Welcome to AIIU’s Student Exchange Page
AIIU is a study abroad and student exchange organisation. We have long-established international partner relationships that ensure the highest standards of care and support to participants. We maintain a network of volunteer Support Officers who work in support of students and families during the student exchange experience.
Child Safety & Quality Management is Our Priority
All children participating in any of AIIU’s study tours, student exchange or homestay programs have a right to feel safe and be safeguarded from harm. We are committed to the safety and well-being of all children and young people participating in our programs. The welfare of the children in our care will always be our priority. We aim to create a safe and friendly environment where all children and young people are valued, feel safe and are protected.
If you believe a child is in immediate danger and need to report an emergency, contact the Police by phoning 000.
Suspected child abuse and neglect should be reported to the relevant authority in each state and territory:
- Victoria – Child Protection Emergency Service 13 12 78.
- New South Wales – Child Protection Helpline 13 21 11.
- Queensland – Child Safety Services 1800 811 810.
- South Australia – Child Abuse Report Line 13 14 78.
- Western Australia – Central Intake Team 1800 273 889.
- Tasmania – Child Safety Service 1800 000 123.
- Australian Capital Territory – Child and Youth Protection Services 1300 556 729.
- Northern Territory – Child Protection Hotline 1800 700 250.
Reporting a child safety matter can also be done online here.
Our Exchange Program Managers, who have been appointed as a child safety officers for AIIU, are the primary point of contact to provide advice and support to children, parents, employees and volunteers regarding the safety of children in our organisation. If you wish to talk with any our Exchange Program Managers regarding child safety, they can be contacted on the details below.
Exchange Program Managers – Child Safety Officers for AIIU
National – Mieko Horigome
0456 394 042
Victoria – Kate Bamford
0411 803 885
Western Australia – Linda Abu Lashin
0433 544 328
New South Wales – Yoshimi Fraser
0449 854 669
Queensland (Acting) – Kylie Cleary
0400 658 982
South Australia (Acting) – Linda Abu Lashin
0433 544 328
Fill out this form to send your matter to all Program Managers at once.
Read our Child Safe Policy Document here
If you wish to talk with any of our Regional Managers regarding child safety, contact Australian Institute of International Understanding here. AIIU is committed to supporting students to express their cultural rights. Whether from Australia or overseas, AIIU supports students to express their culture and enjoy their cultural rights while respecting and enjoying their host community’s culture. We promote the empowerment, participation and rights of children.
AIIU is committed to helping exchange students learn about Indigenous culture and history. We act on this commitment by ensuring that our staff, volunteers, students and host families participate in inductions or orientations which contain content that is inclusive and sensitive to Indigenous culture and history. We commit to the cultural safety of our Indigenous people and work together with our participants and overseas partners to confront and eliminate racism.
By undertaking the above, we aim to promote cultural rights and safety of Indigenous children so that their unique identities and experience are respected and valued.
Moreover, AIIU works to facilitate that our participants, their families, host families and our staff and Support Officers are representative of the diverse nature of the societies in which we operate. We promote equity and respect diversity and strive to ensure that our policies and procedures do not exclude anyone who is otherwise eligible to participate on our programs.
The Purpose of Student Exchange
The principal purpose of AIIU’s student exchange programs is to provide a broad educational experience for students and to further international/intercultural understanding.
Broad Educational Experience
AIIU’s student exchange participants develop competencies in communication, collaboration and cooperation, strategic and creative thinking, leadership, networking skills, deductive reasoning, problem solving and decision making, and resourcefulness.
Student Exchange Programs foster the development of sophisticated ways of looking at the world, respect for other cultures, sensitivity to different cultural, political and economic systems and mindfulness towards the welfare of the planet and its people. The result being that returned exchange students invest in advancing understanding and harmony across and within communities around the world.
AIIU’s programs are first and foremost educational. Students live with host families and assimilate into local host communities. AIIU student exchange programs are not touristic in nature. Independent travel is a breach of program rules. Students must attend school full time, undertake all set assignments/tasks and participate in all assessments.
The promotion of AIIU student exchange programs draws attention to the academic nature of programs and the requirement to be a full-time student.
International/Intercultural Understanding
AIIU’s student exchange programs encourage young people, their families and extended communities to share experiences, worldviews, languages and cultures with others from different backgrounds and traditions, with the expectation that all participants will develop a broad knowledge of and tolerance for other cultures.
Students have the choice of either short-term (less than 90 days) or long term (semester and year-long) student exchange programs with AIIU. Long term programs allow for wide-ranging and deeper integration into host cultures; genuine outcomes for international/intercultural understanding follow.
What is an AIIU Student Exchange?
Complement your Australian high school studies with a short term, semester or year living and studying overseas in a country of your choosing. An AIIU student exchange is the opportunity of a lifetime!
Being an exchange student is more rewarding than simply being a tourist, you’ll live like a local and make on-the-ground connections. As an AIIU exchange student, you’ll join a global network of like-minded young adventurers, and you’ll return with memories and skills for life.
At A Glance:
- Live with a local host family
- Attend school fulltime
- Experience your host country’s cultures and customs first-hand
- Learn a language (for non-English speaking countries)
- You do not have to host a student in return however
Benefits of Student Exchange
Student exchange offers a wealth of benefits across educational and personal dimensions to those involved in such programs.
Educational Benefits
- International learning and knowledge propels students towards acceptance and understanding of an array of different cultural and community perspectives.
- Language acquisition is achieved through practical immersion.
- Awareness and adoption of alternative, multi-faceted approaches to learning.
- Analytical and problem-solving skills.
- Enhanced interest in global issues as well as a broader general knowledge.
Personal Benefits
- Self-development and awareness leading to enhanced self-confidence and self-esteem. This is often the most noticeable change in returned students.
- Maturity and social poise, fuelled by the necessity to confront challenges outside a familiar support network and comfort zone.
- Integration into another family as well as the development of life-long friendships, fostering an appreciation of home and family.
- A tremendous sense of accomplishment upon completion encourages students to develop independent opinions, make informed decisions and strive to attain fresh goals.
Student exchange programs also have long-term benefits that go beyond the academic and personal growth and development a student encounters during their exchange experience.
Long-Term Benefits
- Students who go on to tertiary studies find themselves more comfortable in ‘foreign’ environments.
- Prospective employers in almost every field look favourably upon experience gained while living overseas and knowledge obtained of another language and culture.
- Increased pressure to communicate and relate to others develops an awareness of group dynamics and personal sensitivity towards others.
- Successful program completion represents an excellent measure of personal flexibility, encompassing an ability to reach compromise, focus and succeed through challenging times
AIIU Student Exchange to Japan
Click here to read our Exchange to Japan with AIIU booklet
Whether it is for a short term, semester or year program, an AIIU student exchange program will enhance your life and provide a window on the wonders and opportunities in the world.
Support is provided to each student throughout the entirety of their programs. Right from the start, when we first receive your enquiry, all the way to program completion, AIIU will answer your questions, maintain contact with you while you are overseas, and, when necessary, facilitate communication between you, your Support Officer, your host family, your host school and our international partner organisation. This ensures you will have the best possible overseas experience.
AIIU host families are interviewed and screened to ensure they will provide safe and caring home environments for our exchange students. Your host family will select you, will be welcoming and probably impatient for your arrival, and will be interested in learning about you and your life in Australia. If you choose a non-English speaking country, you will have the opportunity to learn a new language and speak it daily. While this may seem daunting, it is worth the effort because the long-term, life-long benefits are considerable.
Eligibility for Student Exchange
You are eligible to apply for an exchange program if you meet the following requirements:
still at school when you apply
- in good physical and mental health
- maintaining the equivalent or better than a C grade average for the last two years (Australia).
- language requirements vary for each destination.
- mature and open-minded
- flexible, adaptable, responsible and ready to learn
- between 15 and 17 years old when you start your exchange program (exceptions may be made for 14- and 18-year-olds), subject to program and destination
- an Australian resident
- provide proof of vaccinations, requirements vary per destination.
Difference Between Study Abroad and Student Exchange
Inbound Student Exchange Programs
- All AIIU exchange students entering Australia for programs advertised as ‘student exchange’ apply for student visas (subclass 500), using AASES forms.
- Records of AASES forms are maintained on AIIU’s Student Management Database and Visa Grant Notifications are stored securely on AIIU’s server.
- Student visas must be granted prior to arrival in Australia. Exchange students cannot be enrolled under a tourist visa. Program is cancelled in case of student visa refusal.
Inbound Study Abroad Programs
- AIIU Study Abroad Programs, including payment to host families and host schools are promoted as such to sending organisations and separate third-party agreements to the agreements for student exchange programs are issued.
- AIIU Agreements for Study Abroad Programs do not refer to the regulations and monitoring in place for registered student exchange organisations in Australia.
- AIIU marketing materials for Inbound Programs differentiate Study Abroad Programs from Student Exchange Programs.
Outbound Student Exchange Programs
- All AIIU exchange students apply for the visa required by their host country to authorise their stay with a volunteer host family and enrolment into a local volunteer school. For programs up to 90 days, a tourist visa may suffice.
- Documents, written instructions and assistance with the visa application are provided by AIIU for all destinations on offer.
Outbound Study Abroad Programs
- AIIU Study Abroad Programs, including payment to host families, host schools or both are promoted as such to students and parents.
- AIIU marketing materials for Outbound Programs differentiate Study Abroad Programs from Student Exchange Programs, with the statement that Study Abroad Programs are not monitored by Regulating Authorities in Australia for registered student exchange organisations.
Visa Requirements
A student visa (subclass 500) is always required for our programs, regardless of the program length. The student visa allows AIIU for its student exchange program, to provide welfare arrangements to underage students.
AIIU can apply for the visa document, the AASES (Acceptance Advice for Secondary Exchange Student) with the Regulating Authorities once the placement has been completed: the host family has been fully vetted, the school has confirmed acceptance to enrol the student, and a local coordinator has been appointed for the student.
The visa documents are sent to the partner shortly after the confirmation of placement, on the condition that the placement fee has been paid in full to AIIU. Due to strict deadlines applied by the regulating Authorities, partners will receive the conformation of placement and visa documents no later than 6 weeks prior to the student’s scheduled arrival date in Australia.
Reciprocity
As a registered Student Exchange Organisation with the regulating authorities in Australia, AIIU operates student exchange programs on a reciprocal basis, balancing the number of inbound and outbound exchange students and the duration of its programs. Reciprocity is regulated at a state or territory level.
Australia offers an unparalleled opportunity for overseas students to embark on enriching study tours of Australia. With its diverse landscapes, world-class educational institutions, and vibrant multicultural society, this country promises an unforgettable educational experience.
As you consider embarking on your educational journey Down Under, keep in mind that this vibrant nation is not just a place to study, but a destination to explore, experience, and create lasting memories.
To find out more or start the process, please: