FLEX Global Program

• Round-trip domestic and international travel (from home to the United States and back);
• Monthly allowance to help students participate in social activities and buy necessary personal supplies;
• Placement with a screened U.S. host family for one academic year;
• Enrollment in a U.S. secondary school;
• Program orientation activities including pre-program preparation and re-entry preparation;
• Program activities arranged in local U.S. communities; and
• Medical insurance, excluding pre-existing conditions and dental care.

• Any costs associated with receiving an international passport;
• Personal expenses not covered by the monthly stipend;
• Excess baggage costs; and
• Internet or data plans.

• Applicant’s date of birth must be between January 15, 2010 through August 15, 2012.
• Be enrolled in the first, second, or third year of secondary school at the time of application and not have graduated from secondary school before the program start date;
• Have the equivalent of a B average or better without failing grades;
• Meet U.S. J-1 visa eligibility requirements (for instance, U.S. citizens are not eligible for J-1 visa);
• Not have spent a total of more than 90 days in the U.S. in the last five years;
• Be a resident and citizen of India.

Notice on Secondary School Completion
Applicants who have completed or graduated from any secondary school before the start of the 2027-28 program year are not eligible for the FLEX Global program. This applies to all program countries.

Students whose immediate or other family members have:
◦  Applied or are applying to emigrate to the United States; or
◦  Made plans to emigrate or have already emigrated to the
United States.

Students compete through English testing, proctored essays, interviews with FLEX Global staff, and a complete application.
Selection—based in the U.S.— rewards merit and readiness for a year-long exchange, with English proficiency as one factor among several rather than the deciding one. Finalists must pass a medical fitness evaluation and will learn their status in spring. Selected students attend a pre-departure orientation at home in June or July, arrive in the United States in August, and return the following May–June on their assigned program end date. Visas cannot be extended or amended beyond that date for any reason.

FLEX Global is a unique opportunity to live with a host family and attend a U.S. high school for a year. Participants gain firsthand insight into and appreciation of U.S. daily life and culture, share about their own countries with their host communities, and build lasting relationships with their host families as well as between the U.S. and participating countries.

Students should consider:

• Will I have to repeat a year of school?
• Will I be home too late to take final school or university
  entrance examinations?
• Will my university or institute defer my admission?
• Will I be required to serve in the military upon return?
• Will I be eligible to graduate with honors/receive a gold
  medal at my home school?