About Pacific Intercultural Exchange

Pacific Intercultural Exchange (P.I.E.) was incorporated in 1975 in San Diego, California as a non-profit international student exchange organization. Since that time, the program has facilitated exchanges for more than 25,000 high school-age students from almost every corner of the world. Working with partner programs in about 40 countries, P.I.E. brings foreign students into the United States for 6-10 month academic homestays and sends American students to study abroad. 

Student Selection
Working in cooperation with representatives and partner programs in over 40 countries, P.I.E. selects each student applicant based on information compiled during a thorough screening process. This process involves the submission of a P.I.E. standardized application, a medical examination, written and oral English language proficiency tests, a certified copy of school transcripts, teacher recommendations and a personal interview.

Host Family Selection
Host families are selected based on their genuine desire to integrate an exchange student into their family. Selection of American families involves a review of the completed P.I.E. host family application, personal references verification, criminal background checks, in-home inspection, and the ability of the community high school to enroll the exchange student.

Program Management
An independent Board of Directors comprised of individuals drawn from multi-disciplinary backgrounds who share a common interest in international exchange oversees Pacific Intercultural Exchange.  The program maintains its international headquarters in San Diego, California. 

Domestic Representation
P.I.E. is represented throughout the United States by a network of community area representatives and regional managers, who select host families, work with high schools, provide host family and student orientations and act as counselors and friends during the students’ homestays. Representatives administer P.I.E.’s rules and regulations with the full support of the P.I.E. staff.

Each student and host family is assigned a representative in his or her community. P.I.E. currently has representatives and students in more than 47 states and regional program offices to provide support. Additionally, P.I.E. has a full-time headquarters staff monitoring the exchange and providing counseling and emergency assistance.