International Exchanges
Making a world of difference. As a Rotary Youth Exchange student, you’ll spend up to a year living with a few host families and attending school in a different country.
Whether you participate in Rotary’s long-term or short-term Youth Exchange programs, you’ll learn a new way of living, a great deal about yourself, and maybe even a new language. You’ll also be an ambassador, teaching people you meet about your country, culture, and ideas. You can help bring the world closer – and make some good friends in the process. More than 8,000 young people each year have experiences like these through Rotary Youth Exchange. It’s the opportunity of a lifetime. Are you ready for it?

Rotary Youth Exchange – 2025
The Rotary International Youth Exchange programme is a 1 year exchange designed for students who will be aged 16 or 17 in the January of the year that they leave New Zealand.
Every year in January, around 20 students leave New Zealand to spend a year living in another country, learning the language and culture of that country and attending school. They generally live with 3 or 4 host families and are hosted by a local Rotary club.
Almost invariably when they return to New Zealand the following January they are more confident, independent and mature and with a greater understanding of how other people live. They have also made friends with other students from around the world.
To go on the exchange students are required to apply through a local Rotary club (applications close in late February 2025), attend a further interview and selection process and then take part in a series of orientation days. This process ensures that the students are well prepared for their year away and that they will be good ambassadors for New Zealand.