Meagan Cox, Port Hacking High School, NSW, Canada

The safety and wellbeing of our students is our highest priority. We understand that student excitement at the adventure ahead is often mirrored by parental anxiety. Supporting and guiding our students and families through a safe and secure experience is our key objective.

We do this by:

	helping prepare students prior to departure and providing them with high quality advice and information about their exchange experience
	being available to parents throughout the exchange for any questions or concerns
	always using recognised airlines like Qantas, Air New Zealand, BA, Air France, Emirates, Lufthansa, Thai, Malaysian, etc.
	only working with established and reputable overseas partners
	ensuring that host families are personally interviewed in their homes and that selection procedures and criteria meet with statutory requirements of the host country
	ensuring that each student has a local coordinator for regular contact and close support and advice
	providing all outbound participants with a Travelex Visa Cash Passport card to simplify overseas access to funds
	including comprehensive insurance, including cancellation insurance, in our participation fee
	training our staff and coordinators on a regular basis
	providing an emergency phone service which students or families can call 24/7 if they experience a genuine emergency
	communicating openly and regularly with all parties to the exchange - parents, students, overseas partners
	regularly monitoring government travel warnings from DFAT (Australia) and MFAT (New Zealand)

We understand that, with the excitement and anticipation of an upcoming exchange, students and their parents may not absorb all recommendations/information at one sitting. That’s why we include our advice and information in our orientations and in our printed materials. Similar but more locally specific advice is included in orientations in the host country.

Local Support Structure

All students have a local coordinator appointed to support them throughout their time overseas. The coordinator - typically the mother or father of a returned student - is there to provide first level support to students and families. If a student is experiencing a problem they can talk with their local coordinator who will offer advice and assistance.

Coordinators are in regular contact with our professional staff to share information or seek advice.

Our partners keep us informed of any developments affecting the students’ exchange. We, in turn, contact parents if there are any issues that require their attention.

The chart below shows the support structure that is available to all students.

Monitoring Student Wellbeing

Student Exchange Australia New Zealand Ltd has established a customised online monitoring and reporting system that facilitates us staying in touch with students during their exchange.

Online Student Resources

Once you've been accepted onto one of our programs, we’ll give you access to 'My Exchange' - an online resource centre packed with info to help you prepare and make the most of your exchange.

With a secure login, students can access:

	links and resources about your host country
	an online facility allowing you to send updates directly to us
	an online travel journal allowing you to keep track of your experience with text and images
	a 'my docs' area where all your important documents are kept in one place e.g. host family profile, flight itineraries, insurance paper work etc.
	loads more materials about things like coping with homesickness & culture shock, and tips on how to get along with a new language, host family, friends, school, and heaps more.

We know how hard is it to keep track of all the paperwork, handbooks and stuff. This online facility is a great way to keep everything to do with your exchange in one place, and stay connected to us while you’re away.

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