Gary Said:

Are there Japanese exchange programs for non-students?

We Answered:

probably not. have not heard of it. but u could try writing to JICA or several japanese host families that offer assistance to foreigners esp if u r from usa - as they love everything american!

Phyllis Said:

Put off college 1 yr in favor of Rotary exchange student program?

We Answered:

Putting off college a year in order to study abroad will absolutely not hurt you at all when applying to colleges. Not only will it not hurt you, it will actually help you by setting you apart from the other candidates and showing that you cope with unfamiliarity, appreciate diversity, act independently, challenge yourself, and achieve goals that many others would consider impossible. Colleges will recognize you as a more mature, more prepared candidate for college than your high school peers. The Rotary exchange program is the among the largest and most well-known. As long as you do graduate from high school when you return, take the SAT or ACT, and keep your GPA around 3.2 (higher is better, of course, but 3.2 is not bad), etc., you should have no problem getting into several good colleges.

One suggestion, though. Take the SAT once now just to get the first time out of the way (if you haven't already). You will probably find that adjusting to life in Chile will be much easier than readjusting to life back in the US after your time in Chile is over, and I don't recommend trying to take the SAT for the first time ever when you're going through that kind of mental stress. It's called "reverse culture shock," and it sucks a lot.