When
staying with a host family, you will become a guest. Since
guests must follow household rules, please read carefully
below for some guidelines and responsibilities to help
you make your homestay experience enjoyable.
| 1. |
Do not bring other guests/strangers
into the home without having your host's permission
to do so.
|
| 2. |
Please do not bring overnight guests into your homestay
|
| 3. |
Keys will be provided by your host. Be sure to lock
the doors when you leave the home and turn on the alarm
if there is one. You will be responsible for returning
the keys to your host at the end of your homestay.
|
| 4. |
Do not duplicate your host's house keys under any
circumstances.
|
| 5. |
Make sure you always inform your host family of
your arrival time in the evening, especially if you
do not plan to eat dinner that night and you are under
the room with meals plan. Host families can get very
concerned about your safety; please be so courteous
as to keep them informed of your plans.
|
| 6. |
If you are planning to bring over a friend, please
make sure you clear this with your host family first.
Make sure you inform your host family of what day and
time you'd like to have a friend over for and how they
are planning to stay and that your family approves
of this before you bring any guests.
|
| 7. |
Always ASK your host if you are unsure about something!
It will take a few days to get to know each other and
it's better to ask than to not know. It will also help
you develop a better relationship with your host.
|
| 8. |
Make sure you turn off the lights in your room when
you leave. Also, make sure any appliances such as T.V.,
radio, computer, etc. are off when you are not using
them.
|
| 9. |
Doing your laundry - you are responsible
to do your own laundry. Please make sure you consult
with your host family about when and how you should
do your laundry. Set up hours which will be good for
both you and your host to use the laundry facilities.
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| 10. |
While some hosts will wash the student's
bed linens, others will ask you to wash it along with
your clothes. Please check with your host about what
their policy on this is.
|
| 11. |
Phone calls - your host will most
likely not have a problem with you making local phone
calls. However, if you need to make an out of state
or international call, you will need to purchase a
calling card. Calling cards can be purchased at convenience
stores such as 7-Eleven or Rite-Aid, at the post office,
supermarkets, etc. Please make sure you speak to your
host before using their phone and set up times when
it will be convenient both to you and your host for
you to use the phone. Please do not stay on the phone
for a very long amount of time so that you do not tie
up the host's phone line.
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| 12. |
If you are sharing your bathroom with the host family,
please speak to your family about appropriate times when
you should shower and for how long so that there is no
conflict between your times and the host's times. Also,
if you have a shared bathroom, please try to occupy it
for a reasonable amount of time and not overstay your
time in the bathroom. Please note that it is your responsibility
to bring your own personal supplies such as toothbrush,
toothpaste, body wash, shampoo, towel, etc.
|
| 13. |
Cleanliness - you are expected to keep your room
and bathroom clean at all times. This does not mean
you need to vacuum your room every day or have everything
extremely tidy and organized, but you are expected
to keep your room reasonably clean and organized.
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| 14. |
Absolutely no drinking of alcoholic beverages
and no usage of drug or other illegal substances are
allowed in the host family's house.
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| 15. |
If you are a smoker, please always smoke outside
the home.
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| 16. |
International students who participate
in an American homestay must be willing to learn
about and accept possible differences in America's
multi cultural society, women's rights, freedom
of speech, environmental protection, and animal rights,
among others.
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| 17. |
Any information USH sends to you is only intended for
your use and may contain information that is privileged
and confidential. You, the recipient, are obligated to
maintain it in a safe, secure and confidential manner.
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| 18. |
Internet: You must speak to your
host about his or her policy on internet usage. Since
many hosts only have one phone line which they use
to receive and make phone calls, we recommend that
you and your host set us a time for you to use the
internet that is convenient for the both of you. If
you absolutely need to have internet access beyond
what your host allows, you should ask for you host's
help to set up a second phone line under your
name.
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