À bientôt, j’espère! (See you later, I hope!)
I submitted my application about three times, and got an email the next business day saying I’d forgotten to do something. So after trial and error, I finally submitted it for the final time and paid my application deposit fee. The next day, I checked my email on my phone in class (who cares if we aren’t allowed to use cell phones in class? It was worth the possible violation in my opinion) and saw that 1. My application was sent off to be reviewed, and 2. I was accepted into AFS-USA!
For those of you who don’t know, there are two layers of acceptance needed to go abroad. The first one is being accepted by AFS-USA, which basically means you are allowed to leave the country with AFS and go to another country, all while representing the United States and AFS-USA. That’s where I am right now. It says I’ll have to wait 4-6 weeks to find out if I’m accepted to AFS-Belgium, my first choice. I’m just hoping it’s sooner rather than later, waiting is the worst! Hope to keep you updated soon,
Nicole
I was asked “Why Belgium?”, “Why AFS?”, and “Why do you want to study abroad?”, which all seemed to be easy questions. I was also asked about my home life, my personality, what I’m interested in, and if there was anything that would inhibit placement, like an allergy or a fear. I was asked what I would do in various situations, like if my host family and I had a conflict.
My parents also made sure to ask about AFS’s policy about emergencies, which she explained that if there was an emergency, the local volunteer in my country would tell me personally, so I wouldn’t have to be alone when I found out the news. She also said that if I had to immediately fly home, I could, and I could maybe even come back depending on how far along into my stay I was.
It was a great experience, but made me feel really anxious to want to be accepted already! I had Jack, my boyfriend, there with me, as well as both of my parents, and it made me feel wayyy less nervous. My advice is to be as calm and honest as possible, because the volunteers are there to do all they can to get you a proper placement.
Most of you already know me, but for those of you who don’t, my name is Nicole Cameron and I want to study abroad with AFS.
I’m a senior in high school now, but I opened my application early sophomore year… almost three years ago! I’ve been wanting experience other cultures my entire life, and I hope AFS will give me the opportunity to do so.
My first choice is Belgium, after many months of researching, deciding, and changing my mind. I even switched to French I (and now French II) after two years of learning Spanish in high school to get me closer to the language, closer to Belgium. Now that I’m close to getting my application in, I decided to start a blog to keep track of my thoughts and experiences.
Happy New Year and hope I keep this thing updated!
Nicole
