Studying abroad during high school is an incredible adventure -but not every day is picture-perfect. Many students dream of life-changing experiences, new friendships, and exciting travel. While all that is possible, the truth is: the most rewarding part of your exchange program often comes from overcoming the challenges that you may face.
Here’s how to face those tough moments and come out stronger on the other side.
Your school year abroad is real life, not a summer travel...
Exchange students are not guests in their host family. You are (or will be soon!) a member of the family, and will be treated as such. The school year abroad is a real-life experience, it is not a bed and breakfast experience or a holiday. You are expected to help around the house, respect the rules, and adapt to a new routine.
Your host family may also feel unsure in the beginning. They are not a "professional" family. Everyone is adjusting. The key is effort, patience, and lots of communication. Our advice: saying "thank you" or smiling can help a lot. Communicate often, be respectful, and show gratitude.
Many of our Nacel exchange students struggle sometimes when they arrive in the host family, as they do not know what they can do to help in the house. That's normal! We always advise our students to ask questions: Can I help doing laundry? May I help you to cook? What could I do to help you keep the house tidy? No question is stupid and it will show your willingness to integrate the family. Very appreciated usually!
You might feel like a baby at first—learning how to talk, eat, and even behave all over again. That’s part of the experience. At first, your host family may go out of their way to make you feel welcome. But soon, you’ll become part of the everyday routine and that's the goal. You’ll be expected to fit into your host family life.
Be humble, be patient, and be persistent.
Stop comparing with your former life and habits: enjoy differences!
Things will work differently in the country where you do your school year abroad. Even your host family will function differently to your own family. It's time to accept - and even more, enjoy differences! You have not chosen to do such an exchange program abroad to replicate your current life in a different country. You want adventure, something new: here you are!
Food, daily life, school, social life, activities, local transportation, timing, everything is different. Our advice: do not judge and remain open to differences.
Do not compare your own life, culture, and country with your host family or friends, unless you wish to highlight cultural differences positively. It can be enriching for everyone to learn about each other's cultures, but it may also be very frustrating -and upsetting, if you do not stop comparing and criticizing how things work over there.
Adopt a relativistic point of view: the way you do it in your country may not be better than the way they do it there; it is just different. Maybe after some time, you will even think that the way they do it there is even better than how you are used to doing it back home! That's the whole idea of the cultural exchange: discover new ways and eventually adopt them if they suit better to you!
I can remember a student from the US who was used to using the car -she was driving already at age 16- to go everywhere. Because public transportation in her area was very poor so she did not really have a choice. She decided to spend some weeks in the Biarritz area, in France, to learn French and live at her French teacher's home, in a small town on the Atlantic coast where people were used to using the bicycle to go everywhere. Because it was safe, and quick, and also because it was impossible to park, and there was so much traffic in the summer. This student reported to us that she discovered this new custom, and she just loved it! She found it so convenient and environment-friendly! She realized there was a different way to move around locally. I hope she was able to continue using a bike back home and spread the word!
Avoid speaking your mother tongue: learn a new language!
If you are a native English speaker, you soon realize that most people around the world speak some English and will even be very interested in talking with you in English so that they can practice themselves or because they feel it goes quicker. Fight against this trend! You traveled outside of your country and made all these efforts to do a school year abroad because you wanted to learn a new language.
Go out of your comfort zone and require that people speak to you in the local language only. This is the only way for you to adapt to the new country and culture and really become bicultural. Our tips: watch TV in the living room with your host family. That's the best way to get the popular culture, get the language style people use in real-life, and also have discussion topics with other local families and friends. Write the new vocabulary you learn in a notebook.
Humor is always very useful -and powerful! With humor, you can overcome all situations and attract sympathy from others. No need to translate a laugh! This is universal among all humans. Humor will make you less anxious about your language skills and will help you connect with others. A Hungarian student reported to me that he was confused as he made a mistake using the word cancer, which is the name of the disease, instead of crab, which is the word for the animal. He was walking along the beach in France and told his host family: "Regardez le petit cancer dans le sable" (see the small cancer on the beach) instead of "le petit crabe" (the small crab), just because in his language it was the same word (rák)! Even if "cancer" is the kind of word that is a bit frightening, the fact that he used it instead of crab made them laugh a lot and he could explain to them why he made the mistake. He said it made him less stressed with his French afterward.
Build a strong relationship with your host family
Each time I talk with a future high school exchange student and their natural parents, I really insist on the importance of building a strong relationship with the host family. It requires time and effort, but this is a rewarding experience. If we speak about how to overcome challenges during a school year abroad, then your host family is key.
They got involved in this adventure with you, not for you. You are "in the same boat" as we say in France. Success can only be a result of you and your host family really becoming "united", with deep bonds. They are not just here for the good moments, but also for the bad ones (even more for the bad ones!).
Our advice: talk. Talk about your good days, successes, good vibes, and joys, but do not hide homesickness, challenges, difficulties, loneliness, and any other feelings you may go through while abroad. Share your doubts and fears, and ask for guidance. Open conversations build mutual trust. If you share, they will share in return. If you need support, they will be there for you, like any family.
All together, you are building a relationship that can last a lifetime. Not a small thing, isn't it? Deserves some effort.
You will surely face some challenges during your school year abroad. This is part of the experience. Your exchange organization will surely prepare you for those challenges as much as possible. In this article, we share some tips to succeed and overcome these challenges.
Studying abroad during high school is one of the most enriching experiences a young person can have, isn't it? It’s exciting, eye-opening, and life-changing. Many students picture their exchange year as an endless adventure filled with new friends, fun trips, and Instagram-worthy moments. This is part of it, for sure, but there is another side to the story.
A high school exchange program has its ups and downs. You won’t be “on the go” all the time. There will be quiet days, confusing days, even hard days. And that’s okay! That’s when you grow the most. It is REAL LIFE.
Keep in mind: your ingredients for success: openness, patience, humility, and humor.
Ready for the adventure with its challenges?