Exchange Student Going Home Early?
i am an exchange student from the united states ( pennsylvania) who is currently doing an rotary student exchange in germany. I have been here since aug 11th and i am not to go back to the united states until june 30th. I really want to go home. In the beginning i was really homesick and told my self to go at least until the 31st of october and then make a decision. Now that that date is getting closser i am really planing to go home, It is not that i am overly homesick any more, its just that i am very much unhappy here. I do not have many friends and miss my friends and family back home, but my heart is not here it is back home. The only thing keeping me here is i am afraid of disappointing people back home, but i would never regret doing the exchange i just don't think it is right for me any more, i am not happy here i am miserable. I would definitely say that i am not the same person that came to germany ( i was a spoiled smart mouthed 16 year old) now i am more mature and have a much better appreciation of my family, friends and my home town. I just no longer think continuing this is a good idea. I mean its not much of a one in a life time event if you are not happy through it right? All i want to do is go back and finnish high school and go to college. What should i do, should i listen to my heart and instinct and go home.....and how would i go about doing that?
Has anyone had a good experience with ASSE (a student exchange program)?
ASSE is not one of the worst, nor one of the best. You might check on the website for the Committee for the Safety of Foreign Exchange Students to see what kind of reports there are on it. The site lists news reports from around the country. http://csfes.org/ There are several I've never seen up there: Aspect, AFS, Rotary, 4-H, YFU -- all of which have a great reputation. I'd also check with your school counselor and ask who they recommend. The organization is only as good as the local people. As to the experience itself, I recommend a year stay. That way you'll get the full benefit of language immersion. While it's hard at first to understand the language, the benefits are enormous!
Can a 13 or 14 year old become a Foreign Exchange student to The UK, SPAIN, or, ITALY?
In the United States, to be a traditional exchange student, you must be at least 15 years old by the time your program starts -- you can apply at 14. You should really go during your junior year of high school. That will give you some maturity and also allow you to arrange your schedules so that you graduate on time (you may have to take some summer classes or correspondence classes). I would suggest either Spain or Italy. If you go to the UK, you will lose one of the primary benefits of a student exchange -- language immersion. The three premier organizations (meaning the ones you SHOULD use) with the best reputations are YFU, AFS and Rotary. I've listed the web sites below (or your counselor might have some info). Language training may or may not be necessary for the country in which you'd like to study. I know it is for all French speaking countries, but not for Germany and Japan. Check with the program representative to be sure. I've also given you an on-line information center and forum site. http://www.afs.org/afs_or/home http://www.yfu.org/ http://www.rotary.org/en/StudentsAndYout... http://www.exchangestudentworld.com/
How Old Do You Have To Be To Be An Exchange Student?
Rotary, AFS, and YFU are all reputable exchange programs for high school age students. Personally, I recommend Rotary because it is run by volunteers, meaning the people involved (most importantly the host families) are doing it because they want to, not for pay. Rotary is also significantly less expensive than AFS, though I'm not sure about YFU at all.