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High School Trimester – AFS PEACE Program in Türkiye

Experience Türkiye - a cultural bridge between the East and the West - through this unique trimester program that includes EFIL’s end-of-program PEACE Camp in Belgium.

Study Abroad in Türkiye

Spend three months living and studying in Türkiye! This country’s unique position between Europe and Asia made it a hub for intercultural exchange in the past, and it continues to be a bridge between the East and West today. During your time abroad, you’ll live with a host family, attend a local high school, and learn to speak Turkish in your host community!

Türkiye highlights some of the best qualities of both Europe and Asia; the beautiful Mediterranean coastline mixes with mountain ranges and farmlands. In Türkiye, the climate varies by region. Coastal areas have a Mediterranean climate with cool, wet winters and hot summers.

In more suburban and urban areas, you will be delighted by skylines shaped by a mixture of modern and Ottoman architecture and find colorful markets filled with ceramics, fabrics, handicrafts, exotic spices, rich Turkish coffee, and an energetic game of tavla (a backgammon board game). Türkiye is also home to many famous landmarks and World Heritage Sites, like the Hagia Sophia and Cappadocia.

AFS PEACE Program

The PEACE (Peace through Exchange and Active Citizenship Education) Program is a shared experience offered in several European countries and facilitated by the European Federation for Intercultural Learning (EFIL). Midway through your time in Türkiye, you’ll attend an online webinar to prepare for the five-day end-of-stay PEACE Camp and meet fellow participants participating in the program across Europe.

After concluding your experience in Türkiye, you’ll travel to Belgium for the PEACE Camp — an end-of-stay orientation and international gathering of AFSers. There, you’ll join AFS students from other countries who also participated in the PEACE Program, coming together for activities and workshops that explore your intercultural journey and support your growth as an active global citizen.

What's included in your experience

  • 70 Years Experience

Scholarships and Aid

We believe in the power of intercultural experiences and the potential of our students! That’s why AFS-USA is committed to making studying abroad more attainable. To be considered, you must complete the scholarship application by the deadline corresponding to your program’s departure. Learn more and view all deadlines below!

Learn More View Deadlines

Eligibility

Graduates Eligible? Yes, high school graduates are eligible to participate.
Minimum GPA 2.5
Age Range (at program start) 15 years and 0 months to 18 years and 10 months at start of program
Language Skills No language requirement

Based on differences in culture, strict government regulation of medications, and other local customs, it has been our experience that not all of our international AFS partners are able to support students with certain diagnoses, including but not limited to, severe allergies, strict dietary restrictions, ADD/ADHD, and those currently taking or who have taken psychotropic medications and/or received counseling for mental/psychological issues within the past year. If this applies to you, please get in touch with an AFS Study Abroad Specialist early so that we can determine the right experience for you.

Your Journey to Türkiye

Visa Information
AFS will provide visa guidance and support documents (if applicable). Visa processes can be lengthy and complex; you may be required to travel long distances to apply for the visa if there is not an embassy, consulate, etc. close to your home. Your passport should be valid for at least six months beyond a return date from your host country. We urge you to apply for or renew your passport as soon as possible if applying to an AFS program. We recommend not taking any trips (domestically or internationally) within two months prior to your AFS program as it may interfere with the visa application process and result in a late program start date.

Travel & Orientation
In the months before your departure, AFSers have the opportunity to participate in various preparatory activities, including an online Student Learning Journey, which is an interactive course that brings AFSers from around the world together to learn how to develop essential global skills, intercultural communication techniques, and practice social impact, maximizing the outcomes of the AFS learning experience.

Also during this time, AFS-USA will coordinate and share your international travel with you. You will need to coordinate your own travel to the point of international departure. From there, your journey in Türkiye will begin when you land, where you’ll be met by staff and volunteers…as well as your fellow AFSers from around the world! Shortly after arrival, you will attend an arrival orientation and get a crash course on Turkish culture, language, living with a host family, safety, and support structures.

Trimester Turkyie PEACE Program – High School

Your High School in Türkiye

Teenagers in Türkiye attend an Anatolian high school, which is a university preparatory secondary school. The school year usually begins in the second week of September, with a one-week fall break in November. A typical school day lasts for seven or eight hours and allows students to specialize in either mathematics and science or social studies. You can expect to spend much of your time with family or friends getting to know the life and culture in your host community!

Trimester Turkyie PEACE Program – Host Family

Meeting Your Host Family

Family is the primary social structure in Türkiye and extended family often lives in the home. In the evenings, you can expect to gather around the dinner table with your Turkish host family or watch TV and drink tea together. Expect a flow of friends and relatives visiting for coffee, tea, and lively conversations. Arabic is also spoken in some parts of southeastern Türkiye.

Trimester Turkyie PEACE Program – Food

Food You’ll Encounter in Greece

Turkish dishes combine Mediterranean and Middle Eastern styles and are quite rich and varied. Eggplant is a popular vegetable and is often paired with meat in a kebab. Food is cooked mostly with olive oil and herbs in the western part of the country, whereas meals can be very spicy and meat oriented in the eastern part of Türkiye. You can expect to try Dolma and Sarma (stuffed vegetables), yogurt (eaten with almost every meal), and Börek, a traditional dish that is made of phyllo pastry or dough and rolled out in thin layers and filled with cheese, meat, or spinach. If you have a sweet tooth, you’re in luck because Türkiye is famous for its desserts, especially baklava, a sweet pastry, and milk pudding.

What's Included

What’s Included

  • 75+ years of experience delivering high-quality programs through a worldwide network of 30,000 dedicated volunteers 
  • Accommodations with a vetted host family 
  • Round-trip international airfare for the designated program dates 
  • School enrollment fees 
  • Worldwide, 24-hour emergency assistance 
  • Access to an in-country support team and network, as well as our Participant Support Department based here in the U.S. 
  • Orientations and intercultural education before and during your program
  • International secondary medical travel coverage
  • Visa support and guidance
  • Inclusion in a worldwide returnee and alumni network of over 1,000,000 people

Visa Info

Do I need a visa/residence permit for Türkiye? YES. Visa + Residence Permit
How do I apply for the visa? (By mail, In-person, In host country) In-person + In host country
Visa/Residence Permit Process Difficulty Level (Easy, Average, Complex) Complex
Estimated Visa/Residence Permit Expenses
($ – $$$)		 $$
Frequently Asked Visa Questions Visit our general visa FAQ page for more information.
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Returning Home

“Life-changing” is hard to describe, yet it’s nearly always the first thing that AFSers say when asked about their experience abroad. “Transformed” is another one. When you return home from your study abroad in Türkiye, you’ll bring with you a sense of accomplishment unlike any other. You’ll have gained maturity and independence, discovered new passions, and developed the confidence and resilience to accomplish anything you set out to do.

That transformation isn’t only visible to you, though – others see it as well. AFSers gain critical skills for college and careers. Second language fluency, intercultural competence, creativity, and critical reasoning will help you succeed, whatever path you take. “Life-changing” means it’s only the beginning. It’s not just an adventure abroad; it’s a whole new reality. The perspectives and personal connections you gained will stay with you and likely draw you back to the second home you found in Türkiye.

In fact, our alumni reviews have made AFS one of the top-rated organizations in the study abroad industry.