HOST FAMILIES &
LIFE ABROAD
Living with a host family is one of the most exciting things about studying abroad. Take comfort in knowing that
YFU commits itself to placing students in a safe environment with qualified host families. YFU believes it is essential to make the best possible placement and considers families in all shapes and sizes. Students may be placed
anywhere in their host country and while students can indicate a preference to be placed in a certain area of the
country, YFU cannot guarantee that we will be able to accommodate such requests.
ALUMNI VOICE
“The concept of living with a family of strangers half-way around the world terrified me.
Getting to know people who can’t speak the same language as you can be difficult, but
it’s not impossible. When I got off the airplane in Japan, my host parents didn’t know
any English, and I hardly knew any Japanese, so it’s a given that the car ride home was
fairly awkward. While I didn’t exactly get off to a great start, things got a lot better.
Getting to know someone may be 10 times harder because of the language barrier, but
that also makes it 10 times more fun.
Although I didn’t think it initially, I consider myself to be very lucky in regards to my
host family placement. Being in a big city may have been exciting and fast-paced, but
the relaxed mood of my more traditional family was something I appreciated more and
more the longer I lived there.
I was placed with an older couple who had two children around 40 who had their own
children. Sure, I didn’t get placed with a host sister or brother like most students hope
for, but I had a great time. If anything, it gave me more incentive to make friends at
school and grow closer with my host parents.
Forming a bond with a host family doesn’t come fast, it’s something that I worked on.
I grew to love everyone I met in Japan, but my host parents were the people I came to
care about the most.”
ALLISON
YFU alumni
to Japan
YFU Study Abroad - 11