Many schools around the world provide foreign exchange programs for students to learn in a different country. Foreign exchange students typically arrive during the beginning of the school year and have a choice to leave after the first semester or stay the whole year.

Fees for the program are usually around $15,000 to $20,000 dollars. Each school year, Wakefield gets around four exchange students.

“It’s pretty expensive, but I love being here.” Junior Lara Rodriguez said.

Rodriguez came here from Spain speaking three languages and hopes to learn new things.

“The most important thing I gained from coming here is the culture and my host family. It’s like another having family in another country,” Rodriguez said. “I think in the future, I will have more options to have a job. I speak French, Spanish, and English.”

The most popular destination foreign exchange students are looking forward to see in the United States is California and New York.

“California was the state that I wanted to go to, but there are lot of students going there so the chances of me going there was very low.” Junior Simon Vistisen said.

Places are usually picked where there is a host family willing to host an exchange student.

“With the program, we can pay to pick a certain location or state. When we do pay, we can’t know for sure if we can get into that state,” Vistisen said. “That’s like throwing money out of the window so I just let the program pick a random location.”  

Vistisen came here from Denmark where he heard about the opportunity from a friend. He is able to speak Danish, English, and a little bit of German. This great opportunity only comes around once.  

“My parents miss me, but they’re coming to visit me during Easter.” Vistisen said.

Junior Alessia Almerighi originated from Italy and looks forward to a learning in a different country.

“I learn English better here than Italy. Everyone speaks it, it’s the language of the world. It would look good in my portfolio in the future when I look for jobs,” Almerighi said. “You leave your family and you live in a different culture. You can gain good life experience. It is also good for work life and personal life.”

The foreign exchange program can allow students to be open to new things. Many come here because it will look good in the future while others come here to obtain and learn about the diversity in the world.

“This only happens once in your life and you can’t not do it. It changes your life and my family is happy for me. There was a hard moment because I had just left my country. I learned a different way of life.” Almerighi said, “You learn another culture and it’s awesome because I learn how they think and speak.  This is the best thing because I learn American culture.”  

Taking this opportunity will benefit students later on in life. It’s a once in a lifetime high school experience.

“This experience is really hard. It would probably be the hardest thing you do since you were born, but this will completely change your life,” Almerighi said. “You have to do it because it’s the only way you can learn about another language, another culture and people. I love it right now and it’s the best thing ever.”