Frequently Asked Questions

It’s an amazing opportunity to learn a lot about yourself, about a different country and culture, and to practice your foreign language skills. Immersed in the culture and language of your chosen destination, you will live as a member of your host family, school and community.  You will attend the local secondary school.

By the end of the program, you will have gained new friends, a second family and have improved your language skills, besides expanding your horizons. The exchange experience is very rewarding but also very challenging and it will greatly benefit your future education and career opportunities.

Yes! Just choose the destination you are the most interested in and we will take care of your travel arrangements and make this dream come true!

There are no formal languages requirements for our destination countries. However, as you will be attending a school and living with a local family, we strongly recommend that you know the basics of the language.

Possessing some language skills will enable you to interact with people more easily and generally make your visit more comfortable and enjoyable. More importantly, your level of motivation and enthusiasm as well as your willingness to learn and embrace a different culture will all contribute to your experience.

You can let us know about your preference and we can do our best to try to accommodate, but we cannot guarantee the placement. Students are matched and placed with volunteer families from all over the destination country. We prioritise the things you and the host family might have in common over the location in the country where you will be placed.  To make the most of your program it is important to be flexible and open minded.

During your exchange, you will live with a host family. When living with your host family, you will be a member of the family and will share the same privileges and responsibilities. You will not be considered as a guest or tourist but a contributing, valued family member.  Accordingly, it is important to adjust your behaviour, obey the rules and respect the values and priorities of your host family.

No, your family has no obligation to host a student while you are away. However, the experience of welcoming an exchange student into your home can be a great way to get in touch with a different culture and learn many different things. Moreover, you will be able to show them some of your own culture. And if you are thinking about going on exchange, that can be a great opportunity to learn how significant this experience is for both the student and the host family.

Host families come in all shapes, sizes and backgrounds, just as they do at home. They might be similar or very different to your family. Host families can comprise of parents with teenage children, single parents, families without children, an older couple whose children have already grown up or same sex-couples. Whatever size or shape, the host families are open to receiving a student from overseas and to share the student’s learning experience.

Each host family is interviewed by our agency or our counterparts in each country and they are required to undergo screening procedures and a criminal history check.

You and your friend can apply for the same country/program, but you cannot be placed in the same host family. In our programs, host families are not allowed to host two students from the same nationality at the same time. We have this rule to encourage our students to make the most of their experience and really immerse themselves in the culture to develop their language skills, make new friends and connect to the new community where they are staying.

You are welcome to call us on (08) 8379 5726 or send an email to [email protected] or to express your interest on our website here.  Once you have expressed interest, we will contact you to explain the program in further detail and assist you with the application process.

No, independent travel is not allowed on this program. As a minor living in a foreign country, you are under the responsibility of your host family and they have a duty of care toward you. You may have the opportunity to travel with your host family on holidays or weekend trips, or on a school excursion, but you are not allowed to travel without the supervision of those responsible for you.

It depends. There are two scenarios where it may be possible to extend your stay. The first one would be if your parents join you after the program is over and you then travel with your family. The second would be if you turn 18 years old overseas, meaning you would be legally capable to travel by yourself. However, for this last option to happen, we need to organise all documents and release forms with your family and our agents beforehand.

There will be a local coordinator on hand to assist you with any difficulties you may have while overseas. If you have an issue, please do not hesitate to contact him/her to get some help. It’s very important that you raise your concerns and struggles with your local coordinator so they can help you.

Keep an open mind and try to understand that the culture and customs might be different from what you are used to. If the issues cannot be solved, as a last resort, we will move you to a different host family.

If you already have a family arranged for your exchange, you can stay with them. Students of the World will then only provide support with school, flights, insurance etc.

It depends on the type of program you choose as well as the destination country. For example, for short programs in European Union countries, a visa is not required for less than a 3 months stay. However, for programs exceeding 90 days, a visa will be required. But no need to worry, if you need to apply for a visa, we can assist you throughout the entire process. Visa costs are not included in the program fee.

Yes! We are very flexible and can tailor the program to attend to all your needs. Please get in touch with us to discuss your plans, and we can set up a program especially for you.

It depends. This is a decision to be made in consultation with your school or education authority and your parents. It is important to speak with your school early in the process about how being an exchange student will impact your enrolment. This may differ according to whether you participate on a short or a long program, or whether you have completed your schooling before participation commences.

We have local coordinators and partners in all of the countries that we send students to.  The local coordinators are available 24/7 to assist with any difficulties you might have. Our student coordinators from Australia are in regular contact with them to best support you throughout your experience.

Some of the shorter programs are on offer during peak airfare seasons, increasing the price of the program.  Regardless of the length of the program, Australian and overseas staff have the same responsibilities for selection, host family placement, bookings, staffing, support and accessibility.  For these reasons, there is not a huge variation in price between the programs.

We understand your family and friends can get very excited and might start making plans and book a holiday to visit you during the program. We kindly ask families to please NOT plan any trip without consulting Students of the World beforehand.

Most of our counterparts do not allow the natural families to visit their child during their program. However, some allow visits at the end of the program. Our agents believe visits during the program can negatively impact not only the student’s experience, but also their host family’s.

If families would like to visit, we can consider the possibility on a case-by-case basis. Please let us know of your plans and we can discuss it together.

We recommend students bring $100 per week (in the currency of their destination) with them to pay for personal items, transport to and from school, school lunches, activities with friends and so on.

We usually recommend students submit their application as early as possible to ensure they are suitable for the program and fulfil all of the requirements. We can then prepare all the necessary documentation and plan the whole program in conjunction with your school and our partner agents.

Yes, definitely! You just need to let us know sometime before the end of your program.  This way we have enough time to organise everything for you. However, this extension might involve extra fees as we need to change your flight schedule as well as change arrangements with our partner agents.