The CSIET (Council on Standards for International Educational Travel) is a non-profit organization that identifies reputable international youth exchange programs. They also help promote the importance and educational value of international youth exchange, as well as provide leadership and support to communities involved in exchange and education. They publish annual reports on statistics for incoming (international students coming to the US) and outgoing (US students going abroad) exchange students.

Now, we’re talking about high school students here. No college students, that is not governed or tracked by the CSIET. There are currently 60 programs on the CSIET Advisory List that have a “Full” listing status, meaning they are fully reputable organizations that send American students abroad or host international students in the US.

Well, here are a handful of statistics for the year 2009-2010.

* The top 5 countries where American students study abroad are: 1. Germany 2. France 3. Italy 4. Spain 5. Japan

*California was the state that sent the largest number of students abroad: 200.

*Most US students going abroad for exchange are from Western states (CA, OR, WA, AZ, CO, UT, NV, MT, ID)

* The total number of US students sent on exchange for either a school year or a semester: 1,980. This is the lowest number of US high school exchange students in the last seven years. Not counted in this statistic are the many summer programs offered to American high school students.

Now compare our total number of students who went abroad to the total number of international students who came to the US: 28,142. Once again, this is high school. Most international students who come to the US during their high school career do not count that year; it is a lost year academically for them. And yet they come.

According to the latest statistics, the majority of those 28,142 students are housed in the Midwestern region of the US (MI, WI, IL, MN, OH, IN, IA), primarily Minnesota and Michigan.

These statistics raise questions, at least for me.

Why do more than 28,000 students from around the world come to the US for a year of high school when that year doesn’t earn them any academic scores? Why do most of the Americans who go on exchange come from the western states, mainly California? Why are the main countries where Americans go on exchanges mainly in Europe?

I don’t have any proven answers, but I have my own guesses and theories.

Why do more than 28,000 students from around the world come to the US for a year of high school when that year doesn’t earn them any academic scores?

Many of the international exchange students I know are very excited to live in another country. American culture has been conveyed to them through a variety of mediums, from television series to rock bands and pop stars, sandwiches and fast food chains. They see America all the time. Or them? They’re pretty sure American life isn’t like that. And they want to see it for themselves. They want to experience what it means to be American.

Why do most of the Americans who go on exchange come from the western states, mainly California?

California is one of the most populous states in the country. There were 2,013,687 students enrolled in a CA high school for the 2008-2009 school year. But this raises another question. If there were so many million students in a CA high school that year, why did only a couple hundred of them go on exchange? From my experience living in CA, many of the students I have asked why they want to go abroad, their reasons vary. Some say it’s because they know someone who has gone abroad. Others had someone from a CSIET-identified program come to their school and give a presentation. There may be very little penetration of exchange programs in California high schools. As stated above, the majority of international students stay in the Midwest. Midwestern high school students are more likely to come into contact with an international student, which may prompt them to consider going abroad.

Why are the main countries where Americans go on exchanges mainly in Europe?

Europe has always been very close to our own culture. European history is widely taught in both high school and college. European languages ​​are taught in secondary schools, mostly French and Spanish. It would make sense then that the countries Americans want to learn the most about are France and Spain. As it happens, Germany, since World War II, has taken incredible steps to open up to other countries. The country’s immigration levels have increased dramatically over the past four decades. It is literally mind-boggling the amount of study or work abroad opportunities that Germans have as high school or college students. In Germany, high school students are encouraged to study abroad, perhaps unlike their American counterparts.