Host Family to High School Exchange Student

Be a Host Family to a High School Exchange Student

Join Education Travel & Culture (ETC) as a host family and welcome a high‑school foreign exchange student to your home. ETC partners with the U.S. Department of State to place students on J‑1 visas, providing them with an American high‑school education and a family experience.

• Provide a safe and nurturing home environment for the student.
• Offer a private room and the student’s own bed (shared rooms are acceptable).
• Ensure 3 meals per day.
• Provide transportation to and from school and for extracurricular activities.
• Give the student love, support, and a welcoming attitude.
• Explore cultural differences and similarities with the student.
• Families with or without children are eligible.

• Bring their own spending money and health insurance.
• Have good English skills.
• Are highly screened for the program.
• Excited to meet their American family!
• Learn a new culture by tasting new foods, listening to new music, and speaking a new language.
• Share your culture with an exchange student.
• Add another member to your family.
• Help an exchange student get an American education and the experience of a lifetime.

Becoming a host family offers a meaningful opportunity to share your culture, learn a new language, and add a new member to your family. You also help an exchange student receive an American education and a lifetime experience.

“Our exchange student has been such a blessing in our lives. We had no idea we were missing anything until she came into our lives. Having a host daughter has made us laugh harder than we ever have before. It’s been so special to see my kids love her, bond with her, and my daughter’s closest confident in a time of her life.

She has become not just a daughter to me, but my friend.”

Watch our video to learn more