AFS Interculture South Africa has a few exchange places still available for our Intensive School-Based Programme that begins at the end of November 2018. This is your chance to live with a new family, learn about a new culture, and attend a new school!

AFS is the largest and oldest exchange organisation worldwide, with 70 years of experience with student exchange programmes. We are the leading student exchange organisation and are widely recognised as an advocate for intercultural education and understanding. Each year South African students spend a school year, a semester or an intensive stay for 8 weeks through AFS in one of our 59 partner countries.

AFS Interculture South Africa is a South Africa-based, non-profit organisation (part of a network of AFS partners around the world) working on a volunteer basis, we finance our work by participation and membership fees, as well as from donations and public means. Each year about 10,000 young students and families participate in AFS programmes worldwide.

Our international partners welcome and support South African students during the exchange experience. AFS has one of the largest volunteer-based networks of its kind, with almost 100,000 active AFS volunteers throughout the world. It is these volunteers who make our programmes possible – they provide local support for the students and families by passing on their experience. This worldwide support network will be there for you – around the clock and during your whole exchange experience.

A goal of all AFS programmes is intercultural learning. AFS offers more than only learning a new language. During the AFS experience, we offer you the opportunity to really dive into the culture of your host country. You will be able to intensively experience a new culture. Through the integration into everyday life in a different country, an unknown world will become a part of you.

The intensive school-based programme lasts for approximately two months departing at the end of November 2018 and returning during the first week of February 2019. Our partners in France, Germany, Italy and Turkey, still have a limited number of spots available – but don’t delay!

Students live with a carefully selected host family and attend school after the Christmas break. This is a cultural exchange programme not a travel programme – through living a normal life in the host country, students return with a sound knowledge of a foreign language.

“The school life was a lot of fun for me. Right from the beginning, I was accepted just like a normal student, which helped me a lot to improve my German. It helped me that I could always directly use the words and phrases, which I learned in everyday life. I also made a lot of new friends!”

(Marina, Germany)

The cost of the programme includes international flights, orientations, support through our volunteer network, and medical insurance. AFS will assist you in getting your visa, but that will be at your own cost. The two-month programme in France costs R50,000, the programmes to Germany, Italy, or Turkey cost R48,000.

For more information about AFS, please go to our website www.afs.org.za or contact our Sending Coordinator at 11 431 0113 or [email protected]. Full applications need to be sent to our partners at the start of August, therefore the Deadline for Applications is Sunday 5th August.

Stay with a family for two months, have a family for life!