In August, the IUHPFL Office sends an email to Indiana high school world language teachers, announcing next summer's programming and providing details about the upcoming registration and application processes. 

In August and September, Indiana high schools complete the Annual High School Update Form, which allows IUHPFL to maintain up-to-date contact information for world language teachers in the state and expresses the school's intention to promote IUHPFL to its students.

Additionally, world language teachers promote IUHPFL to their students by:

• distributing and displaying IUHPFL promotional materials
• sharing the IUHPFL website and online videos
• and encouraging past program participants to give presentations to their peers.

Throughout the fall, alums from prior years give presentations in their school auditoriums or language classrooms, while representatives from IUHPFL visit high schools around the state and provide Regional Presentations for students and their guardians in order to promote next year's programs.

Students should make sure they are eligible for IUHPFL before registering.

They must register and pay the registration fee between September 15th and November 15th via the Registration page. The $25 Registration Fee is waived for 2022-2023.

Registrants who meet eligibility requirements will be invited by email to complete the IUHPFL Application via a personal Student Portal. 

Students are advised to register as early as possible in order to give themselves, their teachers, and their other appraisers plenty of time to complete the extensive IUHPFL Application. 

Students that meet all eligibility criteria will be invited to complete the IUHPFL Application, which consists of seven (7) components (all due the first Sunday in December):

1. Personal Application (Student Essay Questions)
2. Parental Assessment
3. Appraisal 1: Language Teacher
4. Appraisal 2: Other Teacher
5. Appraisal 3: Non-Academic (Non-Relative) Adult
6. Official School Transcript
7. Writing Sample in the Target Language

See the Application Instructions for details about the required components.

Applicants must provide separate email addresses for themselves and at least one parent/guardian. As a rule, IUHPFL communicates via email and occasionally requests that parents/guardians confirm receipt of important information.

It is also essential that applicants and parents/guardians discuss and frequently check in with each other about the application process to ensure that all materials are received by the IUHPFL Office by the December deadline. 

Spanish and French students may list their country of preference on their application. Requests will be taken into consideration, but cannot be guaranteed. The IUHPFL Office encourages prospective participants and their parents/guardians to be open to placements in any of the program sites for their language.

Even before applying to IUHPFL, students are encouraged to save money for the program. After receiving the official acceptance letter in January, students can begin formal fundraising.

For ideas on how to raise funds formally or informally, please visit the Fundraising and Financial Assistance page.

The IUHPFL Selection Committee gives careful consideration to the application dossier of each candidate in order to determine readiness, self-discipline, adaptability, and the overall likelihood that the student will have a positive and successful experience.

Students will be notified of their acceptance status around the third week of January and will fall into one of three categories:

• Preliminary Acceptance:  Students are accepted into IUHPFL based on the strength of their application materials. Their accepted status remains certain as they demonstrate an ability to meet deadlines for Acceptance Materials and payments. Students might be invited to participate in an interview.
• Waitlist: Students will be placed on a waitlist as a potential participant for IUHPFL. Students might be invited to participate in an interview.
• Regretfully Declined: Students are declined by IUHPFL because it is determined they are not quite ready for the rigorous demands of the program.

Students who do not participate in the current program cycle are welcome to apply again for future programs as long as they continue to meet the eligibility requirements.

IUHPFL provides some assistance to students with financial need. Awards typically range between $250 and $1,500 and are applied against Program Fees.

Students who are accepted into the program in January and wish to be considered for financial assistance from the program must submit the IUHPFL Financial Assistance Application by February 1st.

See step-by-step instructions for the Financial Assistance Application.

IUHPFL invites some, not all, applicants to interview. Reasons for interviews vary and can include food allergies, medical conditions, student and parent concerns, and other information that was shared during the application process.

In most cases, the interview is simply an opportunity to learn what kind of support the student might need while abroad. In other cases, we wish to clarify his or her expectations of the program. If parents/guardians have questions or concerns, they are welcome to attend a portion of the interview.

Interviews are not intended to affect acceptance status, but attendance is required.

Most interviews take place in February. Students will be notified via email if they are selected for an interview.

Students are notified via email of their acceptance status around the third week of January. The email will contain a password that allows students to access the Accepted Students tab on this website. Once students are given preliminary acceptance into IUHPFL, they are encouraged to begin the process of submitting Acceptance Materials, which include documents pertaining to their health, host family preferences, contact information, etc.

Be sure to reference the IUHPFL Student Checklist for important deadline information.

Program Fees and Airfare are due in several installments between February and May.

It is important to know that Program Fees are paid to Indiana University, while Airfare is paid directly to the contracted travel agent for the program. Please do not send any payments to the IUHPFL Office. 

See the Student Checklist and Program Fees and Payments for more information.  

Student-Guardian Orientation is an all-day Sunday event in April on the beautiful Indiana University Bloomington campus and is mandatory for students and at least one parent/guardian. Orientation is so vital to a student's success in the program that it is considered the first official day of the program.

At Orientation, students:

• get to know their program peers
• receive their course materials
• receive their IUHPFL t-shirts (and wear them if they wish)
• engage in a variety of teambuilding activities

Students and parents/guardians alike:

• receive a site-specific Student Handbook with extensive program information, including program site calendars, excursion details, what to pack, health and safety protocols, and Honor Code-related items
• meet IUHPFL instructors and office staff
• get answers to all of their questions
• sign important forms
• commit to the IUHPFL Honor Code

More than anything, Orientation is fun! The IUHPFL Promotional Video on our homepage shows what Orientation is all about and how valuable it is to both students and parents/guardians.

The dates for Orientation are set months in advance in order to help families avoid scheduling conflicts. Make-up orientation sessions are not available.

For 2023 programs, the Orientation date is:

• Sunday, April 16

Accepted students will find more information about Orientation in the Accepted Students section.

After acceptance, students complete a Host Family Placement Form and write a letter to their potential host family in the target language. Then, in collaboration with IUHPFL staff, Onsite Coordinators use the information on the Host Family Placement Form to match students with host families, taking into consideration many factors, including interests, allergies, dietary restrictions, etc. 

Students and guardians receive notification of host family placement in May via email. Students are encouraged to begin communication with their assigned host families as soon as they receive the email message. 

Participants must travel to the host country with their program peers and instructors on pre-assigned group flights. Traveling together ensures that students arrive safely and collectively to the host community and provides an excellent opportunity for them to bond with each other and their instructors. Students typically meet and go home with their host parents the same day they arrive in the country. Ideally, students will have already begun to communicate with their host families via e-mail or social media before arrival onsite.

Accepted students will find more information about travel and group flights in the Accepted Students section.

See the Program Sites and Dates page for site-specific program dates.

At Student-Guardian Orientation in April, participants and their parents/guardians will learn all about what students can expect from their IUHPFL experience, including the calendar, classes, excursions, community-based activities, and general information about the host cultures. 

Student Exit Survey

After the programs end, students receive a link via email to the mandatory online Student Exit Survey, which takes 60-90 minutes to complete and gives them an opportunity to evaluate all aspects of the program (instructors, host families, classes, etc.) and to share their comprehensive experiences of the program with the IUHPFL Office.

In September and once they have completed the survey, students will receive their IUHPFL Diploma by regular mail.

Final Student Evaluation

In August/September, Final Student Evaluations are completed by program instructors. They are then emailed by the IUHPFL Office to the students, their parents/guardians, and the teachers who completed the World Language Teacher Appraisal (as part of the application dossier). The Final Student Evaluation encompasses many aspects of the student’s experience and progress during the program.

Promoting IUHPFL at School and Beyond

When students return from their IUHPFL experience, either as high school students or rising college freshmen, they are encouraged to support their world language classrooms and departments to the best of their ability. Additionally, alumni who finish the program in good standing (those who did not receive an Incident Report) are encouraged to talk with their high school world language teachers or contact the IUHPFL Office at iuhpfl@iu.edu, if they would like to help present the program to potential applicants. 

See IUHPFL Alumni Talking Points for topics and questions that can help alumni with these kinds of presentations.

The Post-Program page has more information about what students experience after IUHPFL.