+ Why Families Host

Hosting a YFU exchange student is a chance to share your story, traditions, and customs with others while discovering a new culture right in your own home. If your family is open to new and enriching experiences – willing to provide guidance, love, and support to an international young person embarking on a journey of self-discovery – hosting a YFU exchange student is for you!

Host families have many different faces and backgrounds. It doesn’t matter if you have children, whether you’re single, an empty nester, or a same-sex couple; YFU welcomes all types of families. And you can live anywhere—the suburbs, the city, or rural America. If your family is willing to open yourselves to new experiences and provide guidance, love, and support to a student looking to further themselves, you will be a great host family.

Being a YFU host family brings culture and a sense of adventure to you and your family while teaching valuable lessons about acceptance and global unity to your whole community.

Benefits of being a host family include:

• Sharing your story, traditions, and customs while learning about others
• Experiencing what it’s like to have another sibling
• Introduction to a different culture and country
• Learning a new language
• Exposing your school and community to the world
• Appreciating your own family, country, and culture
• Become eligible for the YFU Legacy Grant to participate in your own study abroad experience.

+ Host Family Support

To ensure a successful exchange for your family and the international student, you are supported by a team of dedicated volunteers and staff. Right from the start, YFU will be there to answer all your questions and assist in the selection of your student. Throughout the exchange, your volunteer will check in to make sure things are going well and support you should challenges occur. All volunteers are trained to help you and your student successfully navigate cross-cultural adjustments and challenges. If issues arise and your volunteer is unavailable, other resources are accessible. Trained, professional YFU staff are available to support your family and student 24-hours a day, 365 days a year.

+ Preparing to Host

All you really need to host a YFU student is the ability and desire to share your home and open your heart to a new family member. Hosting is all about sharing your version of America with an exchange student. As a host family, you will receive the YFU Host Family Handbook and other orientation materials. They outline policies and procedures and provide valuable information on what to expect and how to make your exchange experience successful. You will be invited to an orientation before your exchange student arrives during the exchange year, you and your student will be expected to attend 2-3 orientations. These typically occur on a weekend for a few hours each. At orientation, you will have the opportunity to talk with local volunteers, meet other host families and their students and develop strategies to ensure that every member of the family gets the most out of your exchange. All host families must agree to:

• Attend YFU orientation events
• Read our preparation materials and maintain regular contact with your local volunteer
• Understand YFU policies and encourage your student to adhere to those policies
• Provide for an additional member of the family including a separate bed, suitable study area, and three meals per day
• Help your student adapt to your family and to U.S. life and culture
• Familiarize your student with your hometown and promote participation in school and community events
• Offer an emotionally supportive environment
• Accept the student as a member of your family

+ YFU International Students

YFU exchange students are as diverse as our host families. They make the world feel smaller while making your own world larger. Students come from more than 70 countries and range in ages from 15-18 for our high school exchange programs and 18-22 for our students attending Community College. YFU students speak English, attend your local high school (or Community College if that’s the case), come with their own spending money and insurance, and are very excited to participate in your family’s daily activities.

Meet our YFU exchange students and find the perfect match for your family today!

+ Students with Lifestyle or Disability Considerations

YFU is in search of families willing to extend their hosting boundaries so that students with unique profiles can experience life in America. These students may include vegans, diabetics, students with allergies, or teenagers with physical or medical conditions that require an understanding home.

If your family is familiar with creating safe environments for individuals with unique needs, please tell your Development Manager and ask for more information. Remember, all YFU students arrive with their own medical insurance, so don’t let this hold you back from a special learning opportunity!

Please contact your local Development Manager at 800.TEENAGE (800.833.6243) to learn more about hosting a student with lifestyle considerations.

+ Academic Year Scholarship Winners

+ Short Term Hosting