The safety of studying abroad has always been a topic of concern to many parents and students. At present, there are many unstable factors in the international environment, and security incidents for studying abroad occur from time to time. For Chinese students studying abroad, ensuring their own safety is an important prerequisite for realizing the value of studying abroad. Here, I make the following suggestions, hoping to be helpful to all students.
Enhance safety awareness
First of all, there is no absolute security. Risks can be encountered even in relatively safe countries. Therefore, it is recommended that students familiarize themselves with the common safety risks and hidden dangers in the countries and regions where they study abroad before going abroad, consciously and actively avoid risks, and learn to identify relatively safe time, place, people and behaviors.
Specifically, in terms of time, nighttime is more dangerous than daytime, especially early morning. In addition, there are some sensitive time points, such as when freshmen are easy to encounter fraud and robbery when they enroll, and there may be risks such as stampede due to disorder in major festivals, parades, parties or performance competitions. In terms of location, do not go to relatively dangerous areas, including areas without camera coverage, remote places, areas with high crime rates in cities, etc. In terms of behavior, it is safer to travel low-key than to show off one’s wealth, to strictly abide by local laws and regulations, and to respect customs and taboos is safer than to do as one pleases, and it is safer to temporarily compromise and show weakness when encountering robbery than simple resistance.
We occasionally see some news reports about shooting, kidnapping, robbery and other cases of Chinese students studying abroad. To reduce the probability of encountering such cases, international students need to have a strong sense of safety, stay away from relatively dangerous times, places, and people, and act safely. There was once a case in which two Chinese students were robbed and shot. They drove back to their residence in the middle of the night and were killed when they were robbed by two robbers in the parking lot. In terms of time, the crime occurred in the early morning, which is the most dangerous time of the day; in terms of location, their residence and parking place is an area with a high crime rate. If they consciously pay attention to the above safety elements, they may be able to reduce the probability of this tragedy happening.
Be alert to security risks
Living in a foreign country, international students will inevitably face complex and diverse cultural and legal differences as well as various security issues. To sum up, the main risk issues during studying abroad include: financial crimes (including telecommunications fraud), psychological safety, legal risks, social safety, travel safety, and various campus safety risks. Here are some common risks and how to deal with them:
In foreign countries, incidents of posing as Chinese public prosecutors and staff of Chinese embassies and consulates abroad to carry out telecom fraud have occurred frequently. Scammers pretend to be public officials to gain the trust of students, fabricate stories, claim that students are involved in crimes, and then induce them to transfer money. To prevent being cheated, international students need to know the tricks of scammers, pay attention to protecting personal privacy information, and remember not to transfer money no matter what the other party says.
Ignorance of differences in Chinese and foreign cultures and customs may also lead to safety risks. For example, misunderstandings when dealing with the police may lead to violent law enforcement, rashly visiting other people’s homes may be shot in self-defense, gestures such as “OK” may have negative connotations in some places, etc. A behavior that is very common in China may violate local laws or customs and taboos abroad, ranging from being unpopular to posing a personal safety hazard. It is hoped that international students will have an in-depth understanding of local customs, laws and taboos when they go abroad, and do as the Romans do when they go abroad.
Cultivate security capabilities
When you are overseas and far away from your family, when you encounter a security risk unfortunately, the most timely and reliable way is to rely on your own security capabilities to save the day.
What is security capability? It mainly includes four aspects: the first is the ability to stay away from risks, that is, to know and avoid potential safety risks; In a dangerous situation, the ability to use safety skills such as firefighting, emergency response, defense, first aid, and survival skills to deal with emergencies; the last is the ability to repair after distress, that is, to self-adjust or use professional strength to promote physical and mental improvement after distress. ability to recover.
Before going abroad, it should be a compulsory course for international students to receive systematic safety education, learn a wealth of overseas safety knowledge, and master the necessary safety skills. In many countries, safety education has been systematically carried out in elementary and middle schools. For example, a parent of a 12-year-old foreign student once said that the first lesson for the child is to respond to school shootings and terrorist attacks.
Accepting safety education does not mean that you can develop good safety habits, because the formation of good habits requires daily practice. Many dangers happen in an instant, and the golden survival time is very short. When danger comes, making correct judgment and emergency response at the first time requires practice and application. There are many good safety habits, such as not looking at your mobile phone while driving and walking; when waiting for a train or subway on a platform without closed guardrails, be careful not to be squeezed; when you go to public places such as competitions and performances, observe emergency exits and evacuate as soon as possible channel etc. When good habits become natural, safety is more guaranteed.