Choosing to spend a year abroad is never a small decision, especially when you already feel connected to more than one culture. For Luca, a YFU exchange year offered the chance to step into something familiar yet entirely new, blending curiosity, challenge, and possibility. In his own words below, Luca reflects on what it meant to say yes to an exchange experience and how that choice shaped his time in the U.S. in unexpected ways.
In Luca’s Own Words
Growing up in a Swiss-American household, I had always admired the American high school experience. I was raised in New York City, so I had already been able to experience American culture firsthand. And although I am still in contact with my American roots, I knew that there was something about this America that drew me back through a YFU foreign exchange year. As it turns out, committing to such a demanding yet unique journey was one of the best decisions I have ever made, and I know that I will remember this unique experience for the rest of my life.
As my departure date approached, I can’t say I wasn’t skeptical about leaving my family, but I left those thoughts behind me after departing Zurich Airport for Michigan 10 days before my 17th birthday in the middle of August 2025. Looking back, this experience has changed me beyond a degree I couldn’t even understand as a Swiss gymnasium student. I went from spending my days gaming and studying to hanging out with friends and playing sports, such as varsity soccer and volleyball. I have grown from being an aspiring economics student attempting to crack corporate finance to writing thermodynamics-based research papers on traffic dynamics and taking undergraduate physics courses to fuel my passion for engineering.
As I prepare to return to Switzerland in July, I have no idea what the immediate future holds for me. What I do know, however, is that these eleven months will have shaped how I will approach decisions in the future.
Begin Your Own Hosting Journey
As Luca prepares to return to Switzerland, his story is also a reminder of the incredible role host families play in shaping an exchange student’s journey. Behind every life-changing year is a family who opened their home, shared their daily life, and welcomed a student as one of their own. If you’ve ever been curious about cultural exchange, now is the perfect time to get involved by meeting incoming students and applying to become a YFU host family. Opening your door could mean helping another student write a story as meaningful and transformative as Luca’s.