Host a Student
The YES Canada Homestay Program
Are you looking for an international experience without the travel? Look no further as our Canada-wide homestay program is the perfect opportunity for your family to welcome an international student into your home.
Sharing Your Home with the World
Your hospitality can make all the difference to a student’s experience and it’s our hope that signing up to host with YES Canada will mark the beginning of a relationship that will last a lifetime! Hosting isn’t just about giving a student food and shelter; we hope that this will be a truly rewarding experience that melds cultural sharing with personal development and great memories as you learn about your student and integrate them into your daily life.
Our students are from all over the world and have applied to step out of their comfort zone completely and immerse themselves in another culture by living with a host family and attending a Canadian high school. Some students are here to develop their English skills while others just want to get a true taste of the Canadian culture. The one thing they all have in common is that they need a strong foundation and a warm welcoming home, and that’s where you come in!
We recognize that hosts are the foundation for every student’s program and we want to provide you with all of the support and preparation our years of experience and knowledge can afford. We like to think of our company and everyone involved with our worldwide network as one big extended family that supports each other and celebrates the everyday and the not so every day elements that make our cultures unique.
Let’s not forget that you live in Canada (the true north strong and free!) and you should be proud of that! Canada is known across the world for the moose, Mounties and our super-polite nature (eh!) but this is your chance to show a student everything in between that makes Canada great and show off what makes you proud to live here. Immersion isn’t just about going to school and learning the language, your every day family life is a key component of your student’s experience and it is the little things like family dinners that they will remember most.
You are the Canadian immersion experience and we are proud to welcome you to our ever-growing family!
A Rewarding Experience
Each and every host family has their own great story to tell and their own perspective on the benefits of hosting a foreign student; here are just a few of the highlights that we think capture the essence of hosting:
- A lasting friendship that crosses oceans and years – the instant expansion of your family!
- New cross-cultural perspective and a globalized world view
- A fresh and new perspective of your own country gained through the eyes of the international student
- Rediscovering your local community
- Lifelong memories and experiences, mutual learning and teaching
Support of Host Families
YES Canada Homestay provides host families with a support system to guide them through the unique experience of sharing their home and lives with an international student. Our team is here to support you before, during and after your student arrives in Canada and we will check in with you each month to review how things are going.
A Dedicated Regional Coordinator
Available from the time you register as a host family and throughout your experience, our Regional Coordinator is ready to answer any questions you might have – big or small – about hosting, your host student and the program in general!
They are on hand to make the transition easy and help with any language translation or cultural concerns.
YES Canada’s Inbound Program Manager
Our Homestay team is managed centrally from our head office in Muskoka. If you need any additional assistance, we are always on hand to answer your questions. We also have a 24/7 emergency line available to all host families.
While you welcome a new student as your family member, YES Canada welcomes you to our family and support network!
Host Family Requirements
YES Canada Host Families come in all shapes and sizes: parents with young children, parents with teenagers, families with no children or families whose children are all grown up. What they all share in common is a desire to share in the experience of welcoming a YES Canada exchange student into their homes and opening their minds to new experiences.
Becoming a YES Canada host family has some very simple requirements.
We ask that our host families:
Welcome our exchange student into your home as a member of your family.
Provide your exchange student with a private bedroom and 3 meals a day.
Include exchange students in your family life and community activities. Exchange students are expected to participate in daily family life and adjust to and learn from your home, including following the house rules and chore responsibilities.
Encourage the exchange students to make new friends and engage the exchange student in conversation to work on language, but also to learn new things about each other.
Be welcoming and open-minded. Be patient and supportive and share your Canadian culture with pride.
Communicate with our YES Canada Coordinator and report any concerns or issues that impact on the exchange student’s experience with your family or their school.
Become a Host Now!
There are three simple steps to become a host family and join the YES Canada family!
Step 1:
To begin the process we ask that you start by filling out our 2 page host family profile form. This provides us with a basic profile that eventually we will send to the student you are matched with! Please submit completed applications to: homestay@youthedservices.ca
Step 2:
Once the hosting application is complete and returned to us, our Homestay Coordinator, will arrange for a host family interview and home viewing. This is also an opportunity for the coordinator to review the requirements for hosting and answer your questions.
Step 3:
All host families are required to undergo a criminal reference check for anyone over the age of 18 in the home. We use Back Check, an online system that allows hosts to easily complete a reference check. The cost of the check is covered by YES Canada. (If you have already obtained a Criminal Records Check for employment and the check is currently with your employer, a copy of that document or a letter from your supervisor confirming the status of the check will suffice.)
All background checks must have been completed within the last three years.
Once all three stages are complete you will be a fully qualified host family!
We will work to match you with a student and once confirmed send a student profile so you can start to get to know your new family member.
Host Families Needed in:
BRITISH COLUMBIA
Victoria
ALBERTA
Calgary
SASKATCHEWAN
Assiniboia
Avonlea
Gravelbourg
Moose Jaw
ONTARIO
Bracebridge
Chatham
Huntsville
Owen Sound and surrounding communities
Ottawa
North Bay
Parry Sound
Renfrew County
Thunder Bay
Walkerton
Want more info? Contact us.
