Will you and your family be ready for the expenses on an exchange? You will usually spend more than you normally would for long distance telephone bills, postage, insurance to travel. The biggest expense will be travel, not only to your host country, but also to take advantage of other travel and touring opportunities available to you during the exchange year.
An exchange is never a solution to personal or professional problems. Are you secure in your current lifestyle and relationships? Experience has shown that participants who hope to solve problems related to marriage, family, professional relationships or other stresses by going on exchange usually find the problems compounded.
Are your principal and colleagues supportive of your desire and willing to help and work with your exchange partner? Discuss this with your principal before applying.
The spirit of exchange requires fairness, consideration, and commitment. You must be available for matching until the end of June (at least) and must intend to accept an exchange if it is offered. In recent years, due to changes in Canadian immigration and visa procedures, we have been able to make matches right through until the end of August. This means you will not be able to apply for promotions, transfers, or any other program that might prevent you from participating in an exchange.