WELCOME LETTER, TEAM SUMMER 2024 (S24) - UPDATED APRIL 28, 2024
Welcome to Multi-District Denmark
Welcome letter to Inbounds S24 (also available in pdf via this link)
Multi-District Denmark looks forward to welcoming you to your new home for a year, TEAM S24 (Summer 2024), with a planned arrival at a Danish airport between the 5th and 10th of August 2024.
Below is some important general information we ask you to study carefully. First, we want to let you know that we have high expectations of you.
Our Rotary colleagues in your country, who are sponsoring you, have found you suited to becoming a Rotary exchange student. Being a Rotary exchange student means providing an excellent experience to your host family, club, school, and friends. This way, you will help promote Rotary Youth Exchange as your host family, club, and school will want to continue participating in the program. As an ambassador for your country, you may contribute to mutual cultural understanding and peace.
Please remember this throughout your stay in Denmark.
When you get an email with a link to this webpage, you should have been able to lock into the Danish YEP database and update your profile with data (home address, etc....).
A link to download your host guarantee form (GF) should be sent separately, but you can download it on your profile in the folder “documents” when your host district has uploaded it to the database.
ARRIVAL:
All exchange students to Denmark must arrive in Denmark between the 5th and 10th of August 2024
Final Destination in Denmark: [Will be stated on your Host Guarantee Form]
Information about your arrival at the airport can also be seen in the acceptance letter or the guarantee form (Destination Airport in the host country). Your departure must be from the same airport.
Make your flight reservations in due time. Your travel agent will assist you with the most convenient route to your final destination.
When you arrive at your final destination in Denmark, please wear your Rotary jacket when leaving the airplane, as this will enable us to recognize you as a Rotary Exchange Student. When you have passed the baggage claim area and the customs authorities, your counsellor and/or host family will meet you.
If your final destination is NOT Copenhagen, but Copenhagen is your first airport in Denmark, you will need a connecting flight to your destination airport (a domestic airport). All domestic flights depart from Copenhagen Airport. See more at www.cph.dk
Ensure your luggage has been checked at the final destination airport whenever possible. In most cases, customs clearance will take place at your final destination.
You must log in to the database and supply the information about your travel itinerary under Travel Plan no later than the 1st of August 2024. Ensure your host club (counsellor) is also informed about your arrival.
ENTRY INTO DENMARK:
You will need a one-year residence permit from the 5th of August 2024 to the 30th of June 2025. You must apply for a residence permit before you arrive in Denmark.
Guidelines on how to apply will be shared with you shortly – do not start the process until Rotary Denmark has initiated it correctly (you may risk paying extra fees if you do!)
If you travel on a 3-month tourist visit and get biometrics done after arrival, you should have a temporary return flight within these three months. In some Schengen entry points (e.g. Germany), you might get rejected if your return date is after the expiration of your tourist visa. Usually, documentation of the submitted application for a residence permit and the Rotary Guarantee Form will solve the problem - but not always!
Important – if you come from a country that is not “visa-free” to Denmark, you must have a residence permit before arriving in Denmark. More information will be sent separately.
INSURANCE:
We will inform you about insurance on the website. See https://www.rotary.dk/insurance
Students from the USA, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand will carry their insurance (if they do not choose to purchase the Danish).
All other students must obtain Danish insurance from Europæiske ERV (Rotary certified), tailored to Danish conditions. The price is DKR 4.600 or approx. 620 EUR.
Be sure to agree with your host counsellor on how to pay for this after arrival in Denmark (preferably not bringing cash as cash is limited in Denmark now).
EMERGENCY FUND:
We expect you to bring 2000 DKR (approximately 270 EUR) to hand over to your host counsellor for him/her to place in an emergency fund, which can be used in case of unexpected expenses. When you use money from the emergency fund, then the fund must be topped up to 2000 DKK again.
When you leave Denmark, you will get the emergency fund back after settling the balance. Please coordinate this with your host counsellor.
SCHOOL:
You have been accepted at [School will be stated in your host Guarantee Form]
Your host club has chosen a school suitable for your age. This will be either a “Folkeskole", a "Gymnasium" or a Business School. The 10th grade of the "Folkeskole" will have students below 16, and students of the "Gymnasium" and Business School will be from 16 to 19 years old.
In the "Gymnasium" and the “Folkeskole”, you may be taught English, German, French, Math, Science, World History, Biology, etc. School uniforms are not generally used in Danish Schools.
You must attend school and participate in school activities – your residence permit as well as Rotary requires this. Absence without a valid reason is not accepted.
Please note that piercing and tattooing are prohibited when you are a Rotary Exchange Student in Denmark. If you already have piercings, you are requested to remove them before you arrive in Denmark.
VISITS BY PARENTS OR OTHER FAMILY MEMBERS:
Multi-District Denmark strongly discourages visits by your parents or other family members. It is your exchange experience, and having visits from your parents may trigger homesickness or have other adverse effects. Besides, it interrupts your life here, and you may not be absent from school.
It is the policy of Multi-District Denmark not to accept visits during holidays, where host families often have other plans, or in the last month of the stay (as you need this time to end your time here and say goodbye to everyone).
In any case, visits require prior written approval from the host club counsellor and the host district's district chair. On the other hand, we encourage you and your family to visit a year or two after you add your exchange.
INTRO CAMP:
After your arrival, we look forward to welcoming you to an Intro Camp, which will take place in Odense from the 23rd – 25th of August 2024. All MD Denmark Team Summer 2024 (S24) students must participate according to the agreement with your Host district (approx. 78).
The Intro Camp is our Inbound Orientation, and it is mandatory for all students coming to Denmark to participate. You will meet a team of committed teachers who will prepare you for many of the challenges you will face during your year in Denmark. You will be introduced to the Danish lifestyle, culture, and language. This will be most helpful when you set out on your life in Danish families and schools.
Multi-District Denmark pays for the Intro Camp and is free of charge for you.
EURO BUS TOUR:
Multi-District Denmark offers our inbound exchange students an optional EURO BUS TOUR 2024. Three weeks in May / June 2025, this tour takes you to Berlin, Prague, Vienna, Nice and many other exciting European places.
The EURO BUS TOUR does not require further permission.
The cost of the tour is approx. DKK 18,000 + pocket money will not be paid by Rotary in Denmark. You will receive more information regarding the trip, and registration will be available in December 2024, and payment must be made to ensure your place. General details can be seen at https://www.rotary.dk/yep/euro-bus-tour-2019
COMMUNICATION
The easiest way to contact anyone in your host district is to send an email. Email addresses are available in letters and on the Youth Exchange Registration System (called the “database”) daily. Remember to write your YEP number and name whenever you write to us. Emails of the MD Denmark YEO officers can be found at https://www.rotary.dk/yep/rduledelse.
There is also a Correspondence tab in the database, where you can write to your counsellor, and he/she can write to you. You will get a notification in your email when there is a new message in Correspondence. NOTE: This does not send notifications to Rotarians due to a system error, so please also send an email.
Communication with host family, friends, and others can be made through other means. e.g. Phone, WhatsApp, FaceTime, and text messages.
ADDITIONAL RULES AND GUIDELINES
Your host district will send you a document: Additional Rules and Guidelines - that stipulates rules to guide you while you are an exchange student with this district. The application’s declaration does not fully cover these rules. You must read and sign with your parents and promptly return to the host district.
We welcome you to your "once-in-a-lifetime" stay in Denmark!
Yours in Rotary
Henrik Gildberg, Chairman Long Term