You will be spending 6-10 months in another country, speaking a different language, and making new friends. Anyone who tells you that this experience will be problem-free is not telling you the truth. In addition to meeting these challenges, you will be living as a member of another family, not as a guest. You will experience the good times as well as the bad with a host family. There may be births, deaths, divorces, family arguments, etc. This is all part of the experience. P.I.E. staff will provide support and assistance to help you through any difficult times.

The insurance provided to you by P.I.E. will enable you to be treated in the event that medical assistance is necessary. Occasionally, the caregiver may require initial payment for his services. In that case, those costs will be reimbursed to you, under the terms of your medical coverage, directly by the insurer. For more information on coverage and exclusions, please refer to the insurance brochure, which will be included in your information packet.

The program makes every effort to locate suitable host families as quickly as possible for each applicant. However, P.I.E. feels it is important to work toward the best match possible from the beginning to give the placement the greatest chance for success. You may receive your host family quickly, or it may come shortly before departure. The best answer for this question is that you will receive your family as soon as the best match is found.

P.I.E. works hard to address specific requests. Often requests can be fulfilled if the application is received early, but participants must ultimately be flexible if their specific activity is not available in the country or area of study.

Applicants are selected on their academic achievements, extracurricular interests, and language proficiency. P.I.E. looks for students who demonstrate a curious, responsible, outgoing, and adaptable nature.

Students should plan on covering all expenses outside of the host family’s home. This may include movies, meals in restaurants, sporting events, toiletries, public transportation, lunches at school, etc. Pacific Intercultural Exchange recommends that students have a minimum USD $200-$250 per month while on program.

The answer to this question can only be given by each student’s high school. Please make the necessary arrangements and inquire with your school before beginning an exchange program. Pacific Intercultural cannot guarantee the transferability of credits or the receipt of a diploma, but will try to assist as much as possible by communicating with the overseas program and/or providing guidance on how to covalidate transcripts.

Each student and host family will be contacted on a regular basis by the organizations to monitor the progress of the exchange and provide any necessary advice or assistance. In addition, each student is provided with emergency contact information on P.I.E. identification cards.

P.I.E staff and overseas partners will be available to answer any questions and offer guidance before departure. For American students going abroad, P.I.E. also has a mentor program set up to further participant support. A mentor is a past or current student who can offer advise and share first-hand experiences.

The reasons for hosting are as varied as are the types of students that participate in an exchange program. Recognizing that exchange participants are generally strong in academics, some families hope that their own children will learn good study habits from the exchange students. Some couples without children are interested in sharing their lives with a teenager from another country. Some couples whose children are now grown miss having teens around the house. For many families, the possibility of traveling to another country is distant and they look at the hosting experience as an opportunity to expose their family to another culture without having to leave home.

Many P.I.E. hosts are referred by other families who have had a positive hosting experience. Others read about the program in the local newspaper or hear about it on the radio. For foreign students arriving to the United States, family screening consists of a home inspection, a criminal background check on all members of the household age 18 and over, and verification of personal references. American families are not paid for hosting an exchange student, but they may claim a charitable tax deduction of $50.00 per month on their itemized tax returns.

For American teens studying abroad, P.I.E. overseas partners screen each family to determine their acceptability for hosting. Through the application process, pertinent information is gathered from each student, which is used to help determine the compatibility of a potential host family.

The academic year program is approximately 10 months in duration. Academic semester programs (either Fall or Spring semester) are approximately 5 months in duration. American students going abroad also have a summer program option that is approximately 4 weeks in duration.

Foreign students arriving to the United States must demonstrate English proficiency. An oral and written examination is administered and participants must have at least a “C” average to be accepted on program.