There's more to it, but that's just to get your attention

This is for any of you guys here that are 16-17 years old and would like to go on a summer exchange program to Quebec.

I got a job this summer as a coordinator for the Summer Work Exchange Program. It's a government funded program and here's some info about it:

You will live in Quebec for 6 weeks (July - August) in your exchange twin's house, where you'll work for a non-profit organization with minimum wage (which, in Quebec, is $7.30/hr) for about 35hr/week. You'll most likely get a job working with kids or some other environment where you interact a lot in French (the point of the exchange is to learn French). It will be a non-profit organization so you won't have to worry about flipping burgers. It'll most likely resemble volunteer work. There'll be a Quebec kid living in your house for the duration of the trip too, so that's something that you should take into account.

On the weekends there are huge group activities, where hundreds of the English exchange kids will meet and do group activites for the entire weekend. When I went on the exchange two years ago, here's what we did:

- La Ronde (amusement park in Montreal) and a tour of Montreal the next day
- Village de Sport (pretty nice water park... kinda like Hurricane Harbor for any of you that's been to 6 Flags Magic Mountain) followed by a bus tour of Quebec city the next day
- Camping (forgot where, though it was out in the woods by a lake... was a good time)
- White water rafting
- Held a charity car wash
- Night cruise down the St. Lawrence river
Total cost for the student: $0.00

Everything that you do (including transportation via train to and from Quebec) is free (thank you Canadian taxpayer). All you have to do is bring some spending money for gifts, meals, etc, though over the course of the summer you'll end up making $1500 so it'll more than cover that.

Being a past participant, I think that it was a great time. I still keep in touch with a few of the people I met there, and it's nice knowing people scattered about the country. There's a lot to do and it'll really help your French. Though, knowing French isn't really that big of a deal.

The program is only for people 16-17 years old currently in high school. Also, you cannot turn 18 before the exchange is over (I'm guessing it's because then you'd be legal to drink, which they don't want). If you are interested, drop by the website and give it some thought. If you have any questions just post it here. Also, tell your friends about it. There is a maximum of 10 spots, and they will be filled as qualified people enter so if you're thinking about it don't wait till the last minute to ask your parents! I hope to see some of you soon.

www.summer-work.com