Scholarships, scholarships, scholarships, scholarships. Scholarships.
I'm going to say for the millionth time, start looking for and applying to scholarships as soon as you decide you want to study abroad! Studying abroad can be less expensive than a year at your university, if only because there are so many scholarships and things available. I was fairly lucky in that I received the Gilman scholarship for $5000 (you can get up to $8000 if you're traveling to one of the countries on a list they have--Japan being one of them, though probably for various reasons I didn't get that much; but $5000 is still a lot and I'm so incredibly thankful that I was lucky enough to receive it). In any case, because I received that scholarship, combined with 2 grants, another scholarship, and the JCMU scholarship, I only need about $4500 in loans--that being the total for the year. I don't know how it is for most other students, but this is a pretty small amount compared to normal. It's also the first time in my college career that I'm able to decline any loans--a while 3 other loans! So, I can't stress enough (clearly, since this is probably the tenth time I've said this) that you need to hunt for and apply to scholarships immediately after you've decided to study abroad.
One last thing--I'm not sure I've ever discussed the price for JCMU. Essentially, it's going to be about $30,000 for the year. However, you're only actually billed about $20,000 for the year. It's just that technically you have to pay for the plane ticket yourself $2000, give or take), and you need about $4000 for the entire year for other expenses, such as traveling, food (which you are responsible for if you're in the dorm/apartment things, but if you get a host family, they provide breakfast and lunch--not a problem for me since I don't usually eat lunch anyway), and anything you may want to buy--souvenirs, gifts, as well as some things you may need while you're there. They say textbooks are usually provided, too. And all this extra stuff for which you need about $4000 for is just an estimate, since some people may be extreme spenders or travelers or something and may use $4000 or more, while others (like me, probably) may only use $4000 or less. It all depends on how much you intend to buy and /or travel, and such things. Of course, all of this can technically be covered by financial aid as well, and probably usually is, which is why they say it's about $30,000 for the year.
In the end, for my case at least, studying abroad has turned out to be a bit cheaper (granted, most of the money I have saved to use are refunds from loans last year, and I did have to buy a lot of stuff, like new clothes that would be appropriate over there, so I guess it's not cheaper by as much as I thought...but still, every bit helps) and a bit easier than normal. Phone calls, though. I've made a lot of phone calls, but they're worth it. I apologize for bothering all those offices so much, especially JCMU. But--they've all been a big help, especially JCMU. Although the MSU offices I've had to contact have been helpful, but they are so often confusing and sometimes don't know everything about it. For example, this one office was saying I had to pay the program itself, not through stuinfo like usual, but that isn't true. And the bill on stuinfo is a bit confusing, though I figured it out now. I'm only billed for JCMU tuition ($8100 or so) and housing ($2080 or so).
In any case, I hope this wasn't too confusing or too random at some points. I believe that was all I needed to say for now, though. Oh, and only 25 days until my flight! Not that I'm counting or anything...
I'm going to say for the millionth time, start looking for and applying to scholarships as soon as you decide you want to study abroad! Studying abroad can be less expensive than a year at your university, if only because there are so many scholarships and things available. I was fairly lucky in that I received the Gilman scholarship for $5000 (you can get up to $8000 if you're traveling to one of the countries on a list they have--Japan being one of them, though probably for various reasons I didn't get that much; but $5000 is still a lot and I'm so incredibly thankful that I was lucky enough to receive it). In any case, because I received that scholarship, combined with 2 grants, another scholarship, and the JCMU scholarship, I only need about $4500 in loans--that being the total for the year. I don't know how it is for most other students, but this is a pretty small amount compared to normal. It's also the first time in my college career that I'm able to decline any loans--a while 3 other loans! So, I can't stress enough (clearly, since this is probably the tenth time I've said this) that you need to hunt for and apply to scholarships immediately after you've decided to study abroad.
One last thing--I'm not sure I've ever discussed the price for JCMU. Essentially, it's going to be about $30,000 for the year. However, you're only actually billed about $20,000 for the year. It's just that technically you have to pay for the plane ticket yourself $2000, give or take), and you need about $4000 for the entire year for other expenses, such as traveling, food (which you are responsible for if you're in the dorm/apartment things, but if you get a host family, they provide breakfast and lunch--not a problem for me since I don't usually eat lunch anyway), and anything you may want to buy--souvenirs, gifts, as well as some things you may need while you're there. They say textbooks are usually provided, too. And all this extra stuff for which you need about $4000 for is just an estimate, since some people may be extreme spenders or travelers or something and may use $4000 or more, while others (like me, probably) may only use $4000 or less. It all depends on how much you intend to buy and /or travel, and such things. Of course, all of this can technically be covered by financial aid as well, and probably usually is, which is why they say it's about $30,000 for the year.
In the end, for my case at least, studying abroad has turned out to be a bit cheaper (granted, most of the money I have saved to use are refunds from loans last year, and I did have to buy a lot of stuff, like new clothes that would be appropriate over there, so I guess it's not cheaper by as much as I thought...but still, every bit helps) and a bit easier than normal. Phone calls, though. I've made a lot of phone calls, but they're worth it. I apologize for bothering all those offices so much, especially JCMU. But--they've all been a big help, especially JCMU. Although the MSU offices I've had to contact have been helpful, but they are so often confusing and sometimes don't know everything about it. For example, this one office was saying I had to pay the program itself, not through stuinfo like usual, but that isn't true. And the bill on stuinfo is a bit confusing, though I figured it out now. I'm only billed for JCMU tuition ($8100 or so) and housing ($2080 or so).
In any case, I hope this wasn't too confusing or too random at some points. I believe that was all I needed to say for now, though. Oh, and only 25 days until my flight! Not that I'm counting or anything...