The Light - An Alumni Publication Fall 2015 | Page 5

NEW & NOTEWORTHY
@BROAD - COMPILED SUCCESS STORIES
Morten Anderson:
Professional football
player, born in
Copenhagen,
Denmark. He came
to the United States
as a YFU exchange
student in 1977 at Ben
Davis High School
in Indianapolis,
where he was offered a scholarship from Michigan
State University. He held the position of being an alltime leading scorer for two different rival teams: the
New Orleans Saints, for 13 seasons, and the Atlanta
Falcons, with whom he spent a combined 8 seasons.
Haakon, Crown
Prince of
Norway, and
Mette-Marit,
Crown Princess
of Norway:
Both traveled
from Norway
to the United
States. Haakon
completed his bachelor degree in political science at
the University of California (Berkely). His wife, MetteMarit, spent six months in Australia as a high school
exchange student with Youth For Understanding.
Mark Halperin: Political
analyst with TIME
magazine and MSNBC.
He is from the United
States and traveled to
Japan in the summer
of 1982 as an exchange
student with YFU.

HOW TO BE AN EXCHANGE STUDENT
Being an exchange student is not a competition,
however some kids are definitely adjust better than
others. Fortunately, YFU exchange student Vy uses her
experiences to help ease several students’ anxiety by
teaching them how to make their travels more successful.
Some tips from Vy:
1. Eat ALL the things! Food is a huge part of all
cultures. Whether you like food or not, it doesn’t
hurt to try something new at least once.
2. Expect nothing. When you have no expectations, you
can go in and appreciate every experience for what it is.
3. Hang with the natives. It is normal to gravitate towards
other exchange students when placed in an unfamiliar
setting, but the best way to learn about your host country
is by getting to the know the people who have lived there
their entire life.
4. At least attempt to learn the language.
5. Don’t be afraid to sound like an idiot. Even if you
pronounce something wrong, people will appreciate the
effort!
6. You are going to get homesick. Instead of being
wrapped up in talking to family back at home or sitting
behind a computer screen, make an effort to talk to your
host family.

YFU

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