While attending a Swedish language camp in Minnesota in 2005, I was tipped off about foreign exchange programs where I could actually go abroad and live in Sweden.
After years of attending Swedish events in the United States and learning the Swedish language, I was really excited about the idea of actually traveling abroad to visit Sweden in person. It would be the first time I ever visited Sweden and even Europe.
The most affordable foreign exchange program mentioned was Rotary International Youth Exchange. I was limited on money so I automatically decided to go with Rotary.
One of the reasons why Rotary is one of the most affordable youth exchange programs is because students are hosted by families who provide room and board voluntarily without pay. As a result the student essentially only has to pay for air flight, insurance, document fees and personal spending money to go abroad.
Additionally the student is permitted to select the country he or she travels to, but does not select the city. Rotary groups across the selected country choose the students who live in their communities. This means that students are more likely to live in smaller, less costly communities (compared to larger cities).
Note, if too many students select a particular country, there is a possibility that students may be diverted to a “similar” country. For example, an acquaintance I knew originally selected Japan, but was then told she would go to Thailand because too many students chose Japan.
I applied to the program through the nearest participating Rotary club to me in Southern California. Once I submitted my application, I was quickly invited to local youth exchange events and started to learn more about the program.
I met “inbound” students, foreign exchange students who were staying in Southern California that were in my Rotary district. They came from all over the world, many coming from Europe and Asia.
I was soon accepted into the program and was given the green light to travel to Sweden and live there for 10 months. I pulled together money for air flight and insurance and obtained my passport.
I received a letter in the mail from my host family I would be living with for the first four months I was in Sweden. My “host mom,” the mother of the household, wrote details in the letter about her family, as well as the community I would be living in. To my surprise, the community I was living in was where the IKEA headquarters were located!
I am not going to go into great detail about my time in Sweden, but I will say it is the most unique experience I have ever had in my life and I am so glad that I did it.
I lived with two host families while I was abroad. By living with the families I was able to see more into their lifestyles and compare how they lived. I also attended high school where I met students and teachers and observed how they managed their education system.
Once a month I would meet up with other foreign exchange students in my district, which was always interesting. There were exchange students from Australia, Japan, India, Brazil and other countries. I was able to hear their experiences of living in Sweden and also share my feedback so we could relate to each other.
I will admit that the trip had its ups and downs for me personally. On one hand I did get to explore a new country, meet new people and gain a different perspective of the world, but on the other hand I did experience home sickness and felt sad and lonely at times.
I think these are feelings that many young people will experience when living abroad for the first time and are learning how to cope with a new community they are unfamiliar with. But that is one of the things that makes foreign exchange such an amazing experience and allows individuals to gain new insights about themselves and adapt to their surroundings.
I highly recommend Rotary International Youth Exchange to young people who are interested in traveling the world. The program is available to people ages 15-19.
To learn more about the program, simply contact your local Rotary club and ask about it. A Rotary representative should direct you to someone who is involved with the program and can provide further information.
You can also visit the program’s website here.
Lauren Ell was born and raised in Southern California. She was raised in what she calls a “secular” Christian household. She has been living in Sweden since 2016 with her Swedish partner, and gave birth to her first child in 2019.