The new AFS annual award recognizes one extraordinary young person (up to age 30) whose actions help create a more just, peaceful, and tolerant world. The winner will receive a US$10,000 cash prize made possible thanks to a generous AFS alumni donor.

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Whether you are in high school, at a university or jump-starting your career, AFS has the right program for you! Go to school, learn another language or check out our cultural internships and volunteer abroad opportunities. Host families and volunteers are waiting to help make your intercultural learning experience the best time of your life.

“Discover a new culture, a new language. Make friends for life from all parts of the world. It’s a year in which you’ll grow up and get to know yourself—your limits and your capabilities. You’ll change completely in the best way possible.”

—Giulia Andar, exchange student from Italy to Germany

AFS is committed to helping young people go abroad regardless of their financial situation. That’s why AFS works with corporate and community sponsors and individual donors to help finance AFS programs through full and partial scholarships.

“Being a host family is both a challenge and a pleasure. We are watching a complete stranger become close to us, and how we are becoming important to him. It’s almost two months since Mateo arrived and he already has a place in our family. We are teaching him about life in Serbia, and learning about life in Sicily. When our relatives call, the first thing they ask is no longer ‘How are you doing?’, but ‘What is Mateo up to?’.”

—Tijana Marjanovic, host sister from Serbia 

“Joining my local group of AFS volunteers gave me the opportunity to develop many skills, such as how to work in a team and interact with people from different backgrounds. As an AFS volunteer, I am more engaged in my community and I meet people from all over the world. Helping students, teachers and families embark on intercultural learning adventures makes me appreciate the importance of world peace and intercultural understanding.”

—Marcela Vazquez, AFS Argentina volunteer 

These days you don’t have to go far to find an AFSer making a difference in local communities, across industries or at the forefront of an important international issue or social cause.