What would be some tips you would giveme if I wanted to go study abroad for 5 months in high school?

I really want to go to australia next year for 5 months as a sophmore. Is there anything I should know before I sign up with the program to go?

What would be some tips you would giveme if I wanted to go study abroad for 5 months in high school?
U SHOUID HAVE TECHNICAL ABILITIES AS A SOPHMORE,
Reply:Tips:


Be open minded.


Find exactly what the program offers and what is expected of you and where are you going to live?


Learn as much as you can about the country and its customs.


Make sure you have money to spend.


Expect things to be very different than what you are used to at home (this is the biggest mistake kids make!)


beware of the drinking and smoking laws and obey them.


Try to get along with the family and follow their rules.
Reply:I agree with Feisty, you should at least seriously consider 1) going for a whole year and 2) going to a non-English speaking country. Think about it -- how many times will you have the opportunity to live abroad and learn a new language while fully immersed in the culture? Not many, let me tell you. It only gets more difficult to arrange as an adult.





I know a year sounds like a long time to be away, but what often happens with students that only go for a semester is that they are just starting to feel comfortable, learning the language, making friends, etc., and then they have to go home! Being there for a year lets you really experience the whole thing.





There are scholarships for many exchange programs, but as you can imagine, they're hard to get because everyone wants one. It's possible (but pretty difficult) to win a full scholarship. No one except your parents or a scholarship will pay for your year, and no one (probably not even your parents) will pay you to go. One more advantage to going for a whole year instead of just a semester is that oftentimes the semester programs are only a couple thousand dollars less than the full year program. In other words, a year program might cost around $9,000 with AFS or YFU, and a semester program might cost $7,000. It's totally worth it to do the whole year!





Check out these websites for more info:


AFS: http://www.afs.org


YFU: http://www.yfu.org


Rotary: http://www.rotary.org/en/StudentsAndYout...


This link has a ton of great information about what being an exchange student is really about: http://www.rotary.org/RIdocuments/en_pdf...
Reply:yes u can
Reply:Go to the Internet and search for the school you interested in and find out if you meet the school's entry requirements.


If you meet that then find out the visa requirement to enter your country of interest. Good lucky!
Reply:Yes, I actually have several tips for you!





1. Wait until you are a junior and go for an entire year. For one, application deadlines have passed for next year for many organizations -- especially if you are applying for scholarships.





2. Don't go to Australia! I have nothing against Australia, but one of the major benefits of an exchange is language immersion. If you go to Australia, you don't get the benefit of a second language.





3. Make sure you pick a reliable program. It should be CSIET listed (www.csiet.org). Those are programs certified to operate in the U.S. Also check with your school counselor for a recommendation. A program is only as good as its local representatives. Generally, AFS, Aspect, Rotary and YFU are reliable everywhere.





4. Many programs offer scholarships. Rotary is the cheapest, but most competitive. There are NO programs that will send you for free ... and why should they? Nothing that is totally free is valued. If you don't have the money this year, work for it and go next year.





5. As for the exchange experience itself, I could type you a whole list, instead I'll send you over to Exchange Student World, an online community of current and former exchange students. http://www.exchangestudentworld.com/





Good luck and I hope you have a great time!