At the pre-departure training moment, each participant already comes with dreams, expectations and fears. It is highly important to talk about this projection with them. This chapter will allow participants to be grounded in reality.

Fears :
Depending on their personal path, participants might have some fears (plane phobia, linguistic underestimation, etc.).
The main goal here is to reassure the participants, to lower their fears. If the preparation is done in a collective way (group), talking about their fears together will allow a peer-to-peer discussion ; they will know what are the others fears, and might help to reassure the other participants.

Expectations :
Just like for the fears, many participants may have strong expectations about living abroad, some of them being totally unrealistic (like becoming bilingual after 2 weeks).
After lowering their fears, the trainer should also lower the expectations, with concrete examples about how living abroad can be difficult. The balance might be difficult to find (between lowering fears and lowering expectations), but the activity with post-its will help the trainer to have a quick overview of their state of mind at the moment of this preparation.

Contributions :
In a group, every participant can bring something useful. Even if their linguistic level is very low, they can help the other participants with other contributions (cooking, orientation, etc.).

Objectives :
Allowing participants to give themselves some (realistic) objectives will also help them to imagine themselves in their abroad mission.
This is an individual work that participants can realize after the “fears & expectations” moment, in order to project themselves in concrete terms.

International mobility participants might have lots of questions about the logistics and content of the project. In order to reassure participants, it is crucial to clarify all these aspects during the preparation training. It is particularly crucial while working with participants with fewer opportunities and/or special needs.

Critical Information for Mobility Participants:

• Living Conditions: Clearly communicate the living arrangements and environment where participants will stay during their mobility. This helps manage expectations and prevent surprises.

• Financial Aspects: Providing detailed financial information regarding the project funding, allowances, and other financial matters ensures participants are well-prepared and avoid confusion.

• Content of Activities: Outline the activities to be undertaken during the mobility period, so participants know what to expect and can mentally prepare for their tasks.

• Project/Mission Topics: Sharing the objectives and goals of the project will align participants with the mission, making them more engaged.

• Social Network During Mobility: Explain the support structures in place, such as mentors, tutors, and the host organization, to build trust and a sense of security for participants.

• Special Needs: Confirm that the participants’ specific health and dietary needs are met, which is crucial for individuals with special needs to fully engage and participate.

International mobility also means intercultural experience. It is the opportunity to foster knowledge, skills, attitudes and behaviours regarding intercultural sensitivity. Each one of us has bias, stereotypes, prejudices, the first step to get ready for the intercultural experience is to recognise one’s own perspectives and relativity.

Preparing participants for the intercultural experience will help them to face the intercultural shock, becoming more curious and open towards difference and -generally- having a richer experience abroad.

Preparation focus:

• Sharing knowledge of the mechanism of bias and how it affects feeling and acting;
• Raise awareness about how a cultural environment can shape the understanding of different concepts (such as solidarity or inclusion);
• Promoting openness and willingness to look at identity, culture and related aspects from different perspectives;
• Fostering the ability to deal with tension and conflict;
• Promote cooperation with people from different cultures;
• Inspire reflection on own values and senses of belonging to increase self-awareness and understanding of difference;
• Develop participants’ readiness to confront others and be confronted in a respectful and constructive way

Even if developing language skills often is the main goal of the participants when they go abroad, there are many myths around linguistics, and it might become their main fear as well. It is highly important to allow participants to feel as comfortable as possible with the local language before going abroad.

Preparation focus:

• To feel at ease with communicating in another language (local language, English or another vehicular language)
• To know some basics of the local language
• To surpass the fear of harsh judgement we might have and that prevent us from talking another language publicly
• To understand that verbal communication only represents 7% of the global communication, and to develop other ways of communicating with other people.