About

About Exchange Student Tips

My name is Matt Garrett. I own and publish this website. This is me:

My aims for this website are simple. I want to:

  • help you decide whether a student exchange is right for you
  • give you a competitive edge when you apply to be an exchange student, and
  • help you prepare as well as possible for your student exchange

My intention is that Exchange Student Tips will only ever have a maximum of maybe 20 articles. But I want those articles to be high-quality pieces which go into incredible depth and provide you with real value.

I have also written a full-length book which is available for purchase through this website. Click here to check it out.

About me

I am a three-time exchange student:

  • when I was 18, I undertook a year-long Rotary youth exchange in Lucerne, Switzerland
  • I then did  a short (two-month) exchange at the University of Essen, Germany
  • finally, I undertook a 12-month exchange at the University of Freiburg, Germany

I have met, and discussed exchange issues with, hundreds of exchange students, former exchange students, host families, and exchange program administrators.

I have also spent a great deal of time thinking about my own experience as an exchange student and discussing it with my former host families and fellow former exchange students.

I work as a commercial lawyer and am the father of three young children and the son of two former host parents. I live in the Australian Capital Territory.

You can connect with me via Twitter (@ES_Tips) or by sending me an email at exchangestudenttips [at] outlook [dot] com