Marlborough Girls' College have wonderful, caring families who would like to extend an invitation to your daughter to stay with them and learn about the New Zealand way of life. They will make sure that she settles in, makes new friends and also offer her support and guidance. She will get the chance to immerse herself in the day to day life of the host family, join in with their activities during the weekends and the school holidays and in doing so hopefully gain a deeper understanding of the Kiwi culture. They in turn will look forward to learning all about her culture and what is important to her. Your daughter will also, with the special effort of her host parents, be given help to improve on her English skills knowing that she is in a friendly and safe environment.

Some often asked questions...

• What if she has allergies to cats or dogs?
• We will make sure that we find her a homestay that does not have animals.
• Will she have to share a room?
• No, she will have her own room.
• Can she bring her own laptop?
• No problem.  Just make sure that she has the correct adapters as the plugs in NZ are likely to be different from home.

Min Jung Kim
South Korea, Seoul
Age 16, Year 11
Marlborough Girls' College

Leaving families and home and living in a totally different environment with people from a different background is not easy at all. It can be one of your biggest worries when you are planning to study overseas. However, on the other hand, it can be one time in your life when you can build independence, find yourself and see yourself in a different world. Living in a homestay provides the perfect chance to do it. Getting to know New Zealand's culture takes you a step forward to the wide global world. You get to see and learn different lifestyles and different view points. Though you face homesickness sometimes you will have a family that you can talk to and you can lean on. All these things make you feel safe and strong and teach you many things that you cannot learn in your home country. So why not have a go at living in a homestay in a different part of the world from where you have grown up?

Since I was young, I had to leave my country for a better education. I left my home for the first time when I was eleven with my brother who was only ten. Now I am 16, getting ready for the wider world. I appreciate the support from my host family who made my stay so enjoyable.

I'm Nana from Japan. I'm 16 years old.

I have been in New Zealand about eight months. When I first came here I didn't know anything. There are three different cultures in my homestay, New Zealand, Korean and Japanese so it was hard to understand each other but it was fun. My host mother, Julie, teaches me everything and now I am having fun with her, baking and cooking. It is my favourite time in my homestay. When I have a problem, my host family are there to help me every time. I love this homestay because everyone is wonderful and this is my second family in New Zealand.

My name is Julie and I am a host mother for Marlborough Girls' College. This is a position I have enjoyed for many years. The reason I do it is because I love the varied cultures that come through my house. The girls always keep in contact with me and come back to New Zealand to visit.