Frequently Asked Questions - Study Abroad

AYUSA Study Abroad offers high school study abroad programs in 12 countries in Europe, Asia and Latin America. You can choose from programs ranging in length from 12 day summer programs to an entire academic year. On our website you can search for programs by country, program options (Academic Year/Semester, Summer Cultural Exploration, Summer Immersion), or language options.

We offer summer, trimester, semester and academic year high school programs. Our high school summer programs are generally one month, trimesters are 3 months, semesters are 4 to 6 months and the academic year is between 9 and 11 months depending on the country.

Start the application process by calling 1.800.579.1709 to speak to a High School Study Abroad Program Advisor who will help determine the programs that best suit your needs and interests. The next step is to discuss your program with your parents and guidance counselor. Once you have decided on a program, submit your online application for the country and program of your choice, along with a $500 deposit.

Successful appicants will be:

• High School students (check your program page for age requirements, or call a Program Advisor)
• Motivated high school students with a 2.5 GPA or higher on a 4.0 point scale
• Flexible, mature, open-minded and able to adapt to living with a host family
• Eager for the academic challenge of studying in a foreign school
• Able to meet any language requirements that apply (requirements vary by country)
• In sound and stable physical and mental health
• U.S. or Canadian Citizen or permanent resident, living in the United States or Canada

Students who have already graduated may still be eligible to participate in our programs as long as they meet the age requirement for the country they are interested in – ask a Program Advisor for more details. Keep in mind that AYUSA Study Abroad students attend local public high schools and will be bound by the same rules, regulations and curfews as the other high school students. Students will most likely not receive college credit for courses taken abroad.

You do not need to be fluent in your host country's language to study abroad; however, some programs require previous language study. For our programs in Ecuador, Germany and Japan, you need to have studied the language for at least one year. For our programs in France and Spain, you need at least two years of language instruction. Our immersion program in The Netherlands has no language prerequisite, but students will have some orientation instruction in Dutch before classes start. There are no language requirements for our programs in Australia or Ireland, nor for any of our summer programs.

For our long term programs, you will be attending a local high school and all of your classes will be in the target language. We therefore require that your language classes have an instructor where you can practice speaking and listening to the target language. Independent study or “teaching yourself” through books or software is not sufficient. As part of your application, your language instructor will also write a letter of recommendation and evaluation regarding your language ability.

The following methods can be used to meet our language requirement:

• High school language class
• College language course
• An accredited online language course, provided there is an “instructional” component
• Private instruction or tutoring
• Attending one of our summer programs in the target language

If you don’t meet the language requirements for the program you’re interested in, try a summer program!

While there is an adjustment period, you will be amazed at how quickly your language skills will improve when immersed in another language. We find that students who have studied the language for our required number of years are readily able to adapt to our immersion program. Whatever your language ability is currently, we are confident that if you meet the minimum language requirements and make an effort to study and speak while abroad, you will succeed in your host country.

The application deadline for most of our summer, academic year and fall trimester/semester programs is March 31st and the deadline for most of our spring trimester/semester programs is October 1st. However, program deadlines vary so please visit our program fees page for up-to-date deadline information. Our programs often fill up before the deadline, so we encourage you to apply as early as possible.

We do offer competitive, merit-based partial scholarships, as well as discounts for timely submission of your application materials. Families who host an AYUSA exchange student may also be eligible for discounts as well. For more information please visit the scholarship section of this website. 

Only students who will be participating on an upcoming AYUSA Study Abroad program will be considered for scholarships. You must submit your online program application and all supporting documents by March 31st to be considered for a scholarship.

Many students have also helped to pay for their High School Study Abroad programs by fundraising a portion of their program fees or pursuing part-time employment. If you wish to cancel your application after scholarship decisions have been announced, our normal cancellation penalties apply. Please see the payment policies section of our website for more details.

You can attend a summer program with a friend, but our long-term programs are designed for complete cultural immersion and American students will not be placed in the same community.

AYUSA Study Abroad requires signatures from both parents on program applications, even if the applicant is 18 years old. In cases where the applicant's legal guardian is someone other than their parents, AYUSA requires a copy of official court documentation demonstrating the status of the guardian who has signed the program application. If the applicant is not able to provide signatures from both parents, AYUSA requires a copy of official court documentation demonstrating that one parent has sole custody and therefore has the sole right to consent to participate in the program

If you meet the age, academic and language requirements, and submit a carefully completed application, it is likely that you will be accepted.

We believe host families are an important component of a successful study abroad experience. AYUSA ensures each student's safety through a comprehensive screening process. All host families are carefully screened and interviewed by AYUSA's overseas partners. An AYUSA representative visits each prospective family's home to meet all family members and ensure quality living arrangements. Typically, host families are volunteers whose decision to host an American student is based on a genuine desire to participate first-hand in the international exchange experience. Once we have approved a family to host, the family will review the relevant application materials of the students whom we have accepted into our program for that country. Our host families then select the student that they think would be the best match for their family, based on the student’s stated personality and interests.

Students are generally placed in small to mid size communities. Students are generally not placed in large or capital cities for three reasons:

• Safety
• Overall Experience - Students tend to have a richer study abroad experience when they are placed in small or medium sized communities where they often recieve more specialized attention in school, have a greater opportunity to get involved in their community, and have an easier time making friends and getting to know their host family
• Space - We require that each host family provide a private bedroom (or one shcared with a host sibling of the same sex and of a similar age) and most families that live in urban areas do not have the space to host a student.

While AYUSA Study Abroad does guarantee placement in a student’s first choice country, we cannot guarantee specific locations within each country. You can mention your preferences in your application materials, but part of being an exchange student is embracing the host family and community that ultimately chooses you. With that said, some of our programs do enable students to request placement within a particular region for an additional fee. Please check the country specific information for more details.

There is no average or host family – they vary across racial, religious and socio-economic lines. Families may be large or small, they may have young children, grown children or no children at all; however, all AYUSA host families are excited to be part of the cultural exchange experience. Our primary goal is to find you a safe and supportive host family. Our host family selection process places students with host families that match their personalities and interests, families in which we feel students will be successful and have a rich and comfortable experience.

If you already know of a family that would like to host you, this is known as a direct placement. We try to accommodate direct placements, but it is not always possible. Because this is an immersion program, and we want our students to meet new people, we generally do not place students with family members in their host country. Direct placements are also contingent on the following:

• There must be a local representative within a certain distance of the host family’s location.
• There must be a school within the area that accepts exchange students
• Even if the family is familiar to the student, they must undergo the same application and screening process as other potential host families.

A direct placement does not affect the price of our program.

As an exchange student, it is your responsibility to be flexible and adapt to your host family's lifestyle and rules, even if they are different from what you are accustomed to in your American home. Your local representative will assist you with this adjustment process and will attempt to resolve any problems through discussion and mediation. If after exploring other options, a re-match proves necessary, we will make arrangements to move you to a more suitable host family.

Every AYUSA Study Abroad student has a bilingual local representative who is their primary contact in the host country throughout the program. In addition to placing you with a host family and helping enroll you in school, the local representative is "on-call" for the duration of the program to answer your questions, offer guidance to you and your host family in matters of adjustment and language difficulties, and help with any emergencies. For our summer programs, the local representative also chaperones all group outings. Your Program Manager in the United States provides assistance to your parents while you are abroad.

Our programs are designed to help students fully immerse themselves in another culture as they become more confident young adults. Part of this process involves adjusting to new surroundings and getting past homesickness. We have found that visits from parents or friends in the middle of the program are very disruptive to the acculturation process, and students often regress back to earlier stages of adjustment. For this reason we do not allow visits mid-program. You will have regular contact with your family and friends through email, letters and phone calls, and we encourage families to visit their son/daughter at the end of the program.

Most summer students will be taking language classes appropriate to their current ability level, based on the placement exam they took upon arrival. Long-term students will be taking a full load of courses at a local high school. Classes vary by school and we will not know what school you will attend until after you apply to our program and are matched with a specific host family and school. Your class schedule will be determined after your first day of school. A school administrator will help you to register for classes based upon your language ability and academic background.

Academics are a vital component of AYUSA trimester, semester and academic year high school exchange programs. Students are enrolled in a full course schedule at a local upper level high school and are expected to participate fully in their classes. With careful early planning, almost all students are able to participate on any AYUSA High School Study Abroad program and complete the credits needed to graduate from their American high school on time. Each American high school has its own policy and requirements regarding transfer credits. The credits that will transfer will be based upon your overseas school and your American high school's specific policies and, therefore, AYUSA cannot guarantee that you will receive credit for coursework completed abroad. We recommend that you plan ahead and take any specific courses that you need to meet graduation requirements before or after you go abroad. You should discuss these matters with a guidance counselor as soon as you decide to study abroad and get written documentation of what is required by your school. Our AYUSA Program Advisors will be happy to provide you with assistance and advice on receiving academic credit abroad. You can also visit the receiving credit section for additional information.

Once you are accepted into one of our study abroad programs, we will provide you with the necessary documentation that is required by the Consulate/Embassy of your program country. Visa fees are the applicant's responsibility and must be paid directly to the Consulate/Embassy. Please keep in mind that you will need a valid passport to participate in all our programs, and should apply for your passport early to avoid complications. Passport and visa information is available on the government travel website. Check with the embassy or consulate of your destination country for up-to-date visa and other entry requirements. Note that visa requirements differ according to one's own citizenship.

AYUSA Study Abroad, formerly known as Intrax Study Abroad, is a premier organization dedicated to international education and cultural exchange. AYUSA Study Abroad is a division of Intrax Cultural Exchange, a family of organizations devoted to cultivating international understanding through cultural exchange and educational travel, with operations in over 60 countries worldwide. Since 1980, Intrax Cultural Exchange has provided dynamic study abroad experiences for more than 40,000 high school and college students, enabling them to live and study all over the world for summer, trimester, semester and academic year programs. Intrax offers a diverse set of programs including youth language schools, au pair placement, college internships, work travel programs and English language instruction.