EF High School Exchange Year

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EF High School Exchange Year

Open Your Family. Open Your World. EF is the leader in high school exchange.

08/18/2026

Welcome, EF Exchange Year Class of 2027!

The airport arrival photos are always the best. New beginnings, big emotions, introductions, and plenty of "firsts" all captured in one moment.

To all the amazing volunteer families opening their homes this year: thank you. And to the incredible students from all around the world: the year you’ve been waiting for is here. 💞💞

08/03/2026

Host parents Audrey and John wanted their two exchange students to experience a true Kansas Fourth of July, even though the holiday had already passed by the time the girls arrived last week. 🇺🇸🇺🇸

So, they created their own celebration, complete with fireworks, grilling, traditional Fourth of July foods, a side-by-side ride, and jumping hay bales. A little late, but still full of the fun, food, and traditions that make the Fourth of July so special.

Talk about an unforgettable first week in Kansas for these girls!
🌽🎆🍔

07/27/2026

Our first Welcome Camp session in NY for our Class of 2027 students is underway!

Students are making new connections, trying new things, and stepping outside their comfort zones. They kicked things off with a Parade of Nations, celebrating the countries they call home.

Then, students joined groups with others from their state or region of the U.S. to learn more about life in America and their EF Support Network.

And of course, no Welcome Camp is complete without an epic Lip Sync Battle. Students brought the dance moves, creativity, and plenty of energy as they performed with their new groupmates!

07/21/2026

The students are starting to arrive this week!

There's something about that first moment when a host family spots their student walking through the terminal. The nerves, the excitement, the hug that's somehow awkward and perfect at the same time. These first few days stick with people. Host families and students talk about them for years.

Veteran hosts, you know exactly what we mean. What do you remember about meeting your student for the first time?

Drop your arrival photos in the comments. We want to see every single one. 💞

07/07/2026

Kristen in Colorado is spending a special summer with all three of her "bonus" daughters back in the nest. There’s something pretty amazing about staying connected through the years, and getting to watch exchange students grow into strong, independent young women with lives and stories of their own.

In just a few short weeks, Kristen and her husband will also welcome Esmee from the Netherlands into their home, and another exchange chapter begins!

That’s one of the best parts of hosting. Your family grows, and the connection lasts long after the exchange year ends.

What could your exchange experience look like?

07/03/2026

Happy 4th of July from all of us at EF High School Exchange Year!

Today is about backyard barbecues, small-town parades, fireworks, and those little traditions that make summer in the U.S. feel so memorable.

For our exchange students that are still in country, it is another moment they will never forget. A sparkler in the driveway. The sound of fireworks somewhere in the distance. A host family explaining why everything suddenly turns red, white, and blue. A neighborhood parade. A cookout. A flag on the front porch. The kind of day that might seem ordinary if you have grown up with it, but feels completely new when you are seeing it for the first time.

We are so grateful for the host families, students, and communities who make these moments possible.

Happy Independence Day, and cheers to America’s 250th birthday. What are some of your favorite 4th of July traditions?

06/17/2026

This is the time of year when the goodbyes start getting real.

The last family dinner. The last ride to school. The last movie night with people who didn’t even know each other a year ago.

That’s the strange thing about exchange. You come for a school year. You leave with people, places, and little everyday routines that feel like home.

That’s certainly true for Teresa and Tom Metz, as they say goodbye to their Italian daughter, Leonie. Even after hosting 27 exchange students, the goodbye never gets easy.

So yes, this season is full of excitement. But it’s also full of hugs at the airport, long goodbye dinners, and a lot of "see you later" that nobody really wants to say. But the hard goodbyes mean it was real. And that’s a pretty special thing💞

04/22/2026

STUDENT ALUMNI SPOTLIGHT

Hi, my name is William and I spent my exchange year in Texas. There is not one day where I don't think about my exchange year.

Embarking on exchange might have been one of the scariest but best decisions I ever made. Before my exchange year, I was scared — scared of leaving everything I ever knew behind and starting all over. However, the moment I went through security at my home airport with the other exchange students, I knew: "this is the right decision." Flying across the earth at 16 with people I had met just 20 minutes before was an incredibly independent feeling, a feeling of freedom I had never felt before in my life. It was still scary, don't get me wrong, but refreshing in ways I hadn't thought were possible.

And then came Welcome Days — meeting people from all over the world and connecting on a global scale. Welcome Days was the start of something I had no clue would change my life forever. Next came meeting my host family. This was the hardest part; it's not every day you move in with a family you have only seen online five times. I will admit that tears were flowing. But it turned out we were the best match. We clicked after just a couple of days, as if we had known each other for decades. My host family made me grow. I truly felt like I was in an environment where I could be myself, and I believe I was genuinely happy.

This continued through the first ten days before school started, and then I met my amazing friends — the ones who truly got me as a person. We had so much fun going on adventures to Goodwill and Dairy Queen. To fast forward a bit: the end of my exchange year arrived, and it was the hardest part of my life. I still remember it clearly. My friends and I were out at a park for one last hangout, and when we got back to my house, I could hear them calling for me not to leave as I shut the door. My host dad was standing in the kitchen — I ran over and hugged him, still crying my eyes out. Leaving the rest of my host family wasn't any easier.

The moral of the story is: you never know what's waiting on the other side. For me, it was the world - where I truly belonged and felt happy.

04/14/2026

You didn't know it was a holiday but your student did.

That's hosting. An exchange student comes into your home and suddenly your calendar has holidays on it you've never heard of.

Have you celebrated a new holiday because of your exchange student?

04/12/2026

Some families host once and think, "That was really special."

Then they do it again.

Alison De Paola's family welcomed exchange student number five this year - Remi, from France. He was "gravely disappointed" in what Americans call French bread but quickly showed them what French cooking is all about, making them authentic Quiche Lorraine and Peach Clafoutis. So. He's settling in fine.

Five students. Five countries. Five families across the world who now have a place at the De Paola table.

What's one moment from hosting that you still think about?

Address

1 Education Street
Cambridge, MA
02141

Telephone

+18004474273

Website

http://www.efexchangeyear.org/

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