Guest Post by Quest Student Ignacio

Ignacio was an exchange student with Quest Exchange from Spain. He attended the past two years of high school in Green Bay, Wisconsin and graduated this spring. This is the testimonial he wrote about his experience...

Hi, my name is Ignacio and I have been and international student in Green Bay, Wisconsin. I had the opportunity to attend to Notre Dame Academy thanks to Quest. The last two years that I spent in the United States have been a total blast and an unforgettable experience.

At the beginning of my first year I was a bit scared about the new school in a foreign country but the people of Notre Dame welcomed me like they do with anyone no matter where they come from. People were extremely nice and eager to know about you and befriend you. Also I had some doubts about picking up the books or where to go to choose my classes but Quest is always there to help. Fortunately I had a wonderful coordinator called Miranda in Green Bay who was always there to help. At the end of my second and last year I felt blessed about all the friends that I have, my wonderful host family and all the stuff that I have learned out and inside of the school. Fortunately I keep in touch with my classmates and we are planning to meet again.

I wouldn't have minded stay in Spain but definitely I learned more in the States and made more friends. Also in Notre Dame I had the chance to be part of the IB Diploma, a very challenging two years course. The IB Diploma taught me new ways to think and learn and the Notre Dame teachers did a fantastic job teaching me and my other classmates. I didn't learn just to speak English but I also learned to write essays something very important in the United States.

Obviously one of the hardest things in the past two years was to have a good level in English but in matter of one month you could understand anyone and speak a very good English. Also the winter was very hard but people in Wisconsin are used to it so at the end you don't mind it like them. One of the biggest challenges were that many things I had to do it by myself such as studying without my parents forcing me too, managing a bank account or when the time came, fly alone. All those challenges were hard at first but anyone will end up overcoming there.

For future students I would recommend them to work everyday on school assignments and improve their writing skills. Also it is important to be calm at the beginning of the academic year. The teachers know that you are an exchange student and they will help you with your homework if you ask them for help. When I came for first time I was nervous about my host family but they ended up being one of the best things of my experience, you need to be very open with them so you can know each other. Talk to your host family a lot and blend in, it will be worth it.

Americans are very nice people and teenagers hang out like everywhere else, they listen the same music, watch the same movies and party. They are open people but you need to be open too to become friends. The social life is great and highly recommend to go to the sport events and also join sports and/or clubs. The weirdest things that Americans do are Root Beer Floats, Root Beer is an American soda that they sometimes have with ice cream! On the other hand they were surprised that in Spain people have cookies for breakfast.

This year my sister is going to Green Bay after me and my parents encourage her after my wonderful experience, she will go to the same school and host family as me and also two years. She is really excited about it and I am really happy she is going to a place that I enjoyed so much the past two years. 

I hope this refection is helpful and encourages many people to come the United States and have a wonderful experience.