Program Reviews

Besides the obvious reason of Switzerland's superior chocolate, living in that beautiful country close to the Alps is a unique experience. My host family truly valued the importance of mealtime, and we always ate together, even when I had to bike home from school to do so. I absolutely loved my host family because they were so generous and welcomed me with open arms. The biggest challenge for me was having to learn both High German and the local dialect of Swiss German, which are basically two different languages. There are so many little special quirks about the country like how the Swiss turn off their car engines at a red light or how notebook paper is actually graphing paper. Altogether, I fell in love with this country very quickly. My recommendation to anyone thinking about Switzerland, is to go for it. Challenge yourself, do some outdoorsy stuff, and learn about this little-known country in the middle of Europe. This isn't a kind of experience that you will ever regret.

I didn't feel as if AFS France was organized and truly cared about their students. Obviously there were lovely volunteers I had met who welcomed me into their home but there were some who didn't bother to learn the names of the students or overall I didn't feel as if they were there to make a positive experience on the students stay. I also had difficulties with AFS when my host family and I were not getting along-it happens when spending so much time together but AFS sent someone to talk to me who didn't improve the situation and promised she would call back to check up on me but never in the 6 months following the incident. I also lived 2 hours away from my fellow AFSers in the region so meeting up for the AFS get togethers next staying at a volunteers house--once the volunteer forgot to pick me up. Lastly because I was further away from most of the AFSers in the group nobody invited me to the meetings until about 2 months into my stay...AFS meetings become an important part of your stay because you get to see your friends so I felt as if I was alone for at least the first 2 months when nobody told me we were having meetings. Overall it was a great experience and I wouldn't change going on the year abroad BUT I may think differently about AFS although I understand all organizations have their faults and unfortunately AFS is the best of the organizations. Lastly not all regions and countries are the same! AFS USA is fantastic where as AFS France is t...it depends where you choose to go and what region you end up with.

It's hard trying to forget about Brazil! I had an AMAZING time down there. If you're thinking in going down there, prepare yourself to eat coffee and bread for breakfast, rice and beans everyday, and eating pizza with silverware. Drinking lots of Guaraná and having some açaí. Oh yeah and churrasco of course!
Brazil is honestly a beautiful country with so much culture and most people don't realize that unless they spend a good amount of time there. From the beaches of Rio de Janeiro, to the hills of Belo Horizonte to the German colonized towns in Santa Catarina, Brazil is filled with so much diversity and attractions.
Brazilians are also some of the nicest people you'll ever meet in your life! They're really open and touchy so get used to giving hugs and kisses when you greet people. Brazilians love to go out in a big group of friends and have a good time.
Also, you're not the only one so you'll meet lots of kids from all over the world! For example in my town I was the only american and there were 2 girls from Thailand, a German, and a boy from Greenland. Since you meet in the capital of your state for orientations you'll meet all the kids in your state. I was able to meet more Germans, Italians, and boy from Austria and another boy from Turkey.
School in Brazil is also great since its shorter than school days here in Texas. You'll be in a classroom with about 20-30 kids and the teacher will show up at your classroom. Usually school is from around 7:30 to about 12:30 and most if not all schools offer a little 25-30 minute interval.
Coming to Brazil was perhaps one of the best decisions I made in my teenage years. Being able to have that experience of studying abroad and learning Portuguese, has opened so many doors for me now that I am heading off to college. Being away from home made me realize how we take lots of things for granted and I also learned how we should also take advantage of our time. I wish I would've had more Guaraná, açaí, and pizza de frango com catupiry (pizza with chicken and catupiry; a special Brazilian cheese.)
If anyone is thinking in going down there, I totally recommend it. If you make the best of it, you'll have perhaps the best year of your teenage life. If I could, I would do my exchange all over again since it was that fun.
Venha pro Brasil! Come to Brazil!

My name is Caterina Amici, and I spent my junior year in Spain. I was the only exchange student placed in Asturias, so I didn't have the same experience as most of my friends had. Upon arriving in Spain I was a very shy and introverted person, but by the end I became more confident in myself. I had a lot of challenges during my year. Some being: the language(if you do not think it is important to take some classes before leaving...think again), the attention I got at school (I hadn't thought about getting put on the spot ALL the time), sharing a room, and eating so late (the Spanish eat very very late). My family was the best thing about my whole year. I love them to death and will always have a close relationship with my 3 siblings and my mother and father. My friends will also always hold a special place in my heart. It was the best year of my life, and I don't even think my first year of college will top it. If I were to give a future AFS student advice, it would be this, your year is what you make of it. It can be very difficult at times being so far away and all, but you cannot think about that stuff too much. Be open to the experience, and enjoy the time you have there. SUERTE (GOOD-LUCK)

I studied abroad for a semester in Italy with AFS, and it was the best experience of my life. I was only 15 when I went, so it was really life-changing. Especially in high school, studying abroad gives you such an awesome advantage over your classmates in the USA. You'll return a completely new person, and having learned and experienced so much more than all of your friends at home. I lived with a fantastic host family in Gravina in Puglia, a teeny town in southern Italy, and I'm still in contact with them three years later. Italy is a really great country for study abroad, especially in high school, because Italians have such a warm and welcoming culture! They'll be just excited that you're there as you are.

Starting with a pre-departure orientation in the US, orientations in Italy, and usually the placement of multiple other exchange students in your Italian high school, you'll make the best friends you could wish for! I went to a regular Italian high school during the week, and made so many great friends. Because of the great public transportation system, you'll have a lot of opportunities to further explore both Italy as a whole and the region of Italy where you're living.

I had a full language immersion with AFS, and left Italy conversationally proficient in Italian. If you are able, study abroad in high school!!! It's such a great experience, and it really will change the way you see the world, especially at such a young age. I left Italy knowing so much more about myself than before I left, and am now studying linguistics and becoming certified to teach english abroad. Bottom line: STUDY ABROAD! If you can do it, DO IT!

My experience while in France was one I will never forget. The program allowed me to discover the type of person I was and am today as well as prepare me for college. The experience allowed me to meet a ton of people. Not only did I meet many of the French but I was able to share this experience with 256 other student from 50 different countries who were in France with me at the same time, it was great. Through the program I was also able to find myself a second family which is not what I ever expected and at this point my host siblings have really become my actual siblings. I honestly wouldn't change a thing and would do it again if I could!

My year abroad in Belgium through AFS was full of the good, the bad, and the ugly. Full disclosure, I went abroad at 16, a mere junior in high school, 10 years ago. With these 10 years of hindsight, I can give the full report, and how it has affected me all these years later. The AFS program, while set up to help each student succeed, failed on a few accounts. I was explicitly told that the host families were not paid to host the participants. The host family in which I was placed was unable to provide adequate food and the family was extremely hostile towards me and Americans in general. I understand this is not within the control of the program necessarily, but when I complained and asked to be switched, I was unable. The country is divided into districts where you are not able to move freely. There was not another host family in my district, and so I was out of luck. My host family was informed (without my consent) that I was unhappy and that made the situation even worse. I feel that AFS put me into a potentially dangerous situation with regard to my host family.

On the other hand, I loved the other people that participated in the program. I was able to learn a great deal about myself. It was a year that was truly full of growth and learning. The experience itself, while difficult at times (especially with my host family) was ultimately transformative. It enabled me to become a stronger person and trust myself. I would highly recommend study abroad as a teen, but I would be wary of the difficulty that could arise with the structure AFS uses to place their students.