What to Do at a Travel Clinic Before You Leave for a Study Abroad Program
By Muntasir Minhaz • Published Aug 19, 2026 • Canadians Studying Abroad
Book a travel health appointment about six weeks before you leave for a study abroad program. A doctor, nurse or travel clinic checks your vaccination record, prescribes destination-specific vaccines or malaria medication if you need them, and helps you build a travel health kit.
⏱️ Book six weeks ahead. A late appointment still helps if your trip is close.
🩱 Bring your immunization record, itinerary and current medication list.
💉 Ask about routine vaccines, destination vaccines and malaria prevention.
🌋 Pack a travel health kit with first aid supplies and enough medication for the whole trip.
📋 Carry proof of insurance and an emergency contact card with you.
Book your appointment about six weeks before you leave
Contact a doctor, nurse or health care provider, or visit a travel health clinic, preferably six weeks before your departure date, according to Travel.gc.ca . Some vaccines need more than one dose spaced weeks apart, and your body needs time to build immunity before you travel. If your program start date is close, book the appointment anyway. The clinic still fits in vaccines, prescriptions and advice on short notice.
Find a clinic through your family doctor or a dedicated travel health clinic. The Public Health Agency of Canada keeps a list of designated Yellow Fever Vaccination Centres, a useful starting point if your destination carries any risk of yellow fever.
What the appointment covers
Tell the clinician your exact destination, program dates and planned activities, including any side trips. According to Travel.gc.ca , the appointment covers whether your routine vaccinations are up to date and whether you need extra vaccines or medication for your destination, such as for yellow fever or malaria.
Routine vaccines matter no matter where you study. Measles cases have risen worldwide, so confirm your MMR status before you go. The clinic checks your record against your destination and flags any gaps.
Destination-specific advice
Pre-travel vaccine and medication guidance for your destination sits in the Health section of that country's travel advice and advisories page on travel.gc.ca, under Pre-travel vaccines and medications. Pull up your destination's page before your appointment so the clinician has the full picture.
What to bring to your appointment
Your immunization record or vaccine history
Your program dates, city and any planned side trips
A list of medications you take now, with doses
Details of any allergies or existing medical conditions
Build a travel health kit
A basic kit covers first aid and minor illness for longer than your program lasts. Pack adhesive bandages, antiseptic wipes, oral rehydration salts, a thermometer and tweezers, plus any prescription or over-the-counter medication you use regularly. Bring more than enough of any prescription medication to last the entire trip, since it is not guaranteed at your destination in the same form. If the clinic prescribes antimalarial pills or other destination-specific medication, add those to the kit too, per Travel.gc.ca's travel health kit guide .
Documents to carry with you
Keep a copy of your immunization record in your kit. If you receive an International Certificate of Vaccination or Prophylaxis for yellow fever, carry the original with your passport, since border officials at some destinations ask for it on arrival. Add a contact card with your Canadian doctor's number, a family contact, your accommodation address abroad and your travel insurance emergency line. Register your trip with the Registration of Canadians Abroad service before you leave so Global Affairs Canada can reach you in an emergency.
Ask about cost before you agree
Provincial health plans do not cover every travel vaccine. Some, like the one for yellow fever or Japanese encephalitis, come at an extra cost that varies by clinic and province. Ask for the price of each recommended vaccine before your appointment ends, and check whether your student health plan or travel insurance covers part of it.
If your program includes more than one country
List every stop on your itinerary for the clinician, not only your main study destination. A side trip during a reading week or a term break can carry a different vaccine or malaria prevention need than your home base, especially if it takes you into a rural or lower-altitude area. Give the clinic your full travel plan up front so it can plan your vaccines and medication around every stop, not just the first one.
Booster doses and multi-dose vaccines
Some vaccines need two or three doses spaced weeks apart to reach full protection, and a few, such as a rabies pre-exposure series, take even longer to complete. Book your appointment early enough that the clinic can space out any multi-dose series before you leave. If you can't finish a full series before departure, ask whether an accelerated schedule fits your situation, or whether you should complete the series after you arrive.
What to do if you get sick after you land
Keep your clinic's contact number and a copy of your immunization record with you after you arrive, not only before you leave. If you develop symptoms that match something you were vaccinated or medicated against, such as fever after time in a malaria risk area, tell a local health care provider right away and mention your recent travel history. Travel.gc.ca's advice on what to do if you become sick while travelling or after you return applies here too, even though your return trip is still months away.
Confirm your insurance separately
A travel health clinic handles your medical prevention, not your coverage. Confirm your travel or student health insurance covers your full program dates and the country you're heading to before your appointment, so any prescriptions or vaccines the clinic recommends line up with what your plan pays for.