.”
If your university does approve credit, this becomes an argument rather than a concern. You’re not taking time away from your degree. You’re adding international academic credit to it.
Objection 4: “Why do you need to go abroad? You can learn this at home.”
Answer this one with specificity rather than philosophy.
The things a GLO program provides that you cannot replicate at home are not abstract. You sit in a boardroom in Tokyo and ask a supply chain executive a question about how their company handled a specific disruption. You observe how a German company runs a business meeting and notice that the communication norms are completely different from anything you’ve experienced in an American professional environment. You have a conversation with a Cape Town executive about Ubuntu as an active management philosophy, not an academic concept. These are not things that happen in a classroom. They are the kind of experiences that come up in job interviews in ways that classroom education doesn’t.
If your parents are practically-minded, the career data helps. Employers consistently rate international experience as evidence of adaptability, cross-cultural communication, and independent judgment. More specifically for GLO: the company visits are the differentiator. A student who can describe sitting in a specific company’s boardroom in Tokyo and asking a specific question is telling a story that no amount of classroom time can replicate.
There is also a simpler answer available, and sometimes it’s the right one: this is something I want to do, I’ve thought it through, and I’m asking for your support. Not every conversation needs to be a full ROI presentation.
If your parents are first-generation or come from a different cultural background
For some students, the conversation about study abroad carries a different kind of weight. If you’re the first in your family to go to college, or your parents come from a culture where international travel feels distant or extravagant, the objections may not be about the specific program at all. They may be about a larger question: is this for people like us?
The answer is yes, and it’s worth saying that directly. GLO’s Founders Scholarship exists specifically because financial need should not be the deciding factor in who gets to go. The first-generation student post [LINK: Can a First-Generation Student Study Abroad] addresses this in more depth and is worth sharing with a parent who needs to see that this is a real option for students in real financial situations, not just students who already had everything figured out.
If your parents’ concern is more cultural — the idea that two weeks abroad is an indulgence rather than an investment — try reframing it in terms they already value. The career argument tends to land better than the personal development argument for parents who made real sacrifices for your education. Pointing at specific outcomes (this type of experience shows up on resumes, this is how you get ahead of other candidates at the same level) is more persuasive than explaining that you’ll “grow as a person.”
Practical advice for the conversation itself
Pick a specific time. Don’t bring up study abroad as a side note in an unrelated conversation. Ask for a real moment to talk about something important. The framing signals that you’ve thought about it seriously.
Come with the information already looked up. Program dates, cost breakdown, scholarship deadlines, what the fee includes. Parents who feel like they’re being presented with a vague dream respond differently than parents who can see a specific plan.
Send them something to read afterward. The GLO parent safety guide, the cost comparison post, the scholarship page. A follow-up email that says “here’s what I was talking about” gives them space to review it without you in the room, which is often when the real decision gets made.
Give it time. The first conversation is rarely the final one. Parents who say no on a Tuesday often come around by the following weekend once they’ve had time to sit with it. Don’t treat the first response as final unless it clearly is.
Know your own answer to “what if something goes wrong?” Parents feel better when they know their student has thought about this too. Knowing that the program has 24/7 support, that a faculty member travels with the group, that GLO has been operating for nearly 50 years — those are things worth saying out loud, not assuming your parents will infer.
Frequently asked questions
Come to the conversation with specific information rather than a general ask: the exact program cost, what’s included in the fee, scholarship options you’ve already researched, and the academic calendar showing that your degree timeline isn’t affected. Addressing the real concerns underneath the stated objections — cost, safety, academic impact — with actual data is more effective than enthusiasm alone. Give them something to read afterward and give the conversation time to develop.
Start by distinguishing between short-term and semester programs. A 2-week faculty-led program runs $3,500 to $6,000, compared to $15,000 to $25,000 for a full semester abroad. Then present the scholarship options: GLO’s Founders Scholarship is need-based, the Digital Ambassador Fellowship pays out after the program, and both can be applied for simultaneously. If upfront cost is the issue, mention the payment plan option. Come with numbers — parents who feel like you’ve done the research are more likely to engage seriously with the conversation.
Be specific about the program structure rather than making general reassurances. A faculty-led program means a professor travels with the group for the entire duration, there is 24/7 support from program staff, accommodation and itinerary are pre-arranged, and students do not navigate a foreign country independently. Send them GLO’s parent safety guide after the conversation so they can review the details at their own pace. If they have specific concerns about a destination, address those directly.
Respond with specificity about what the experience actually provides that a classroom doesn’t. Company visits mean sitting in real boardrooms, asking questions of real executives, and observing professional culture in contexts that cannot be replicated at home. The career argument tends to land with practically-minded parents: international experience on a resume signals adaptability and cross-cultural competence, and the specific company visit context that GLO provides is something most candidates simply don’t have.
Ask for a specific time to talk rather than raising it as an aside. Come prepared with cost information, scholarship options, program dates, and a clear explanation of how the academic calendar works. Frame it as something you’ve researched seriously, not something you want them to figure out. Give them something to read independently after the conversation so the decision can develop at their pace.
The arguments that work most consistently: the cost comparison showing short-term programs are a fraction of semester abroad prices; the safety structure of faculty-led programs versus independent travel; the career data on how employers value international experience; and the academic calendar showing no classes are missed on a winter break or summer program. Match the argument to the concern — cost-focused parents need numbers, safety-focused parents need structural specifics, career-focused parents need outcomes data.
Name it directly: study abroad is not only for students whose families have passport stamps. GLO’s Founders Scholarship is specifically designed for students with financial need, and the program structure supports first-time international travelers with full faculty supervision and logistics handled throughout. Use career-focused framing with parents who made real sacrifices for your education — the resume and interview argument tends to land better than the personal growth argument.
The conversation is worth having. The students who go abroad are not the ones whose parents were immediately enthusiastic — they’re the ones who had the conversation, came back to it when they needed to, and didn’t let a first no become the final answer.
If you’re ready to start the process before the conversation is fully resolved, that’s fine. Apply to a GLO program, then apply for the scholarship. Both steps are reversible. Having something concrete to point to makes the next conversation significantly easier than the first one.
View GLO scholarship options · Read: A Parent’s Guide to Study Abroad Safety
