A whole new world: foreign exchange students come to campus
Traveling to a foreign country for a year, attending a new school, and living with a family you have never met can be daunting. But every year, students all over the world, like juniors Louise Lisra and Darleen Hunziker, take on this challenge.
This year, Lisra and Hunziker joined the EF (Education First) foreign exchange program. Lisra traveled from Sweden, and Hunziker from Switzerland, to spend a year here.
However, one can’t travel the world with the snap of your fingers. For these foreign exchange students, the application process was long and strenuous. “You apply through an organization … they look at your grades and the stuff you’ve done and they decide if you’re good to go,” Lisra said.
They were evaluated on their effort in school, their grades, English proficiency, and had to apply to get a visa to study abroad. After they were accepted, they attended many preparation meeting.
Moving to a new country isn’t an easy experience either. “I just signed up for U.S.A. and they told me they would have a school and a family in Newbury Park,” Hunziker said. When she moved here earlier this year, she had only talked with her host family through email, but had never met them.
After getting into the exchange program and moving, students are faced with the task of transitioning between high schools in different countries.“It’s very different,” Lisra said. “When we go to high school [in Sweden], we get to apply to different high schools that we want to go to.” In Sweden, sports are not a part of schools, and you don’t get to choose the classes you take. “I’m really happy to be here,” Lisra said.
“When I came here I chose classes that we don’t have in Switzerland” Hunziker said. This semester she is taking psychology and digital photography. “I like the subjects, I like the teachers, they’re more easy going here. In Switzerland they’re more formal.” Hunziker said.
“To be an exchange student you have to have an open heart and an open mind,” said Wendy Vanloo. Vanloo, who was an exchange student herself in high school, now works with students to find host families and help them through the year, and has even hosted students in the past. “By having a student living in your own home … you can pick up some of their culture and then you have a lifelong friend,” Vanloo said.
“I would really recommend it because it’s a really great experience and just it’s not how you expect it to be,” Hunziker said. “It’s really different but it’s great.”
