Annually, thousands of students embark on a journey beyond their borders to pursue higher education. This adventure, although promising, can be laden with challenges. To navigate these waters successfully, students must arm themselves with a set of skills that transcend academic prowess. This guide delves into the top ten skills indispensable for a rewarding study abroad experience. 10 Essential Skills to Learn Before Going to Study Abroad Independence: The Foundation of Overseas Education Independence is the most significant transformation students encounter when studying abroad. It's a multifaceted skill encompassing self-reliance and responsibility. From basic chores like laundry and grocery shopping to more complex tasks like managing personal finances and making informed decisions, independence is critical. Developing problem-solving skills to tackle unexpected challenges is equally important, as it ensures students can handle various situations without constant guidance. Read more: 10 Essential Life Skills for Teens to Learn before College Research and Planning: Your Blueprint for Success A thorough understanding of your destination's culture, legal system, and day-to-day life is vital. This means researching not just your academic institution and its curriculum, but also local customs, public transportation, and essential services. Effective planning helps mitigate culture shock and eases the transition, making your study abroad experience more enjoyable and less overwhelming. Financial Literacy: Navigating Economic Waters Abroad Mastering local banking systems and effective budgeting are paramount. Learn how to open a bank account, manage transactions, and understand currency exchange rates. Budgeting becomes a lifeline abroad; it involves setting realistic spending limits for various needs, including rent, food, transportation, and entertainment. Regularly tracking expenses helps avoid financial pitfalls and ensures a sustainable lifestyle. Cross-Cultural Communication: Bridging the Gap Adapting to a new culture requires a deep understanding of both verbal and non-verbal communication. This includes being aware of cultural norms in conversation, greetings, and gestures. Respectful and empathetic communication is key to forming meaningful relationships and avoiding misunderstandings. Embracing the local language, even at a basic level, can significantly enrich interactions and open doors to deeper cultural insights. Adaptability and Empathy: The Heart of Cultural Immersion The ability to adapt to new environments and empathize with different cultures is crucial. This skill is about more than just surviving; it's about thriving in a foreign setting. Adaptability means being open to new experiences, whether it’s adjusting to different academic structures or embracing unique social customs. Empathy allows you to appreciate and respect cultural differences, fostering a more inclusive and enriching experience.

Commerce Minister Tipu Munshi today said that both financial literacy and good business organizations are must to boost investment in the capital market. The stock market is a crucial sector for the country’s economy, so knowledgeable investors can drive the capital market to be sustainable, he said. The minister said this while speaking as the chief guest at the inaugural session of the Arthosuchak Capital Market Expo-2023, held at Institute of Diploma Engineers’ Bangladesh (IDEB) in Dhaka. Tipu Munshi said that more than 50 percent of money is taken from the capital market in developed economies. “We don’t have that situation in our country. Loans are taken from banks, which is creating several problems in the banking sector. If even 50 percent of the money came from the capital market, business and trade in our country are bound to improve,” the minister said. A group with vest interest is cleverly defining the country’s political and economic development – spreading rumours and lies and trying to mislead people, the minister said. Read more: BSEC working to enhance financial literacy for capital market investors: Prof Shibli “The country has progressed so much, and they say, it is not right. But they can no longer deny the visible improvement. Those who are doing this, they do not want development of this country,” Munshi said. Professor Shibli Rubayat-Ul-Islam, chairman of BSEC, attend the function as special guest, while Ziaur Rahman, editor of Arthya Suchak presided over the program. Chairman of Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE) Md Eunusur Rahman, Chittagong Stock Exchange (CSE) Chairman Asif Ibrahim, Bangladesh Publicly Listed Companies Association (BAPLC) President Anis Ud Dowla, Bangladesh Merchant Bankers Association (BMBA) President Sayedur Rahman and Dhaka Brokers Association (DBA) President Richard De Rosario, among other, spoke in the function. Read more: IMF for capacity building of capital market in Bangladesh

The chairman of the Bangladesh Security and Exchange Commission (BSEC) Prof Shibli Rubayat-Ul-Islam has said that the capital market regulator is working to enhance the public's financial literacy so they can invest consciously and profitably. To this effect, the BSEC is cooperating with the Ministry of Education and the National Curriculum and Textbook Board (NCTB) to include a chapter on the capital market in the secondary and higher secondary levels textbooks. Talking to UNB, Prof Shibli acknowledged that sometimes people are being influenced to invest their hard-earned money or chasing misinformation.  "If they can become financially literate, then no one can cheat them," he said. Read more: Under, over-invoicing to stop if commodity exchange is launched: BSEC Chairman With a nationwide average of 24.6 percent, the financial literacy score in Bangladesh is still quite low, according to a recent survey by the Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics and Brac Business School. Respondents with an educational qualification below SSC, people aged over 50, self-employed people, Dhaka natives, housewives, and farmers have the lowest scores, according to the 2022 survey report. The BSEC is working to introduce real estate investment trust, or REIT, Pink, and Orange bonds in the capital markets by 2023. Through Pink bonds, small entrepreneurs can collect money for investment while SMEs and large entrepreneurs can collect money through Orange bonds.  Both the coloured bonds will be introduced to encourage women investors as well as empowering them in the financial sector, Prof Shibli said. Read more: Visiting IMF team will meet BSEC to discuss capital market on Nov 7 Besides, the BSEC has a special bond plan for the garment and textile sector so that the entrepreneurs can collect money from the capital market to expand their business. At the same time the investors will encourage investment in this secured sector, he said. Prof Shibli said the country’s development projects cannot be completed depending on revenue only - project-based infrastructure bonds and municipal bonds for fund collection from the stock market would be a diversified funding scope for development. If the project authority provides dividends of around 12-13 percent, then people will invest money in the project-based bond market instead of depositing their money in FDRs and saving certificates, he said. He said Bangladesh’s investment demand is over USD $800 billion for infrastructure and other service sector development in line with LDC graduation, which will not be possible to collect from domestic sources. But a large portion is possible through the capital market. Read more: Takes 6-12 months to identify a share market manipulator in existing system: BSEC Chairman Replying to a question he said that investors who have the patience to invest in the capital market and who want to secure investment scope should invest in the bond market and get greater dividends than their returns from IDFs and saving certificates. Mutual funds, Treasury bonds’ and others are trading in the capital markets, where anyone or ordinary people can invest money. He said that the mutual funds are providing dividends of around 10 to 20 percent  during the last 10/12 years. "Those who have financial knowledge can invest in secondary share trading, and try to gain profit. They should prefer bonds and mutual funds," the BSEC chairman said. The regulator has pushed through dozens of reforms in the capital market, from imposing company audit systems and towards accountability of brokerage houses during his tenure. As a result, the capital market will be  well-positioned in the future. Read More: Financial literacy: BICM reduces master's program fees by 50% “We just planted the seed, from which the tree or plant will be visible within the next few years,” Prof Shibli said.

Recently a survey shows that a huge number of women have little or no money in their bank accounts. About 40% of women have $100 or less in their savings compared with 26% of men. As a woman do you ever think why it is tough for women to save more than men? Have you ever tried to overcome this challenge? If not, no worries. We are here to let you know the reasons and ways to change it. Why Can’t Females Make Good Savings Like Males? There might be many reasons why women became able to save less money than men. The survey shows about 40% of women are indifferent to reporting having less in their checking accounts. They allow easily having their minimum checking account balance reach $100 or less while not more than 28% of men do not permit to have such a low minimum balance. Secondly, usually, women earn less than men. So, naturally, they cannot save as much money as men can do. Moreover, in many societies the women need to leave work or jobs due to rear children or to take care of older family-members. Generally, men do not take these responsibilities.  So, it is clear that in general women are incapable of making good savings because they don’t get the scope to make a huge income from jobs, business or other sectors. Read 10 Greatest Female Entrepreneurs of the 21st Century On top of that, societies or families do not put as much emphasis on the income of women as they do in the case of men. Therefore, many young women may not feel the urge to save money.

The United Nation’s Migration Agency, International Organization for Migration (IOM) on Tuesday urged communities to support the reintegration and combat stigmatization of returning migrant workers to Bangladesh.   On the International Day of Family Remittances, IOM said due to the economic and labour crisis created by the COVID-19 pandemic, hundreds of thousands of migrant workers are expected to return by the end of the year, said a press release.