AFS has the utmost concern for the welfare, safety, and security of our participants. We’ve been exchanging participants throughout the world for 60 years—that’s six decades of history and experience in international education with an exemplary record of safety, security, and service.
- Emergency preparedness: AFS is ready for emergencies, if they happen. With a professional network of experienced staff and volunteers, who provide support In each country, 24-hour assistance is available in the event of an emergency. An AFS Situation Response Management Team is in place at all times to monitor events throughout the world and respond as necessary. While some programs have been curtailed at times, AFS has run programs throughout the world, without interruption, since it was founded in 1947.
- World Health Advisories: AFS-USA provides information on local and global health events as they occur and encourages its participants to be prepared by researching potential regional illnesses and understanding AFS-USA’s protocols in dealing with these situations.
- Medical coverage: Participants are safeguarded with AFS’s medical coverage. AFS provides secondary medical coverage to ensure that, in an emergency, students will be treated as soon as possible, anywhere in the world. The secondary medical coverage is a prerequisite for participation and is included in the cost of tuition.
Voluntary Liability, Baggage, and Trip Cancellation Insurance
AFS participants are eligible for Liability, Baggage, and Trip Cancellation Insurance from a 3rd Party for an additional low per/day cost.
- AFS rules: With participant safety in mind, AFS has guidelines and rules to which all participants are expected to agree and follow.
Additional levels of safeguarding participants:
- AFS Global Network: AFS-USA exchanges its participants within a long-established, international network of AFS partner organizations. AFS partners operate according to the same mission, operating values, and quality standards (pdf).
- AFS Volunteers: Students are supported within a network of trained volunteers. With one of the largest volunteer-based networks of its kind in the world, AFS stands out from all other exchange organizations. AFS Volunteers are located all over the world in order to help and support participants, host families, and parents. While abroad, your child will have regular check-ins with a trained, personal liaison, unrelated to the host family, who provides additional support if necessary.
- AFS Host Families: The host families are volunteers. Since AFS host families are not paid, you can be confident they have good intentions at heart -they want your child to join their community and learn about their culture. Host families are screened and receive formal training from AFS.
- Orientations: AFS helps students and parents prepare for the experience, both at home and during multiple stages of the experience abroad. AFS provides a wide variety of support that can include services such as in-person and online orientations, handbooks, telephone conference calls, opportunities to speak with AFS Returnees as well as local events with AFSers and Volunteers.
- Accreditation: AFS is accredited. AFS is evaluated annually and complies with the standards set forth by the Council on Standards for International Educational Travel (CSIET) and is supported by the U.S. Department of State.
