Rotary Youth Exchange
Packet for Interested Students

Self Assessment

Rotary Youth Exchange Application Procedure

Student Application Form for Club Interview

School Reference Form (Separate file) Please print & give to one of your teacher or counselors
as soon as you know you want to apply

Tips from Esteban Castano

Brochure entitled, “Long-Term Youth Exchange” (Separate file)

Brochure entitled, “Short-Term Youth Exchange” (Separate file)
ROTARY YOUTH EXCHANGE
Self Assessment
The following is a self assessment that you can take to see if Rotary Youth Exchange is the right thing
for you:
Do you enjoy experiencing new situations and adapt to them quickly?
Are different foods something you enjoy?
When you go to a new place, do new friendships start almost immediately?
Do you view the world from an optimistic perspective?
Is being around new people much more enjoyable for you than being alone?
When you meet someone, do you listen carefully to learn about them?
Can you follow the appropriate rules when faced with a different situation?
Are you able to think through problem situations and make your own decisions?
Have your grades been in the upper third of your class?
Do you want to learn or improve your proficiency in a foreign language?
Will you be age 15 to 18 1/2 at the beginning of the next school year?
Are you in good health?
Do you enjoy service to others through school and community activities?
Would you enjoy representing your community, state, country and culture as a youth ambassador in a
foreign country?
Are you interested in learning about other countries and cultures?
Do you enjoy being with others who have very different customs and beliefs?
Would following the Rotary 4-Way Test to make decisions for everything you think, say and do be
easy for you?
The Rotary 4-Way Test
Is it the Truth?
Is it Fair to All Concerned?
Will it Build Goodwill and Better Friendships?
Will it be Beneficial to All Concerned?
If you sincerely answered YES to all of the above, CONGRATULATIONS, you probably have the right
stuff to be a Rotary International Youth Ambassador in the Rotary Youth Exchange Program!
Rotary Youth Exchange Student Packet
Page 1
International Youth Club Application Procedure
Rotary Club of Willowbrook 2013
1. A student who is interested in Rotary Youth Exchange (RYE) should submit a preliminary
application with a 700-word essay to the Willowbrook Rotary Club by 5:00 PM, 11/11/13.
Topic – reasons why you wish to be RYE student.
2. The Willowbrook Rotary Club will review the preliminary application and interview the student
on 11/16/13 at Northwest Assistance Ministries, After the references are checked, the club will
make a recommendation to the District Youth Exchange Committee if the student is selected
to move onto the second level of interviews at the San Jacinto College North on 12/7/13 &
12/8/13.
3. Once a student has been selected at the club level, Anais Watsky will provide a Rotary longform application to student.
4. The student will then complete three original copies of the long-form application with original
pictures. One copy should be mailed to the Rotary District Committee by11/27/13. If
submitting application by mail, the application should be sent to the address below. Please let
them know by telephone that the application is in the mail.
Alan Wylie (Long Term)
439 Shadow Creek Dr.
Seabrook, TX 77586
281-851-1932
Susan Brodbeck (Short Term)
2219 Blossom Creek Drive
Kingwood, TX 77339
713-598-2431
If submitting by email:
Alan Wylie: alanwylie4@gmail.com Susan Brodbeck: susan.brodbeck@gmail.com
5.
District interviews will be conducted on the first week-end in December (Saturday 12/7/13 &
Sunday12/8/13) which may also be one of the dates for SAT tests, so applicants should
arrange their SAT test for another date. Attendance at the district interview is mandatory
for all applicants, and they must be accompanied by at least one parent. One completed
application must be received prior to 11/27/13 with original pictures. Please bring the other
two original copies to the District interviews.
6.
Following the interviews, the Rotary District Committee will review all applicants and inform
them within one week whether or not they have been selected for continuation into the youth
exchange program. (A long term student is not formally accepted as an exchange student
until successful completion of the week-long orientation camp in June of the following year.)
7.
The Rotary district committee will work with the applicants for arranging their exchange with
another country. All students may select their top 5 preferences for a country, but they must
understand in advance that factors may prohibit any of the 5 selections from being realized.
8.
Current exchange options:
Argentina/Paraguay
Belgium
Bolivia
Brazil
Denmark
Ecuador
France
Germany
Italy
Japan
Poland
Spain
Rotary Youth Exchange Student Packet
Sweden
Taiwan
Thailand
The Netherlands
Turkey
Page 2
International Youth Club Application Procedure
Rotary Club of Willowbrook 2013
CONTINUED
9.
Upcoming activities 2013 2014
December 7 & 8
District Interviews
January 18
Orientation 1 for long term students and parents
March 1-2
Rotary Interact District Conference
March 29
Orientation 2 for long term students and parents
March 29
Orientation for short term applicants
June 27-30
Orientation camp for long term students (mandatory)
June/July/August
Short Term Exchange
August/September
Departure for long term exchange
Rotary Youth Exchange Student Packet
Page 3
ROTARY YOUTH EXCHANGE
Student Application Form for Club Interview
Rotary Club of Willowbrook
District 5890
Application is to be completed by the student and submitted to a Rotary Club for possible acceptance
as a candidate in the Rotary Student Exchange Program. This application and essay must be
received by 5:00 PM on 11/11/13. Students accepted at the club level will be interviewed
subsequently at the Rotary district level December 7 & 8, 2013.
NAME ____________________________________Sex ______Date ___________________
(first, middle, last)
Address __________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________Student’s Cell Phone #_________________
Home Phone # ___________Date of Birth _________Age, as of Aug 1, 2014: ___yr___months
Email Address: ______________________________________________________
Information on Father
Information on Mother
Name ___________________________
(first, middle, last)
Name __________________________________
(first, middle, last)
Address __________________________
Address __________________________________
_________________________________
_________________________________
Occupation
_____________________
Occupation
_____________________________
Rotarian
Yes _____
Rotarian
Yes _____
No ______
No ______
Home Phone Number_________________ Home Phone Number_______________________
Cell Phone Number___________________ Cell Phone Number_________________________
Email ______________________________ Email ____________________________________
Social Security #_____________________ Social Security #____________________________
(If applying for Short-Term)
(If applying for Short-Term)
Continued on the next page with Student Information
Rotary Youth Exchange Student Packet
Page 4
ROTARY YOUTH EXCHANGE
Student Application Form for Club Interview
Rotary Club of Willowbrook
District 5890
STUDENT INFORMATION CONTINUED
School Attending ____________________ District ____________________________
Current Classification in School _____________ (Sophomore, Jr., Sr.)
School Interests / Activities: ________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________
Hobbies / Accomplishments ________________________________________________
Foreign language experience (language, number of years, proficiency) ____________________
____________________________________________________________________________
Other Referrals: (Preferably one or more Rotarians)
Name
1. ___________________
Association Rotarian?
__________ _______
Phone Numbers (Home/Work)
___________ ____________
2. ___________________
__________ _______
___________ ____________
3. ___________________
__________ _______
___________ ____________
Include a 700 word essay, relating why you wish to be a Rotary exchange student and what
you expect to provide and to gain from your experience.
Country Preferences 1. ______________ 2. _____________
3. ________________
Youth Exchange Program of Interest: Short Term ___________
Long Term _________
Student Signature: _______________________
Date: ______________________
Parents’ Signatures, indicating their willingness that student applicant participate in Rotary
Youth Exchange Program
Father _______________________
Date: ______________________
Mother ______________________
Date: ______________________
Sponsor Rotary Club ____________________
Rotarian __________________________
Please submit this application to local Willowbrook Rotary Club C/O Anais Watsky by Mon., 5:00 PM,
11/11/13. Scan & email to: awatsky@yahoo.com, or fax to: 281-370-4216, or mail to: 17814 Running
Brook Lane, Spring, TX 77379-6142, If you have any questions, please call Anais Watsky at 281370-4200, or email at the address above.
Rotary Youth Exchange Student Packet
Page 5
Esteban Castrano
Rotary Youth Exchange 08-09
5 Tips:
 Do it now, not later.
 Your world will still be here.
 Being scared is good.
 Choose to grow.
 Stepping stone

Do it now, not later.
o College Exchange programs typically last 8-13 weeks. Usually you'll be in dorms with
students from your university. 1) 8-13 weeks is not enough time to fully grasp the
culture. 2) Being with other students places you in a cocoon of familiarity. You'll
inevitably spend your time with your university friends and won't be able to fully
immerse yourself in the culture. 3) You will have a lot more schoolwork. This takes time
away making friends and learning about the culture.
o
Most importantly, now is the only time you’ll be seen as a son or daughter by a host
family. As you become an adult, you'll be seen as a guest in people's homes. This is
vastly different from calling someone, who was recently a stranger, "Mom" or "Dad.”
That is the ultimate form of cross-cultural connection.

Your world will still be here.
o In one year, you will change so much. You will come back and be surprised by the
relatively little change at home. Your friends, your family, your neighborhood, your
school, your boyfriend/girlfriend, the highways and billboards– everything will still be
here when you get back. In fact, when you get back home, it feels like you had just
paused your life for a brief moment.

Being scared is good.
o It means you can still expand your limits. Everybody’s scared of change. Embrace this
fear and dive into it. You will overcome it. You know what's on the other side–a more
confident, more culturally aware, and more mature you.

Choose to grow.
o RYE isn't a vacation. You'll have plenty of vacations in your life. You'll go to plenty of
parties. However, you will never again have the opportunity to grow and develop in the
same way you grow during RYE. Doing this isn't for your parents. It isn't for your
teachers. It's for you. Only you can make the decision to go. And you will feel so
empowered in the end knowing that you made the decision that changed your life.

Stepping stone
o RYE has opened countless doors for me. Since coming back, I've spent 3 months
living with my friend's family in Germany, have met my host families in NYC, made
plans to visit youth exchange friends in Mexico and will head back to Thailand soon to
see my school friends and host families. My college application essays were about my
year abroad and it undoubtedly helped me get into college. I am excited for the future
knowing that RYE is a part of me.
Rotary Youth Exchange Student Packet
Page 6