Eligibility
Program Description
Visa and Travel Documents
Getting There
AFS Orientations and Activities
Eligibility
To be eligible you must:
- Be between 15 years 0 months and 18 years 0 months old at the start of the program
- Have a minimum 2.8 cumulative GPA (on a 4.0 scale)
- Be in good mental, physical, and emotional health in accordance with the AFS Medical Evaluation Policy
- Have an open mind, willingness to be flexible, and the ability to adapt to new a culture, school, and environment
Program Description
As with all AFS high school programs, you will be placed with a volunteer host family while attending a local host school. Learn about life in Brazil.
Students are placed throughout Brazil.
The ability to speak Portuguese is not a prerequisite for the program but we strongly suggest that you learn as much as possible prior to departure. You will also have language lessons during your stay in Brazil.
Applicants who require a wheat-free diet will be difficult to place and may not be accepted.
Visa and Travel Documents
In order to participate in this program, you must have a U.S. passport that is valid for six months longer than your intended stay.
In addition to your passport, you will need a student visa to enter and reside in your host country.
The visa application process for Brazil is detailed, time-consuming, and costly. It involves collecting a number of documents including a background check by local police, a statement of good health from your physician, a parental consent form, and official academic transcripts (transcripts must be notarized and legalized with apostilles), among other documents.
The current visa fee is US$60, while the processing fee is US$131; neither of these fees includes the cost of obtaining, translating, notarizing, and mailing the required documents. Please note that these fees and requirements are determined by the consulates and are subject to change.
You must be prepared to travel to the nearest Brazilian Consulate to obtain your visa. You will be responsible for the costs of travel to the Consulate.
AFS USA will provide you with detailed visa application instructions in the months prior to your departure.
Getting There
You and your fellow AFSers will travel together from one of the gateway cities in the United States. You all will arrive in San Paulo, collect your baggage and pass through customs. You will be met by AFS staff and volunteers and will participate in a welcome orientation together. You will then travel to your host community, which may be some distance away.
AFS Orientations and Activities
AFS will provide you with several orientations throughout your experience. These orientations give you a chance to gather important information about your host country, to meet other AFS teens from around the world, to share experiences and make friends. These group activities give you a chance to understand and process your intercultural learning experience during your time abroad as well as when you are returning home.
These required orientations are intended to help you maximize the AFS experience, prevent culture shock and to gain knowledge, skills and a global understanding.
Local chapters of AFS Brazil may arrange events such as informal gatherings, weekend excursions and picnics. There will be a regional orientation about six weeks after your arrival orientation. There may also be short-term exchanges in a different part of Brazil.
Each year, there are four optional trips scheduled that you may be able to join for an additional fee: two weeks to the Amazon and into the jungle in May (approximately US$1050); to the Northeast for approximately four weeks in January or July, including Brasilia, inland colonial areas and coastline (approximately US$1,100); to Iguaçu Falls for a week at Easter break (approx. US$250); and to Pantanal-Bonito for approximately one week in October (approx. US$320). So that your initial adaptation process is not disrupted, participants are not allowed to join the optional trips during the first four months of your stay.
