What were your reasons for applying as an High School Student?
I applied because i wanted to experience another culture and create memories that will last a lifetime and also a lot of people recommended it.

Tell us about your host family, if you have siblings or not, relatives to the family:
The host family consists of a mom and dad and i have two siblings in this family, a girl who is one year older and a boy thats one year younger we get along really well and have a lot of fun together. the grandparents on the mother’s side lives right next door and all other relatives live in a 2 hour radius

Describe the area you live in:
I live in the middle of nowhere close to a small town there isn’t much around here but farmland but i love it so much, there is a certain sense of freedom when you live on the countryside

What does a typical day look like, how do you get to school and home after school?
A normal day consists of waking up for school at around 7:00 and maybe grabbing some breakfast if time allows it.
We then jump in the car and drive to school, my host sister always drives us since she still goes to the same school as me. School starts at 7:45 and ends at 15:15 everyday. (except wednesdays we get to leave at 14:00) School is the same thing everyday there is no variation in the schedule from day to day basis
I usually stay after school since i have joined different sport teams and practice everyday after school and then my host mother picks me up after practice on her way home from work.

Did you get help to choose subjects in school. Which subjects did you have to take. Which other subjects have you chosen. Are you happy with your choices?
I didn’t have any help picking my subjects but there was help if i would have wanted it. I wasn’t forced to take any classes so all my classes was my own choice. The subjects i chose was English 11, Anatomy and Physiology, Earth and Space Science, English literature, Civics, Written communication, Conservation, Animal science, PE 200 and History of war and military science. and then there is a study hall on top of all of these subjects and you have 7 subjects and one study hall every day and the seven subjects might change when you go into the second semester and some might stay. I’m extremely happy with my choices and i’m overall super happy with my exchange year.

Tell us about an activities or sports you participating in or are planning to join? Give examples of what is offered.
I have in my time here participated in wrestling and track and field. wrestling season just ended and it was tons of fun and i even got the position of team captain track and field just started so i can’t really tell if it’s gonna be fun or not but i’m pretty sure it will be awesome. As far as other sports goes there is a lot of them such as Football, Cross country, wrestling, powerlifting, baseball, track and field and many more, and my school is extremely small not even more than 500 students in the high school and we still have this many options and i think that’s amazing.

Tell us about any travelling you have done or are planning to do:
We haven’t done much traveling but we do plan to going to chicago soon.

What have you gained (lärt dig) during the year?
I have learnt so much about the american culture and people i have also improved my social skills and overall my understanding and patience for others

What has been the best experience so far?
The best experience for me has been all the fun i have had with my friends here, they are all so amazing  and i couldn’t have asked for better friends.

How have you been spending you pocket money?
Mostly snacks and trinkets but a big portion has also gone to sporting attire and clothes.

What has been most challenging so far?
The hardest thing so hard has been to understand the people they are all so different and most people’s mentality towards many things is hard to handle especially in the beginning but you get used to it.

Write anything you can think of that you feel could be of help to students coming after you?
Don’t hold any high expectations, if you do you might get disappointed i had no expectations when i came here and  have had the time of my life and i would also recomend to be prepared to deal with conflicting views on things you might see as trivial if not unimportant all together.

Write a short message to exchange students thinking about joining Skandinaviska Institutet / ASSE:s High School program:
I would highly recommend you to apply because this is such an amazing experience and if you even have the slightest interest in applying you really should it will be one of the best decisions of your Life.