Do
You Have What It Takes To Be An International Ambassador?
You
must be a minimum of 16 years old at time of departure, and a maximum
of 18 years old during the exchange year.
Relationship
to a Rotarian is neither a preference nor a disqualification.
There
is no specific language requirement. A student that has studied
any language is going to be more responsive to the learning process
when they arrive in his/her host country.
Are
your motives in agreement with the objectives of the program?
Do
you know your own country?
Have
you traveled in the USA?
Have
you been away from your family for any extended period of time?
Have
you taken a broad spectrum of course material in school?
Have
you been involved in extracurricular activities such as sports,
drama or leadership roles?
Are
your communication skills sufficient to speak before a Rotary club
meeting?
Do
you have the ability to bend with the demands of new situations?
Do
you have an inflexible agenda of political, social activities or
attitudes?
Will
a sponsoring Rotary club be proud to be represented by you?
Are
you willing to participate in sponsoring Rotary club activities
when you return from your exchange?
Do
you have the emotional support of your parents?
Do
you have the financial resources of $3000 by the date of departure?
If you are answering
no to some of these questions, DON'T BE DISCOURAGED YET! Take some time
to research and do some soul searching for the answers.
There
are 3 things that make Rotary Youth Exchange the best exchange program
available:
The
opportunity for diversity You will be carefully assigned to several Host Families that
are dedicated to your well-being. All Rotary Host Parents are non-paid
volunteers that have willingly opened their homes and hearts to
you. You can expect to be hosted by a minimum of two and a maximum
of four Host families during your 10-month stay.
Rotary
International is a totally nonprofit organization Rotary International Youth Exchange is only one of hundreds
of philanthropic programs that our 1.2 million-member-organization
provides. There are absolutely no fees for any service that Rotary
provides. There is a $200 application fee to help offset telephone
and international fax charges. Rotary arranges for free housing,
free education and when possible will aid in reduced travel expenses
and insurance. Most sponsoring Rotary Clubs are prepared to assist
students in need. It is customary that hosting Rotary Clubs provide
their Exchange Students with a monthly stipend equivalent to $50
U.S. Private schools, uniforms and materials may be the financial
responsibility of the student. The student may be required to pay
direct expenses for certain orientation programs.
Rotary
International is a very close-knit organization Rotary will go to extremes to protect you during your exchange
experience. Rotary has a very well structured organizational system,
which will give you multiple opportunities to seek guidance or assistance
in your foreign exchange country. Rotarians are the business and
professional leaders of their community. Rotarians are effective
people in the World.
The
Rotary Exchange Student program has several common sense rules. The
principal rules are often referred to as the 4 D's.
No
Drinking
No
Drugs
No
Driving
No
Serious Dating
The first two rules,
"Drinking" and "Drugs", are no different than those of the society in
which you currently live.
Driving is a serious
liability problem. American laws and insurance factors are different
than those found in many other countries. Rotary has seriously evaluated
this question and has deemed it necessary that all Rotary Exchange Students
forfeit their driving privileges for the duration of their exchange
year.
Dating is a very
difficult question. It is neither reasonable nor desirable to expect
a student to not date for a school year. On the other hand, Rotary recognizes
the problems that repeated dating or serious dating could present. The
student is strongly advised to be very cautious and avoid any serious
involvement.
Each
family in the United States has "Home Rules". The rules in your
Host family will have differences from those of your current home.
You will find, however, more similarities than differences.
To
be an effective Exchange Student you must recognize and honor the
differences in social mannerisms that you will experience in your
host country.
There
are standardized Rules and Recommendations that Rotary International
shares with all Rotary Clubs involved with Rotary Youth Exchange.
This insures the student that there will be an element of consistency.
One
of the strong points of the Rotary Youth Exchange Program is that
it is internationally uniform.
You
will find the Youth Exchange Program of Rotary in Australia to be
very similar to that of Rotary in Denmark.
In
all countries you can expect to participate in an Orientation Program
soon after your arrival. It is the law in the U.S.A.
In
each Rotary District there are approximately 50 Rotary Clubs.
It
is the District Youth Exchange Chairperson that makes arrangements
with foreign districts to conduct Youth Exchanges.
The
Area District Co-Chairperson coordinates with each Rotary Club Youth
Exchange Chairperson.
The
Rotary Club Youth Director assigns a Youth Exchange Counselor. The
counselor will be a year long, consistent, guidepost and an individual
that has had experience with the exchange program.
In
turn the counselor and club Youth Director will interview and select
Host Parents.
This
Organizational Structure is very important to the Exchange Students
and their families.
This
structure insures the student and family that there will be several
"check points" for the safety and well-being of the student.
No
individual Host Parent, Counselor or Chairperson will make an irrational
decision regarding a student's welfare. It will take several of
us to make that irrational decision!
Rotarians
are volunteer business, professional and trade persons. No Rotarian
receives any compensation for his or her services in the Rotary
Youth Exchange Program.
Every
service and opportunity that Rotarians can provide the student will
be at no expense to the student.
Rotary
is not bound to the payment of any services, fees or other expenses.
The
student can expect Rotary to assist in procuring the best price
available for such necessary services as airfare and insurance.
Great
variances in expense will occur depending on the country the student
visits.
The
following is an example of expenses incurred by a recent exchange
to Europe.
You
will be required to attend at least two District Orientation Programs
prior to leaving on your exchange. Your Host Rotary Club will pay
the necessary fees for these programs.
The
Hosting Rotary Club typically pays monthly stipends amounting to
the equivalence of $50 per month.
Many
Rotarians will provide local trips, entertainment opportunities
and gifts to their exchange students.
It
is the option of the sponsoring Rotary Club to provide financial
scholarship assistance.
Host Parents
These
kind-hearted people will provide housing, food and cultural education
at absolutely no expense to the student.
Make contact with
a Rotary Club near where you live and go to school, or contact a youth
Exchange Committee Representative for your geographic area. Do this
no later than October of the school year prior to when you would like
to go abroad.
Get through the
interview and application process. If you are successful and become
a Rotary Club's candidate, start the full application right away. Choice
of country to exchange to is on a first come first served basis.
Your Outbound
Counselor will guide you through the details of this process. You will
also receive a huge amount of information by mail, verbally, at orientation
sessions, and from the Outbound Counselor. Stay organized and informed!
Get
a Passport Call any Federal Office or Post Office and they will tell you
where you can get an application. You will need 2 passport style
photos and about $60 as a money order, you will need a proof of
citizenship and a photo ID...ASK first! Remember it can take as
much as 6 weeks after applying for the passport to come to you.
Do it NOW.
Application Your application will have been sent to the Rotary District
in the country you will be visiting. The Rotarians in that country
will take it to the school you will be attending, the club that
will host you and your first Host Parents. All of those will sign
the GUARANTEE FORM and return it to our district. That form must
be sent with your passport to the consulate of the country you will
be visiting.
Visa Once the consulate has your Passport and Guarantee form they
will issue you a VISA. A visa is just a permission slip from the
host country saying you can come live there for a specific period
of time. The best way to do this is to have ReKap or It's Your World
Travel handle the tickets, visa etc. as a package. They know exactly
what to do.
It's
Your World, Travel!
1969
SW Hillcrest Road
Seattle, WA 98166
Telephone: 800-955-6077
Fax: 206-324-2512 www.iywt.com
REKAP
TRAVEL
140 State Street
New London, CT 06320
Telephone: 800-243-0775, 860-442-0681
Fax: 860-442-8921
Airline
Tickets Airline tickets should never be purchased until you have your
visa. You must buy an OPEN END ticket. That means a ticket that
can bring you home at anytime. Do not buy a ticket that says you
must return on a specific day. Do not buy a discount youth fare
ticket. You must fly directly to the airport designated by your
hosting Rotary district. Most Rotary districts will tell you exactly
what day you must arrive in what city.
Insurance Insurance is absolutely required and Rotary is very specific
about what kind. You Mom's or Dad's group insurance policy does
not work, regardless of what your agent says. Contact your Rotary
District Chairperson or write directly to:
Carrier: ACE American Insurance
Claims Admin: Admin. Concepts, Inc. (ACI)
997 Old Eagle School Rd. Suite. 215
Wayne, PA 19087-1706
1-888-293-9229 www.visit-aci.com
You may have indicated
a country that you would like to go to. Whenever possible, the District
5130 Chairperson will send your application to the country of your choice.
The Rotary persons in that country will assign you to a Rotary club
in their district. That club counselor will make school arrangements
and family arrangements for you. This all takes time. When those details
have been completed your guarantee form will be returned to our district
and YOU will know! That is sometimes as late as May. Please be patient
with us!
Start writing your
new family, send pictures, and ask questions. Try to write in their
language but if you can't at least let them know you are trying by putting
a few words or sentences in their language.
Take
about half of what you pack the first time. Take at least
one sturdy "hard" suitcase. Take the basics, mix and match combo
clothing. Remember you will be buying new things when you get there.
ATM
cards can be very helpful in most countries. Find out from the
ATM provider whether they have service in the country you will be
visiting. Ask your parents to set up an account with a limited amount
of money deposited each month.
Gifts
for your new families, counselors and the Rotary club are very appropriate.
Books about your hometown or region, handmade items or special preserves,
mustards etc. are always well received and expected. If there are
children in the family be sure to take some small gift for them
also.
Pins
and badges that are typical of your area to trade to other students
will be priceless. Also small American flags are good gifts for
your host families and new friends.
Photocopies
of every important document should be taken before you leave. Take
two copies and leave one set with your parents. Pack the other set
in a separate bag from the originals.
Film
is almost always more expensive than in the United States. Take
plenty. Modern security scanners do not affect film.
Telephone
cards are commonly used in many countries. Ask your new host
family if this applies where you are going. You may be able to purchase
cards in the USA that can be used in other countries.
Learn the language! Start NOW! Nothing will be more important! There are tapes available
in almost any language. Practice! Practice! No one expects you to
be totally conversant but you must know salutations and a few fundamental
words and phrases. Contact your District Chairperson for information
about available intensive language programs.
Rotary
programs are expected in most countries. The Rotarians that will be hosting you will want to see pictures,
slides and listen about your hometown or region. A collection of
ten to fifteen slides showing your home, school, family along with
slides of some business and agricultural views will make for a good
20-minute presentation.
Immunizations
requirements vary widely from country to country. Ask your County Health Department Immunization Department what
the current recommendations are for the country you will be visiting
and any adjacent countries you might visit during your year abroad.
Read
the newspaper everyday for at least a month before you go. Don't be embarrassed by knowing less about your country, politics
and gossip than your foreign hosts.
Smile
at least 100 times everyday for 3 months before you go. It will be your ticket to a wonderful, exciting and most educational
year of your life!
Contact
District Chair Sondra Schaub: sondrajschaub@earthlink.net
707-822-7807
Cell 707-616-7790 Fax 707-822-7807
Copyright 2007 - RI District 5130 Youth Exchange Program
Website Maintained by John
Necker Sebastopol Sunrise
