.png?width=250&name=host%20families%20(4).png)
Every year, the United States welcomes foreign exchange students from all over the world. The U.S hosts more international students a year than any other country and American families across the country are discovering the joys of hosting a foreign exchange student. If you are thinking about hosting a foreign exchange student or want to know how to get started, this complete guide will take you through every step of the way.
A foreign exchange student program helps high school or college students travel to a new country to live and study abroad. Exchange students study at a local high school or college, integrate into the American student lifestyle, and live with a host family in their home.
How long a foreign exchange student stays with a family depends on the study program they participate in. Length of stays can range from a week, a semester, or even an entire academic year. We will go into more detail on that later in this guide.
Hosting a foreign exchange student is something almost any family can do. There is no traditional model of a host family, as they come in all different forms and backgrounds.
The most important thing is that you are able to provide a clean and safe environment for a foreign exchange student to adapt and thrive in their new surroundings. While hosting a student there are a few essentials that you are usually required to provide, to help them through their studies:
A background criminal check is required for all adult family members within the household to ensure that all our host families meet general safety standards and our students are safe during their stay in America.
Deciding to host an exchange student is exciting, can bring lifelong memories, and comes with a few new responsibilities. To help you and your family get the most out of the experience we have compiled these key questions for you to consider beforehand:
As we mentioned earlier, the length of hosting an international student can vary greatly, from one week to an entire academic year. You should consider how much time you can and want to commit to hosting.
With StudentRoomStay Concierge, you can host a college exchange student or high school student. It’s worth considering your ideal age range for a student. There will be different levels of responsibility, student needs and expectations.
It is important that all family members understand the potential changes involved with bringing an exchange student into the household. There may be modifications to the current family routine or schedule, which may require flexibility from everyone to accommodate the new addition, such as:
Your home is not required to be lavish or large, but you will need to have the space to for an extra person. Some of the essentials include:
Your house will need to be safe and inviting, and you should be willing to open up common areas such as your living room, kitchen and yard.
Some families want to have the same gender as their own children, while others prefer to give their children a mixed-gender sibling experience. It is worth taking a moment to discuss and consider what gender you and your family would like to host.
Keeping these questions in mind will help you to plan out the exchange student experience your family is looking for. It will also help you prepare your home and schedule for an exchange student, giving them the smoothest transition into American life possible.
As you can see, preparing to be a host family is fairly straightforward.
To give you a clearer picture of what to expect, here are some potential challenges of hosting a foreign exchange student:
Any potential challenge can be worked through and overcome with patience, perseverance and support from StudentRoomStay representatives.
Before we get to how you can become a host family, when want to explain the different types of student programs available. When exchange students come over to the U.S there are two main types of programs they will be on, an ‘Exchange Program’ or ‘Study Abroad Program’. Both programs rely on host families opening up their homes for students, the main differences are:
A student on an exchange program is usually on a J-1 visa. Their focus is to learn as much as they can about American life and culture. On these programs studying may not always be their sole priority, with the length of stay being anywhere from brief one-week camps to a maximum of 12 months. Families who host students on exchange programs do not get paid for hosting a student. These programs are great for shorter term arrangements where both the host and student are solely focused on the experiences and cultural exchange.
A student on a study abroad program, is usually on a F-1 visa. Their focus is on their full time studies.
These students may not have as much time to focus on American culture outside of studying. They stay until their studies are finished, which can range from a single semester up to an entire 4 year course (with breaks between academic years). The majority of exchange students that come over the the U.S are on a study abroad program, which does allow a host family to get paid.
Hosting a student long term can incur extra costs through laundry, meals and general household living, which is why many programs offer an attractive monthly stipend. Many host families use this extra money towards bills, providing more financial flexibility, and residual income to enjoy.
It is worth considering that the difference in programs may affect a students perspective, what they hope to gain from their experience, and how they interact with their host families.
If you would like to find out more about the differences between J-1 and F-1 visas and programs, this guide by the NFHS provides more detailed information.
Now that you have all the information needed to make the best choice for you and your family, we are now going to guide you through how you can become a host family yourself. As you start the hosting process, it’s important to take some time to research the different hosting agencies in your region (we have a list of the key things to look out for in the section below).
Once you have found an agency you are happy with, you will begin the application process. This will vary between companies, most will (and should) have a multi-layered application process, which will include:
Our application process at StudentRoomStay is as thorough, painless, and quick as possible for our new host families. The initial application takes only 10-15 minutes to complete. Once we have checked it, a member of our team will contact you for a few further questions.
We will then contact your references and run our initial background checks. Once everything has returned without any problems we will organize a home visit. This is just to ensure all of the information provided throughout the application is accurate, and your home is safe and inviting for an international student.
After successfully completing the process you will be ready for us to find a foreign exchange student that is a match for you. The demand for host families tends to be seasonal with Summer and late Fall having the highest demands. If you are not matched with a student right away don’t worry, we keep a pool of qualified host families ready for the next wave of homestay demands.
The international exchange student industry has exploded in recent years, with more and more agencies popping up to take advantage of the demand for study abroad experiences in the U.S.
Unfortunately, there are a number of agencies out there who are not operating at optimal levels to support you in your hosting journey. In these situations, the experience for both the student and your family can be jeopardized.
To avoid finding yourself in a difficult or uncomfortable situation, we have prepared six questions you can ask any hosting agency before signing up:
The Council on Standards for International Educational Travel (CSIET), is a non-profit watchdog organization. It is their mission to provide leadership and support for exchange students and educational communities across the United States. They aim to ensure that all students are provided with safe and enriching international experiences. If a company is CSIET certified, it can provide you with peace of mind that they are adhering to the highest standards in all areas.
StudentRoomStay is proud to be fully listed on CSIET, for all our homestay services, as we are committed to providing an enriching experience for all our students and host families.
It will be important to know how much the stipend is and when it is paid. You may also want to ask if the company has a host family reference that can vouch for the stipend payments.
You will want to ensure that things such as, a students insurance, background checks, student visas and other safety protocols are in place.
If you are a first time host, training and support will be crucial. You will want to know that your chosen company has representatives on hand should any issues arise.
Take into consideration how helpful they are to begin with, how long they take to get back to your questions, and how responsive they are in their answers.
It is worth noting that ongoing support is equally (if not more) important as initial training.
Most companies will require some form of reporting so it is important to ask what these requirements will be and how much of your time they will require.
At StudentRoomStay Concierge we require our host families to provide monthly reports that include photos and general information about the student’s progress. We also ask for any accomplishments or challenges that arose the previous month.
While detailed, these reports only take about 15 minutes to complete.
Here are some important tips with you to help your hosting experience be as smooth as possible. Hosting an international student can be broken down into three stages:
If hosting a student is too time-consuming, but you have a spare room you can also rent your room to a student and make an extra income.
.jpg?width=250&name=shutterstock_211330207%20(1).jpg)
We understand that although hosting a student full-time is extremely rewarding, it is not always viable. If you have a room (or two) spare in your home, you can rent the room out to students, without having the obligations of being a host family, as they would be more like a tennant.
If you are interested in listing your room get in touch with us to today and we'll get you started on the way.
We hope you have enjoyed our guide and found our information helpful. Deciding to become a host family for an exchange student can be one of the most rewarding decisions you make, and we want to be there for every step of the way. At StudentRoomStay, we offer a comprehensive and supportive homestay service that finds host families for thousands of international students.
We have built our reputation as one of the nation's leading homestay service providers thanks to our industry-leading training and support system. Our homestay services are fully CSIET credited, we are committed to safety, excellence, and integrity. Perhaps most importantly, our team is 100% committed to supporting you.
When you choose to host through us, you are getting one of the best services along with one of the most attractive payment rates in the country. We are here to support every step of your hosting journey and look forward to getting started with you, simply fill in our quick form and a member of our team will get in touch with you.
