Lithuania

Want to visit a wonderful country on the Baltic Sea? Then Lithuania is a great place for your exchange year! Lithuania has many beautiful beaches , both on the Baltic coastline and by numerous lakes and rivers. You can experience all four seasons in Lithuania, a hot and sunny summer, a multicolor fall, a snowy winter, and a green spring.

The Old Town of Vilnius, capital of Lithuania, is one of the largest and prettiest in Eastern and Central Europe and it is also included on the UNESCO World Heritage List. Vilnius has always been a multinational, multilingual, and multicultural European city.

Most of YFU Lithuanian host families live in apartment buildings or in private houses in cities, but students may also be placed with a host family that lives in a small town or village. Lithuanian families enjoy getting together at the end of the day to tell each other about their day or to make plans for spending time together. As a part of a host family, you may be invited to attend theaters, concert halls, and exhibitions, which are among the favorite activities for any Lithuanian family. Visit Lithuania and you will explore the beautiful outdoors, warm people, and a wide range of great traditional food. Make sure to ask about our sports program - basketball is the national sport in Lithuania!

Academic Programs

Schools in Lithuania have twelve grades and emphasize academic performance. You will take classes at the upper secondary level in a wide variety of subjects, including math, social science, literature, foreign language, history, politics, biology, chemistry, physics, computer science, music, art, and sports. Most of the subjects are compulsory, however you will have a chance to choose some specific subjects that you are interested in to study in small groups. You may also attend after-school activities and many clubs that are offered by Lithuanian schools. You may choose a student organization that interests you and become a member.

Included in the YFU program to Lithuania are a three-day arrival orientation, a Christmas party, a two-day mid-year orientation, a three-day farewell orientation, and two- to three-day trips to various cities offered in May and June.

Sport For Understanding Program
Basketball is one of the most popular sports in Lithuania. For millions of people all over the world, it was precisely basketball that put the name of Lithuania on the map together with its star players such as Arvydas Sabonis or Sarunas Marciulionis. YFU USA offers a year exchange program to Lithuania that focuses on team basketball.

As an exchange student to Lithuania on the SFU Program, YFU participants will live with a carefully selected host family and be enrolled in a specialized basketball high school. You will also train and play competitive team basketball three to five times per week. Students on this program will be required to pay and additional basketball school fee, maximum 100 Euros per month. This fee will be paid to the host school directly by the participant. For additional information, please call
1-800-TEENAGE to speak with an Admissions Counselor.

Programs, Departures, and Costs

Online Resources

To learn more about Lithuania, we recommend:

• E-mail YFU Alumni from the Alumni Referral List with your questions
• Visit your local library to find reference books, travel guides and essays, Lithuanian language dictionaries, and many more country resources 
• Use an internet search engine to find informative web sites 
• Embassy of Lithuania in Washington, DC web site

All YFU Programs are subject to change or cancellation without prior notice.
Last Updated: Thursday, September 06, 2007 01:03 AM