What’s a Student Exchange Program?

Moving to the USA for studying purposes can be very different, and the experience you get is going to be a lifetime memory. If you always dreamt about not only studying abroad but becoming a part of the foreign community and learning about the culture and the traditions by integrating yourself in them, Exchange Program is exactly what you were looking for.
Each and every one of our former students has had a unique experience during their exchange year. You can read their stories shared on our Facebook page or follow our Instagram and Youtube account for their impressions.

This article will give you some understanding of what an Exchange Program is like, and hopefully inspire you to visit our website for more.

The main goal of the Exchange Program is to give a student an opportunity to dive into the foreign culture, meet its traditions, language, and people as close as possible. As an Exchange Student, you can only be a successful one if you really become a part of a new-met community and let it impact you and your way of thinking with all the new things it brings to you. Instead of just watching everything happen around, you should be actively taking part in it.
Among all the studying opportunities, being an Exchange Student is the most exciting one: the experience of attending a public High School and living with a Host Family gives you a chance to 24/7 feel the American culture. Such a deep dive into the unknown will definitely raise a lot of emotions: struggling to get used to the new language and rules, missing your family, catching up with the new school system. However, it will also bring a lot of positive moments to you, like celebrating Christmas with your Host Family, playing sports, making friends and spending time with them. The Exchange Program is all about experiencing the new, finding your way of getting used to it, and eventually enjoying.

Being a part of an Exchange Program involves a lot of adaptation. You should follow the rules in your Host Family’s household even if they are different from those you had back home. It’s likely you would have different household responsibilities and a different level of independence because every family is unique. You should also obey the school rules even if they seem weird or too strict to you. Remember: there are no unnecessary rules, especially in a totally new environment. Getting used to the new way of living might be challenging but there would always be people around you who would be ready to support you at anytime: your Host Family and the Program’s representatives. You can rely on them but remember that the adaptation process is so much more about what happens inside your head than around you. As soon as you get to know your surrounding a bit better, you will feel more confident and “at home” from day to day.

Although the Exchange Program’s main purpose is not teaching you something, it definitely involves learning and gaining the knowledge. There will be no paper-pencil kind of studying, instead you will broaden your horizons by meeting new people and learning new things on a daily basis. Every episode of an Exchange year will become a bright detail in your way of viewing the world, sometimes it might even totally change it. Throughout the year you will not only learn about the culture but also discover some unexpected things about yourself. You’ll learn patience by being asked something obvious about your country for a thousandth time, you’ll learn your boundaries and their flexibility by getting used to the new society and its standards. You’ll learn how to understand, communicate and express yourself easily overcoming the language barrier and the culture gap. This is what an Exchange Program will teach you.