Mark Wyse Talks Rotary Youth Exchange
The Rotary Youth Exchange actually has three parts – the one-year Inbound Exchange, the one-year Outbound Exchange, and the Summer Exchange. To be eligible for the Outbound Exchange, a student must be doing well in school and be between 15 and 18-1/2 years old. There are currently 27 countries to which students can be sent. The age requirements are somewhat flexible at the low end, but the US State Department will not allow students over 18-1/2 to participate. Students must be doing well in school because, as you can imagine, a student who is behind or doing poorly here will only have more difficulty in a foreign country.
There are 92 programs of varying size and scope offering youth exchanges in the United States. Rotary’s program is rated highest; more than 80% of outbound exchange students do so through the Rotary program. Primarily, this is because the Rotary program costs about half of what the others cost and provides significantly more support. Our district is a certified district and undergoes an annual audit for re-certification. We only exchange students with other certified districts. Background checks are performed to the level allowed by local law.
Our Outbound Exchange program costs $5,500 per student. This includes the student’s visa, flights, language camp, and insurance. In comparison, the second-ranked program, AFS, charges $15,000 per student. The cost for a Rotary club to sponsor an outbound student is $500. This covers the cost of the student’s blazer and attendance at the district conference.
The deadline for applicants for the 2014-2015 program is October 15. Any student in good standing and between 15 and 18-1/2 years may apply. Children of Rotarians are certainly eligible, though relationship with a Rotarian is not required. Selected applicants and their parents will be interviewed in November, and prospective students stay overnight as part of the evaluation process. After that, students are selected and matched to exchange countries, and they become Youth Ambassadors, off to represent their home country and clubs.
We are fortunate to have Mark Wyse and our own Anne Morrell as co-chairs for the District’s Youth Exchange. They both do a fantastic job managing the program and we thank them for their service. And thank you, Mark, for taking the time to further inform us on this worthy program.
Download the website sponsorship guide