What hosting looks like in the Minneapolis area
Your exchange student enrolls in a local high school and lives as part of your family for a semester or a full academic year. You provide a bed (sometimes shared with a same-age, same-gender child), meals, and a warm home. In and around Minneapolis, ordinary households host: couples, families with children, single parents, empty-nesters, and retirees. You don't need to own your home or be wealthy, just offer a safe, welcoming place and real interest in a young person from another country.
Timing for Minneapolis families
Placements follow the school calendar. Academic-year students are usually matched over the spring and summer to arrive before fall classes; semester students are placed for the fall or spring term. If you're in the Minneapolis area, start exploring a few months ahead of when you'd like a student to arrive. The application, home visit, and background checks take a few weeks, and starting early gives you the widest choice of students.
Which programs place students near Minneapolis
The major U.S. exchange organizations place students throughout Minnesota, including the Minneapolis area. Instead of applying to each separately, compare them in one step:
EF Exchange Year · APEX (AIEP) · CETUSA · ISE (International Student Exchange) · ICES (International Cultural Exchange Services) · Greenheart Exchange
They differ in program length, how they match students to families, local support, and host benefits. We check those details for the programs active near Minneapolis. See the full program comparison.
Who can host near Minneapolis
- A bed for the student, their own room or shared with a same-gender child of similar age.
- Three meals a day and a safe, supportive home.
- All adults in the household pass a background check.
- Stable household income to care for your own family; the student brings spending money.
You don't need to own your home, be married, have kids, or speak another language. See the full requirements.
Get matched in Minneapolis
Tell us about your family and your Minneapolis-area location. We compare the programs serving you, recommend the best fit, and connect you directly. Free, no obligation, no pressure.