The impact of an exchange year is profound. For Niklas, an exchange student from Austria spending his year in Georgia, his journey has been filled with new experiences, meaningful connections, and moments that have pushed him to grow. Between settling in with his host family and becoming part of his local community, Niklas has embraced each part of the experience with openness and curiosity.
Keep reading to follow Niklas’s journey as a high school exchange student from Austria and see how his time in Georgia has shaped his exchange year in the United States.
Why did you want to do an exchange year in the United States?
“There are many things that come to mind, but the first thing is the experience growing up. I’ve always watched American movies like ‘High School Musical’ and many more where the American high school life just feel like a dream, out of reach. When I first learned about an exchange year, I was fascinated…
One of the other things was also [wanting] to experience a new culture, meet people, trying new food, experiencing American holidays like Thanksgiving, and also just [learning] to be independent — living on your own and make your own decisions.”
Tell us about your host family and why you appreciate them.
“My host family consists of my two host parents, Rebecca and Eric, my host sister Cora and our two dogs, Waffles and Gherkin. They love to travel and have been able to show me all around the US. They always try their hardest, and even though sometimes it isn’t perfect, they [make] it perfect. I really appreciate all the effort they put in and couldn’t have wished for a better host family.”
What have you learned about American culture and how have you shared your culture with Americans?
“I learned about American culture in the daily life — going to school, going to football games, having dinner with my host family. Even those small things like going to Walmart, trying new food, etc. is all a part of experiencing the culture. Mostly when people think about experiencing culture they only think about the big things, but reality it’s mostly small things that are the most memorable…
Also I’ve been able to share my culture by teaching my friends about my country, my language, my food and my traditions. I’ve also held a presentation about my county, to teach my fellow classmates more about my country.”
Did you know you can host an exchange student like Niklas from Austria?
Host families from across the United States come in all shapes and sizes. Whether you’d like to host for a full school year, a semester, or just for a few weeks as Welcome Family, you can make an impact on an exchange student’s life by hosting!
Leave a Reply