This article highlights the three ways to find students:
- Information Available to the Public
- Information Available to all Volunteers on MyAFS
- Information Available to Hosting Volunteers in Global Link
Before sharing student information with families, please be sure to review the AFS Media Policy.
Information Available to the Public
Short bios are available on the www.afsusa.org website as a way to give the general public a brief introduction to our students. This feature is often referred to as Meet the Students. Finding students this way only gives very basic information and does not include important facts that are useful when matching a student and a family. For example, a student's pet allergies or dietary restrictions are not obvious on Meet the Students. Thus, it is important to be able to find more detailed student information when talking to interested host families. In addition, there are sometimes more students available to a family than the number showing on the website.
Information Available to Volunteers on MyAFS
MyAFS has a "Placements" widget so that all AFS volunteers can see students available to come to their team. This widget features a short bio of the student, the student's letter to the host family, and the students self-introduction audio file (if available). This information can be shared via email with potential host families by clicking on the envelope icon here:
To view available hosted students, log in to MyAFS and click on the “Placements” tab on the left of your screen:
When you get to the Placements screen, you will see the following list of filters at the top. Simply click on the box you want to filter by and the available students that meet that criteria will appear. Clicking on “My Team” will only show you students currently Area Team Available, School Placed, or on Hold in your Team while clicking “All Available” will also show any Nationally and Regionally Available students eligible to be placed in your team.
“About Students” is the filter you would use to look for students with certain hobbies, activities, religious affiliations, and/or interests (guitar player, fencing, or Buddhist, for example).
To reset the filters, click “Clear Filters” to go back to the default.
Information Available to Volunteers in Global Link
To find more information about our students in Global Link, please check out the handy guides below. You may not have access to the Hosted Participant Section of Global Link if you do not have the correct affiliation and/or training (Department of State Certification and Hosting & Support Affiliations Training). Please contact your Hosting Programs Specialist (HPS) if you need access or have any difficulty finding the information you seek.
- Guide to Finding Hosted Students in Global Link
- Overview on using the Hosted Participant Section of Global Link
- About Students, Pets, and Openness to Placements Requiring Supplemental Paperwork Search Terms
- How to Find Newly Released Hosted Students
- How to find Sponsored Programs (YES & CB) Students
- Finding Students Open to Placements Requiring Supplemental Paperwork
Before sharing student information with families, please be sure to review the AFS Media Policy.