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Schooling Arrangements

ASK THE HOST FAMILY: Which schools are in the area? How will the exchange student get to school? How will he/she come home? Which school can they recommend? What do they know about the school you choose?

Have you thought of everything?

Contact the school director / head master:

Will the school accept exchange students?
Would your exchange student be welcome
for the time/duration you envision?
Are school uniforms needed?
Where can you buy them?
Will the school charge a fee?
How high is the fee?
Which grade will the exchange student
be in?
How large is the class?
Will the exchange student have to buy
any books etc. upfront?
Who shall the exchange student contact
on the 1st day?
When is the 1st day? When does
school start?
How long are school hours?
What about lunch?
What else is there to know to
be prepared and to avoid surprises?

Travel Arrangements

pick the safest means of transportation
make sure the exchange student is
being picked up upon arrival
buy a travel / luggage insurance
make sure everyone has everyone
else's mobile phone numbers etc.
clarify with airline, if teenager can
travel alone
get a visa if a visa is needed
inform your local school, that your
child will participate in a student
exchange

Travel Preparations

check with your doctor if special
injections etc. are needed
get necessary insurances (e.g.
health insurance & liability insurance)
check with the airline / bus company
how much luggage can be transported
usually there is no need to bring:
towels, bed sheets and such - but
please talk about it with the host
family
pack gifts for the host family
...and leave room in the suitcase for
souvenirs!

Links to helpful websites

USA, United Kingdom, Germany, France, Spain, Italy, Netherlands, Switzerland, Japan

The following links are meant to be a help, a first step into the right direction - but ultimately every case will be different and only the local embassy in your country will be able to tell you exactly if you need a visa and if so, how to acquire it.

The easiest visa is the "3 months tourist visit", which in most cases requires no visa at all and allows the student to stay for up to 3 months. Also easy to acquire is the "working holiday visa", which allows the student to travel (and work if that is wanted) for up to one year. The "working holiday visa" is only accessible though to certain nationalities and for limited countries: e.g. Australia, Canada, Japan, New Zealand, UK, Germany, South Korea etc. (not the US). This visa can only be issued once per country per life-time and only for travellers under the age of 30. The costs are approx. 30 Euros / 50 $US and the visa is easily optained upon arrival. Nevertheless always check with your local embassies for latest rules & regulations.

USA

Visit, study and work in the USA

United Kingdom

Visit, study and work in the United Kingdom

Germany

Visit, study and work in Germany

France

Visa information and links to embassies

Spain

Student Visa information

Italy

Visa information and links to embassies

Netherlands

Visa information and application

Switzerland

Visa information and general information

Japan