High school exchange programme in the USA

Your host family, local coordinator and your host organisation will provide you with support while you are overseas. WEP will remain in contact with the host organisation and your parents to coordinate and support your experience. In case of an emergency, both you and your family will be able to call an emergency phone number that is answered 24/7.

No. Even if you go on exchange to an English speaking destination, you will not be able to transfer work across to the UK school system. Students should expect to return home to the UK and start a new year of school having taken a gap year. Most applicants participate in a year program with WEP and return to school with the year below on their return. If you participate in a shorter program, your school might be willing to allow you to catch up with missed work so that you can continue in your same school year. All these decisions are made by your school so it is important that you talk with them before applying for the program.

Our partners have different rules regarding your language proficiency - some ask that you have between 1 and 2 years of experience with their language, while others (such as Brazil, Argentina, Denmark, Finland and Norway) do not require you to have learnt their language before departing on exchange.

If you want to go to a country where English is not the first language, you must be committed to learning the language and studying as much as possible before you depart - the more you know on arrival, the easier the transition will be. It wouldn’t be acceptable for you to arrive on exchange with no knowledge of the language, as you would struggle to establish yourself on the program.

Of course, there are English-speaking destinations available if you are not interested in learning another language.

No, it's the host families who choose the student they wish to invite into their home. Based on the documents you will submit as part of your WEP application, one lucky family will choose to open their home and hearts to you, which is why there is no avenue for students participating in a Classic exchange program to choose a specific location.

It may be possible to live with an overseas family that you already know (excluding relatives of the student). However, the family will have to be screened and approved, prepared and supported by our partner organisation in the same manner as any other host family. School enrolment must also be available.

Host families come in all shapes and sizes. There is no set idea of what a family will look like, so it's very important that you have an open mind. Some families have children of your age or younger; some have children who have grown up and moved away; others have not had children. Some are single parent or single person families. Some families have same-sex parents.

We ask that a host family provides a safe and caring environment for a young person to live in. Whatever your family looks like, they will welcome you as part of their family.

Most of our families are based in suburban or rural areas. It is very rare that a family is based in a large city.

In the USA, you can pay an additional fee to request a region or state of your choice. Placement in these areas is not guaranteed but you can state a preference. You only pay the fee if you are placed in the area you have requested.

Alternatively, on our Preferred programs in the USA, Canada, Australia, you can choose where exactly you will live as you can choose your school or school district.

Families in every destination are selected by a similar process:

• Home interview -a staff member/representative of our partner organisation visits the family at home. They discuss what is involved in hosting and ensure they have the right motivation for hosting. They also assess the home for suitability and comfort.

• References – friends/colleagues of family members are contacted and asked about the family’s ability to host and care for a young person.

• Police check – all adult members of the home must complete a criminal background check.

NB: in Japan it is not possible for a criminal check to be secured due to the stringent bureaucracy preventing adults from getting a check of this nature. Most families are known by the school and the school plays a role in recruiting families.

Our partner organisations aim to notify your placement to you at least one month before departure. We hope that it will be no later than this, but, on occasion, the information does arrive later. Placement details could arrive a few days after you lodge your application or several months later. Whatever the situation, you have to be patient and be ready to contact your host family as soon as you receive the placement information sheet.

No. In most destinations your visa will not allow you to work while on the program. We also discourage students from working as it can prevent you from participating fully in other activities while on exchange. Students can volunteer if they wish.

No. Visits from family and friends are definitely not allowed during the exchange program. Your parents can plan to collect you at the end of the program from your host family home, but otherwise they cannot visit. If they do wish to collect you, they must notify WEP so that we can arrange your flight home for the correct date and arrange an extension of your insurance policy where needed. Please note that any additional fees for these changes are not included in the program fee.

Independent travel is not permissible while on exchange. However, you will be able to travel with your host family, school, host organisation and other community groups such as sporting teams or scouts. Again, the foremost aim of the program is educational, and your priority for any holiday periods must be your host family, who will be investing a lot of time, energy and money into this experience - simply in return for your frienship and positive contribution to their household.

Most of our partner organisations offer additional trips or tours that students can join to see more of their host country. The relevant information will be shared with your prior to departure or just after arrival. The cost of the trips or tours is not included in your program fee, so if you wish to join them you should budget for the extra expenses