I'm a 15 year old male from Poland and I’ve been seriously thinking about doing a high school student exchange to Japan. I’ve been studying Japanese for a while now — I’ve already passed JLPT N4 and I’m planning to take N3 in a few months. I'm also fluent In English as I lived in the UK and in Polish as I live there now.
I have been in Japan with my family for 2 weeks already.
My future plan is to study aviation in Japan one day, and I feel like doing a high school exchange there would be a huge step forward. I’m super motivated, love the language, and I want to really immerse myself in the culture (and improve my Japanese of course).
I'm looking for answers to these questions:
-Has anyone done a student exchange to Japan from Poland or a similar country?
-What programs would you recommend (AFS, YFU, Rotary, etc.)?Is it realistic for a smaller city school to get matched?
-Realistically are there any Japanese students that would want to come to my city (40min from Poznań) for a return exchange?
-Anything I should start preparing now (besides language and grades)?
Also, for those who've done it — what was your biggest challenge, and what made it all worth it?
Thanks in advance for any tips, experience, or resources you can share
Just a heads up, I haven't got an exact plan, that's why I'm asking for advice and help
by PinekXDwastaken