Hi! My name is Jade and I went on an AFS exchange to France for a semester from January 2024 to June 2024. 
What made you want to go on exchange?
My story about wanting to go on an exchange started back when I was twelve years old. My brother had become friends with a German exchange student and one night he was with us for dinner and was telling us about his exchange. That was when I first decided that an exchange was something I wanted to do. I originally planned to go when I was fifteen but then Covid 19 hit and postponed my plans. I first applied to AFS when I was 16, but since it was too late in the year they moved my application into the following year’s applications. So finally, after 5 years of trying, I received a spot for a six-month exchange to France.
When I started high school I randomly took French as my language, which I continued doing until I left school and was why I chose France. However, my country had swapped between the US, France, Canada, Belgium, French Canada, Switzerland, and even Italy. There were a lot of ups and downs along the process of my exchange to France, but in the end I was so happy with the option I got – and now having finished said exchange I am even more grateful!
What was your experience in school in your host country?
School in New Zealand and school in France is extremely different. For starters, New Zealand school starts at 9am and finishes at 3pm, while French school start times change each day. At the most, it will start at 8am and end at 6pm. In France you have a lot more freedom in school (meaning you can leave school when you don’t have class, and if your teacher is not there then you have no class). However, in New Zealand, schools do a lot more school-wide activities like house cup, athletics, and swimming sports. I think a good comparison is that French school is much more like university in New Zealand.
Despite all these big differences, I did enjoy my experience at school in France. I met some amazing people and made some amazing memories. I took music as a class for the first time (which was very difficult), I joined the school choir and got to do some performances with them, I got to dress up for Bac du jour (a dress-up day for seniors), and all around I had an amazing time. There definitely was an adjustment period but I always knew that school was going to be different and I had a great support system around me throughout this time. All in all, my experience in school in France was definitely positive and most enjoyable.
If you could thank someone from your exchange, who would it be and why?
There are many people I would like to thank for my exchange; my mum and dad, AFS New Zealand, my host family, AFS France. But there are a few people in particular that I believe really helped me throughout my exchange experience. My school friends; Lorianne, Lila, Noa, and Madeline. On my very first day of French school, they immediately came up to me in our first class and started rambling on to me about how they were my new best friends and that I didn’t have to worry about anything. It was all 4 of them. I remember being so overwhelmed and scared (partly because I was in my first-ever music lesson) and they made me feel so much better about everything.
They were so supportive of me throughout my whole exchange and always included me and made me feel like we had always been friends. Lorianne specifically was a huge help as she spoke almost fluent English which helped me a lot in school. I will truly be forever grateful for them, and some of the best and most special memories I made in France were with them. I miss them a lot now, but I’m still in contact with them and hopefully one day I can visit France again to see them!
What are you doing now? How did your exchange experience impact that?
Right now I am in what would be year 13. However, I left school at the end of year 12, as that was the rule in my school to complete an exchange. I have achieved entrance into Victoria University in Wellington through discretionary entrance and am currently working and waiting for that to begin in February 2025. All my friends are still currently in school completing year 13.
It was definitely scary throughout my exchange knowing that I was going to be coming back and not be in school while the rest of my friends were. However, it was not as bad as I thought it would and I think that my exchange is a part of why it is not as bad as I thought it would be. I believe I grew up a bit more on my exchange and can survive being on my own and being a little more ‘adult’. This has made my experience adjusting to back home a lot easier.
If you are worried about not being able to adjust back to normal life when you arrive back in your home country after your exchange, don’t stress. My best advice is to just take it one day at a time, there are no requirements for what you should be doing. It’s never as bad as you think it’ll be.
What advice would you give to future AFS students in general?
Some advice I would give to future AFS students would be to just do it. Do the exchange first off, even if it is daunting it will be one of the coolest most unique experiences of your life. During your exchange do everything as well. Say yes to hanging out with people and going on cool trips. Make the most out of your exchange cause it will be over before you know it. All in all put yourself out there, it will make your exchange an even better experience.
Ready to say yes to an AFS exchange to France? Check out our French programmes here!
