Foreign Exchange Student Programs

[Aldaric]

I am currently using AFS. (American Field Services) I am in Chile for a year. I am becoming fluent in Spanish. I get a chance to totally change my personality for the better. I can be popular and date hot Chilean chicks. I am learning about a different culture. I am increasing my chance of getting into the college I want because colleges like this stuff. My family is saving money overall, and much more. It is abosofuckinglutely one of my best decisions in my life. If you are 16 or under you should definitely look into this, it isn't too late for you to do it. Just thought it would be good to share this so other people can have the amazing experience I am having. You do have to pay a pretty sum of money to go, but when you think about the fact that your new family will be paying for everything like food for a whole year, that is when you realize your blood family is saving money. http://www.afsusa.org/usa_en/view/9435 This explains why you shouldn't worry about the money. There isn't really much to discuss just do it!

[Slayr]

I'd so do this, but I'd have to wait 2 years. If I did do it i would totally go to Germany, going to Germany would be awesome. but I couldn't use AFS i'm a CANADIAN !WOO! so id use something else. it would still be awesome though.

[Donfuy]

If you are 16 or under you should definitely look into this, it isn't too late for you to do it.

;_;


Well, I've actually searched a bit and it would suit my age. I'd love to go to the USA.

[SlappyMcGee]

A friend of mine went to Australia for a Student Exchange Program. She is French, primarily, so when she speaks English, it is that awful french accent with Australian words and pacing.

[otters]

Man, I'd love to do this, if I wasn't afraid of going outside my house.

[Aldaric]

It really is totally worth it. AFS is a good program because they help you with orientations and stuff. It is definitely the one I would recommend.

I'd so do this, but I'd have to wait 2 years. If I did do it i would totally go to Germany, going to Germany would be awesome. but I couldn't use AFS i'm a CANADIAN !WOO! so id use something else. it would still be awesome though.

AFS isn't exclusively for Americans. There are people from Europe who came to Chile with AFS as well. (I'm not sure, but I bet they have it in Canada)

Also, if you are 17 it is good, too. It just takes a while to do all the paper work. So it isn't something that you can just say, "That would be so cool. I'm doing it!" and it just happens, you have to put some effort in.

[t̷s͢uk̕a͡t͜ư]

Foreign Exchange Programs are for people who can't appreciate where they are already.
I can find life-changing events and women right where I'm at already. Those'll happen no matter where you are, and having a language barrier is only an advantage to the timid (which I am very not).
I can also find an excellent education where I am, it's cheaper for residents, and I have more options for financial aid and loans here, to boot.
To top it off, American schools are easily some of the best in the world in a wide number of fields. Try starting a private practice with your Chilean medical license.

I'm good here, thanks.

[scythe]

I looked into study abroad, but essentially none of the classes I need are offered anywhere outside of the country.

[Erik-Player]

I have had two exchange students before! Elida from Brazil, and Adam from Slovakia. Elida for 11 months, and Adam for 5. It was fun hearing them talk. Adam always got the words in a sentence mixed up. One night driving home the moon was orange. We were like, "Adam, look at the moon. Isn't it nice?" But Adam would be like, "That not the moon. That the light of a house!" That was because the moon never was orange in Slovakia. It was awesome!

[Aldaric]

Foreign Exchange Programs are for people who can't appreciate where they are already.
I can find life-changing events and women right where I'm at already. Those'll happen no matter where you are, and having a language barrier is only an advantage to the timed (which I am very not).
I can also find an excellent education where I am, it's cheaper for residents, and I have more options for financial aid and loans here, to boot.
To top it off, American schools are easily some of the best in the world in a wide number of fields. Try starting a private practice with your Chilean medical license.

I'm good here, thanks.

Wow what an asshole way of saying that. Anyways, foreign exchange programs are not for people who don't appreciate were they live, it is for people who want to learn and appreciate other cultures and places, too. Not only is it a chance to become fluent in another language and learn about a different culture, you can make yourself the person you want to be. You start with a clean slate, nobody has presumptions about who you are. It is a wonderful opportunity! A language barrier doesn't help the timid. A language barrier is overcome by finding inventive ways of expressing yourself. It also make you put more thought into what you say which is always a good thing. This isn't about normal education. You can't really learn a culture from a book, you need to be there. I am not getting any school credit for this year, I am retaking a year when I come back. This sucks yes, but I think it is totally worth it. (With some schools you can work out getting credit) Anyways the point is, you aren't trying to get a medical license here or learn physics, you are trying to learn a language and a culture. This experience will help you get into a better college when you come back which is were you would be getting a medical license, so your argument is crap anyways. So to sum it all up. You are have the opportunity to change your personality, you learn a language, you learn about another culture, and when you come back you can get into a better college.

[otters~1]

I looked into study abroad, but essentially none of the classes I need are offered anywhere outside of the country.

I think you're missing the point; it's not necessarily for the classes or education, it's for the experience. You know, having fun?

(Same to you, Suki. Just my opinion.)

[t̷s͢uk̕a͡t͜ư]

you can make yourself the person you want to be. You start with a clean slate, nobody has presumptions about who you are. It is a wonderful opportunity!

I'm about to do exactly that in the next few months, and I'm managing to pull it off by traveling a mere 45 minutes north.

A language barrier doesn't help the timid.

You've gotta be kidding me. Have you even considered this before assuming I'm wrong?
Timid people have little to say, and what they can say often comes out awkwardly. Foreigners who don't speak the native language well are expected to say awkwardly the little amount they know how to say. If you speak like a retard, you'll be judged, but if you speak like a retard with an accent, then nothing is held against you. And depending on the accent, speaking like a retard might even make you sexy in the eyes of the natives.

A language barrier is overcome by finding inventive ways of expressing yourself.

Okay, now that just couldn't be true. Most people have a problem in general with expressing themselves inventively in their native language. All you do is tack on the same expectation of knowing subtleties between synonyms, knowledge of all manner of abstruse and otherwise poetic language, and understanding of countless tiny nuances of the target culture, to the language you've just started learning. Your ability to express yourself creatively in a new language will only come after a decade, at least, of full immersion in the culture, and will still be capped by the inventiveness you have in your native language anyway (you won't be a poet in any language if you're simply not poetic).
I see inability to express oneself as a problem that most people have, and it's a problem that's best fixed without having to learn a new fucking language from scratch again.

It also make you put more thought into what you say which is always a good thing.

Only to the extent that you have to remember what to say because you haven't internalized the language yet. You won't be able to speak more thoughtfully than in your native language, and your foreign language skills won't outshine your native language skills until it becomes another fully internalized language, as previously mentioned.

I really find it amusing that you have this romanticized view of what learning a new language will be like, like it's going to make you smarter, more eloquent, and Rico motherfucking Suave, all magically gained simply by knowing the language. Equally amusing is the fact that you're convinced that visiting another culture entirely can provide life opportunities that are disconnected entirely from culture, namely personal growth.

This isn't about normal education. You can't really learn a culture from a book, you need to be there.

Why should you give a shit about Chilean culture? If you're stunned that I'd ask such a question, consider that you clearly don't give a shit about Indian, Spanish, or Polish culture. Why is knowing about Chilean culture in particular so important to you? You're doing just fine not knowing a damned thing about Sri Lankan culture and Finnish culture, and you'll probably live a completely functional life without it, so what makes you care about Chile?
I find enough variation in American culture that I don't need to walk very far at all to get a completely fresh perspective of my life and the world around me. Why is your vision so much more blurred that you have to move to an entirely different country for the same thing?

[SlappyMcGee]

I do like the idea that the slightest change in your living situation (45 minutes North or Chile) brings on an entirely different net of social equations; as if your whole life was just practice for the new game of interactions.

[Aldaric]

I'm not saying the Chilean culture specifically is necessary to know, any culture that is different than your own is a good to know. You should acquire a broader view of the world. You know what, none of this is important.
Having hot foreign girls saying, "Gringo rico!" (Handsome gringo) is worth it, fuck the culture.

[scythe]

I looked into study abroad, but essentially none of the classes I need are offered anywhere outside of the country.

I think you're missing the point; it's not necessarily for the classes or education, it's for the experience. You know, having fun?

(Same to you, Suki. Just my opinion.)

Yeah, but if I went, I'd have to stay at college another year and pay another $37,000. I could take a three-month vacation for less than that and go somewhere cooler than any of the places my school offers study abroad (seriously, who wants to go to France?).

Oh, and Aldaric, if you think that going to Chile means getting laid, you probably need to spend more time in reality and less time watching MTV.

[Aldaric]

Ok first off, I am here in Chile already. I know what is happening to me better then you do. It is a reality. Girls from Chile like the white skin/blond hair thing, they think I am hot. This is not during college this is during high school. That is why I mentioned age in my first post. I was a nerd in the US, here I am extremely popular. It is fun.

[blackson]

To top it off, American schools are easily some of the best in the world in a wide number of fields.

What a ridiculous statement. American schools are near last in every schooling subject when compared to other countries; it's depressing. The current American youth are collectively one of the most ignorant and backwards generations since the erection of Christianity.

No Child Left Behind is a joke, having students learn at the pace of the dumbest kid in the classroom. The requirements to become a teacher are slowly dissipating. The government is busy finding creative ways to get rid of money and has turned it's back on this issue.

All of this I say from growing up in a Public School. If you were implying Private Schooling in your statement, then I have no room to speak (although I can only assume you were referring to both Public and Private. I do certainly hope Private schools /are/ much better; there's got to be some place for a rational person to get a decent education.

[T3chno]

Ok first off, I am here in Chile already. I know what is happening to me better then you do. It is a reality. Girls from Chile like the white skin/blond hair thing, they think I am hot. This is not during college this is during high school. That is why I mentioned age in my first post. I was a nerd in the US, here I am extremely popular. It is fun.

Hahaha, you liar. We all know there's no such thing as internet in Chile.

[t̷s͢uk̕a͡t͜ư]

To top it off, American schools are easily some of the best in the world in a wide number of fields.

What a ridiculous statement. American schools are near last in every schooling subject when compared to other countries; it's depressing. The current American youth are collectively one of the most ignorant and backwards generations since the erection of Christianity.

No Child Left Behind is a joke, having students learn at the pace of the dumbest kid in the classroom. The requirements to become a teacher are slowly dissipating. The government is busy finding creative ways to get rid of money and has turned it's back on this issue.

All of this I say from growing up in a Public School. If you were implying Private Schooling in your statement, then I have no room to speak (although I can only assume you were referring to both Public and Private. I do certainly hope Private schools /are/ much better; there's got to be some place for a rational person to get a decent education.

Urm, yes, unless you can tell me a public high school that gives out medical licenses, I was most definitely talking about private universities.
I completely agree that American public schools are terrible in a morbidly hilarious way, but I'm talking about the upper echelon of education one might get in any country.

I've been in private schools since 6th grade, so my only public school experiences outside of elementary school are knowing people who went to nearby public schools and the last year and a half I've spent at a community college. Public schools in California rank #46 out of the 50 states, so believe me, I'm well familiar with the state of the public education system in the US.

[scythe]

Ok first off, I am here in Chile already. I know what is happening to me better then you do. It is a reality. Girls from Chile like the white skin/blond hair thing, they think I am hot. This is not during college this is during high school. That is why I mentioned age in my first post. I was a nerd in the US, here I am extremely popular. It is fun.

Rico means rich, dude.

And it's pretty much like Tsukatu said.

[blackson]

Urm, yes, unless you can tell me a public high school that gives out medical licenses, I was most definitely talking about private universities.
I completely agree that American public schools are terrible in a morbidly hilarious way, but I'm talking about the upper echelon of education one might get in any country.

I've been in private schools since 6th grade, so my only public school experiences outside of elementary school are knowing people who went to nearby public schools and the last year and a half I've spent at a community college. Public schools in California rank #46 out of the 50 states, so believe me, I'm well familiar with the state of the public education system in the US.

Acknowledged.

[Aldaric]

Ok first off, I am here in Chile already. I know what is happening to me better then you do. It is a reality. Girls from Chile like the white skin/blond hair thing, they think I am hot. This is not during college this is during high school. That is why I mentioned age in my first post. I was a nerd in the US, here I am extremely popular. It is fun.

Rico means rich, dude.
And it's pretty much like Tsukatu said.

Do you just want to make yourself look ignorant? Rico literally translates to rich or delicious when talking about food, but when used to describe people it means sexy and handsome. If I called PALEMOON hot, I would mean hot in the sense that he is a shmexy good-looking guy, not that he has a high temperature. Don't make a point by using Spanish, because I am better than you at it. This is not about if the schools in America are good, this is about living in another country for a year. Suki your being dumb. There are so many benefits of doing a foreign exchange program. I`ll describe them in more detail so you can`t nick pick what I say.

1. Colleges like this shit
You can`t just get into the best colleges with amazing grades. You need things that make you stand out from the rest of the kids that get good grades. This is the type of thing that will make you stand out. Obviously, there are other things you can do to make you stand out, but that brings my second point up. (look down)
2. It is fucking fun
You can`t argue with this because you never have done it before. Once again, I bet you (Suki) could retort that you can have all the fun you want right in you little part of America. I am not saying that you can only have fun if you go to another country, I am saying that it is fun. There is a important difference. You are learning a second language, bettering your chances of getting into a good college, and having fun all at the same time. You learn a new culture which is fun. (Food an Dance for examples)You meet new life long friends. I was a nerd in the US, here I have an awesome social life. If you already had a social life in the US, I don't care, that is not the point. The point is (look down)
3 IF YOU WANT you can change your personality
Suki if you think you are perfect already then you wouldn't have to change anything. Anyways, you are to old for this. This FOR ME is a great opportunity because to be perfectly honest, there are things I don't like about me. Yeah maybe you could do this by moving somewhere else in America, but, as I said before, this is fun and will help you get into a better college which will ultimately will help your entire life.

There are always different ways to do things, I'm not saying that this is the only way to do the above, I am saying that this is a pretty awesome way to do the above.

[t̷s͢uk̕a͡t͜ư]

1. Colleges like this shit
You can`t just get into the best colleges with amazing grades. You need things that make you stand out from the rest of the kids that get good grades.

But that's exactly what my brother did, and what many of my good friends from high school did. And after a one year delay, I got into an excellent college (for my major) with terrible grades. But there are other advantages to staying in America, too, namely that it's much easier to socialize on more than a superficial level because everyone speaks your language. College is all kinds of fun, and the allowance for experimenting with different social groups and lifestyles helps -- nay, encourages -- you to come out a better person, where "better" is determined entirely by you. Far as I'm concerned, staying local does a better job of your #2 and #3 as well.

2. It is fucking fun
You can`t argue with this because you never have done it before.

I actually agree, in some part. Being able to drop your old life and do whatever the hell you want can easily become an awesome time. Probably the best vacations I've taken is when I visited by brother in New York. I was on no particular schedule with no obligations, hung out with some awesome people, and there may or may not have been shadier dealings I probably shouldn't talk publicly about that were also amazing. But I don't think I'd've enjoyed living there. I just needed a quick change of scene, and then I enjoyed my own life back home for a while after as well.

You meet new life long friends. I was a nerd in the US, here I have an awesome social life.

That's great, provided you're actually going to keep these friends. I made some lifelong friends when I went to college for two years in Boston, but given that I'm probably going to be staying in California for at least the next decade, I might as well have never have made friends with them at all. We try to catch up every once in a blue moon, but the whole thing ends up being... inconsequential. Pointless.

Besides which, unless you're fluent in Spanish before you even arrive (scratch "learn a new language" off the list of benefits and move it to the list of requirements), I can only imagine how the dating scene might look like.
"Hola, gringo rico!" *giggle*
"Hola. Um... tu eres muy bonita."
"Gracias."
"Er... de nada."
"..."
"..."
But if you're a native speaker -- I think this next point is best expressed in a lower-class urban dialect -- you can chat bitches up. Word.

Now, I've had a hell of a lot of experience with socializing with foreigners. We had a foreign exchange program at my high school, I live in what I recently found out was the Language Capital of the World, and both my mother and I have jobs that deal directly with foreigners coming in to study things. Hell, it could easily be the case that I've met as many non-Americans as Americans. And one thing I've noticed about all of them (and their kids) is that it's very difficult to have any sort of meaningful conversation unless you are fluent in the same language. Merely studying the language does very little to help; you really have to be quite proficient to have a real connection.
I, for example, would want to be able to talk with my girlfriend about philosophy and get really particular about my choice of words and phrasing, or aspects of American culture that are way too subtle for someone only getting her bearings to be able to understand. I'm also very much a fan of linguistic quirks and humor, and while even a native speaker who isn't particularly intelligent could get it easily, it'd pretty much take mastery of the language for a foreigner to pull that off. When it comes down to deep, personal corrections, the language barrier is massive, unless sterile observations about the world are really as deep as your personality goes.
How can you even appreciate someone's personality and their behaviorisms without speaking the language? If you can't talk to them about the motivations behind their dreams or how they think about various social and ethical issues, what else do you have to go on? Looks? How willing they are to sleep with you?

3 IF YOU WANT you can change your personality
Suki if you think you are perfect already then you wouldn't have to change anything.

Gods, no! I still have a long way to go before I'm good at what I want to be good at in life, and before I'm living the lifestyle I want to be living. Being sidewinded by my spontaneous-onset sociopathy doesn't do much to help, either. But I'm not going to be any closer to the ideal me by living in fuckin' Chile for a year.

Honestly, no matter what I say, keep doing it if you're having fun. It definitely sounds like the thing you should be doing. But I wholeheartedly disagree that it's good for everyone, or even for a large body of people. I just also happen to think that most people are unappreciative of what they have, and are bad at making the most out of what they have when they've grown up with it. It's a very curious phenomenon.

[Aldaric]

I agree it is not for everybody. I made this topic in case people wanted to look into it. Maybe others on this site might think it would be fun and awarding to do. About the connection with girlfriends/friends. At first it was hard to communicate well, especially at a deeper level, and I'm not going to lie it is still kinda hard, but I have definitely improved a lot. I think that I could form good relationships at this point of my life here in Chile. (I have been here for 4 months) The cool things about friends is they help you out, even old friends. I am sure if you went to Boston in 10 years, you could hook up with them, and stay for a couple days at their house or something. You could call them up and ask them a question that they would know the answer to because it is in their field of study. Its not what you know it is who you know.

[scythe]

Ok first off, I am here in Chile already. I know what is happening to me better then you do. It is a reality. Girls from Chile like the white skin/blond hair thing, they think I am hot. This is not during college this is during high school. That is why I mentioned age in my first post. I was a nerd in the US, here I am extremely popular. It is fun.

Rico means rich, dude.
And it's pretty much like Tsukatu said.

Don't make a point by using Spanish, because I am better than you at it.

No, you're not. Mind you, I know mostly Central American and Floridian Spanish. Chile is weird, and they talk crazy fast.

May I help you with that?