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2024 Bio Writer Webinar

afsusa.org

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Student Bios Introduction
Finding Students needing Bios (via MyAFS and via Global Link)
Finding Student Applications
Writing the Bio
Completing the process
Where to go with Future Questions
Questions?
Strong Bio Examples and Bio Editing

POLL: Have you written student bios before?

Contents

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What are student bios?

A way for teams to introduce students to prospective host families

Highlights the student’s interests and character

Helps families get excited about a student

Example: a student with a shared hobby might pique their interest

Introduction: 1/5

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Sample student bio

Introduction: 2/5

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Why are student bios important?

Introduction: 3/5

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Introduction: 4/5

Any volunteer that has:�

The Hosting Volunteer affiliation

- Completed HSA Training� - Completed DoS Training

While students are nationally available, National Bio Writers are writing student bios

Logistics:�

Affiliation can be assigned by Regional Field Specialist (staff), Hosting Coordinator (vol), or Volunteer Coordinator (vol)
All bios are approved by Hosting/Field staff/Marketing before they are made visible on MyAFS and Meet the Students

Who can write bios?

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Introduction: 5/5

Started in November 2023:�

New students are distributed as Nationally Available twice a week (Mondays and Thursdays).
National Bio Writers are currently completing bios
Best practice is to complete and submit a bio within 3 days
Sponsored Programs Students are also Nationally Available with pre-written bios

How students are distributed

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Finding Students

Needing Bios

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The Field Staff have been assigning student bios to be written as they are released
A tracker has been created to assign and facilitate the bios needed to be written

How Do I Know Students Need Bios?

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Go to the AFS Global website here. (http://usa.afsglobal.org)
Enter your Username and Password
Press “Enter key,” or click “Sign In” button

From the Service Reference Link,

Login to MyAFS / Global Link

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4. “Service Case: Detail” page displays

5. Below the page title, click “Placement Info.” link

Navigate to Bio Page

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6. “Service Case: Placement Detail” page displays

7. Below the page title click “Bio Sheet” link

In Global Link, navigate to bio page

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Enter/edit student bio in Global Link

14. The Personal Info will be already completed. Enter “About Student” terms and type the Bio in the Biographical Summary field. After editing, click “Save Good to Know” button (not shown).

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15. Go to the AFS Global website here. (http://usa.afsglobal.org)

16. Enter your Username and Password

17. Press “Enter key,” or click “Sign In” button

From the Participant’s Name Link,

Login to MyAFS / Global Link

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18. “Person Info.” page displays

19. Below the page title, click “Service Case” link

Navigate to Bio Page

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20. Click on “Service Ref.” link

21. Note: Double check on the Program Code

Navigate to Bio Page

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22. “Service Case: Detail” page displays

23. Below the page title, click “Placement Info.” link

Navigate to Bio Page

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24. “Service Case: Placement Detail” page displays

25. Below the page title click “Bio Sheet” link

In Global Link, navigate to bio page

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Enter/edit student bio in Global Link

14. The Personal Info will be already completed. Enter “About Student” terms and type the Bio in the Biographical Summary field. After editing, click “Save Good to Know” button (not shown).

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If You Start In

Global Link

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Finding students starting in Global Link

Click “GLOBAL LINK” blue button

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6. From left navigation, click “Hosted Participant”

Use one (or more) of the following search criteria:

7. Enter the name of a specific student for whom you will write a bio using the English Name fields

8. Click the Add Filter button and select “Bios Status is blank” to find students needing Bios

Click Search button (not shown)

Finding students

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Results and access student’s bio page

9. For results, see Record(s) found section

10. Click the student’s “Placement Detail” link (e.g. A(0, 0, 0))

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14. The Personal Info will be already completed. Enter “About Student” terms and type the Bio in the Biographical Summary field. After editing, click “Save Go to Know” button (not shown)

Enter/edit student bio in Global Link

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Bio Writing Steps

Find & read the student’s application
Review & add tags
Write bio

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Find Student Applications

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Find student’s application

From the Bio page, return to the “Service Case: Placement Detail” page
At top, right click “Placement Info” button

OR click the browser’s “Back” button (not shown)

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Find student’s application

“Service Case: Placement Detail” page displays
Below the page title, click “Pax Info” link

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Find student’s application

“Service Case: Detail” page displays
Mid-page, click “View Application” button

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Find student’s application

Look for the Printable Version to be able to see the whole application Note: for some countries, the Printable Version may be in a different location on the screen

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Find student’s application

Look for the Printable Version to be able to see the whole application Note: for some countries, the Printable Version may be in a different location on the screen

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Find student’s application

9. From the “Print All Items” section, click the PDF icon

- The Application will Download (not Print!)

- Open the document

- Note: If you want to save the document on your computer, go to the

“File” menu and choose “Save a Copy”

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As you review the student application, look for these sections in particular

Finding information to write the bio

The Student's Statement

- Letter to the host family or

- A series of questions answered

Academic Record

- Note what teachers say about the student

Parents' Statement

- if available – this isn't a required form

Photos
ELRF – includes a part handwritten by the student
Letters of recommendation (if provided)
Confidential Placement Summary - Completed by a local vol, may offer insights

If you see something, say something!

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Best Practices: Bio Writing

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Familiarize yourself with tags

Click each “Tag Header” to view their list of options
Familiarize yourself with the options to know what to look for when you read the application!

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Read through each piece of the student’s application and note:

Interests: After school clubs, attends religious services weekly, aviation, camping, church youth group, computer, cooking, crafts…

Traits/characteristics: Academics, animal lover, artistic, cheerful, energetic, family-oriented, funny, good with kids, independent…

Religion (if any): Buddhist, Catholic, Christian, Non-Religious, Mormon, Church-goer, Muslim, Jewish…

Musical abilities

Sports: Badminton, baseball, basketball, bicycling, boating, cheerleading, dance…

Pronouns: Make sure you know how the student identifies

Where to start when writing bios

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Select and save tags

After reading the application, click each “Tag Header”
Select all appropriate tags – aim to find at least 7
Click “Save Good To Know” button

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The tags matter!

6. The tags you choose can help your fellow volunteers identify particular students using the About Student filter on MyAFS (or in Global Link). There are additional tags added (or edited) each year.

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Write the Bio

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Tags can offer a basic outline

Be as specific as possible

Highlight unique interests

Be positive!

Bio introduction

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Bio Technicalities

Maximum number of characters is 600

For consistency and fairness, use 590-600 characters

Avoid identifying information

No last name

No town or city name

Nothing to use to find student online

Make the first two sentences count!

One space b/t sentences

List age on arrival if you’re including age.

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Bio overall feel

Include facts related to personality, current interests, hobbies, academic interests, family life, language ability, future aspirations, and hopes for their exchange year

Host families want to know everyday relatable things. “Has traveled to 18 different countries” is far less important than “He loves animals of all kinds”

We’re not trying to get kids into college, but be positive!

Focus on strengths, personality, what makes them unique, including positive words written by the teacher or family

If the application includes few interests, include what the student hopes to learn/do in the U.S. or what the teacher says about the student's personality

Limit how much you list what they'd prefer in a host family...so we aren't turning away families who don't fit the exact description

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Bio overall structure

Begin the bio with an interesting fact. Use the student’s name more than once (not just pronouns)!

Avoid writing too many facts in one sentence. When in doubt, break a sentence into two sentences with a conjunction like “and.” Don’t use & or other symbols since they may not appear correctly on Meet the Students.

Vary your sentence structure; some long and some short sentences.

Convert British English terms to U.S. English so it speaks to your audience; e.g. “cinema” to “the movies” and “football” to “soccer”.

Make sure to use age upon arrival if including their age in the bio.

For later on in the cycle: write the last sentence to be specific to your team; “He would be a great fit for one of our many basketball-oriented host families!” or “She’d love our hiking trails here in Wisconsin!” *Note: May need to edit if student changes teams.

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Parallelism: All parts of the sentence should agree with each other.

Verbs should be in the same tense and each part in a list should be in the same form.
If one part of a list of a student’s hobbies has a verb or preposition, all should.
If you use a gerund (an –ing word) in one, you should include it in each part of the list.

Example 1:

He likes going skiing, books, and to horseback ride.

He likes skiing, reading, and horseback riding.

Example 2:

She enjoys spending time outdoors and animals.

She loves animals and enjoys spending time outdoors.

Example 3:

Megan likes spending time outside in summer, winter, and during the fall.

Megan likes spending time outside in the summer, winter, and fall.

Bio parallel sentence structure

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Bio what to avoid and what to embrace

Avoid

Passive phrases like “is known” or “is said”

Ex: “Josef is known/is said to be friendly”
Instead you can just say: “Josef is friendly” or “Friends and family describe Josef as friendly”

�Quiet or shy

Host families tend to prefer outgoing students even though most people are reserved at first in new situations; it’s all in how you word it

�Try not to overuse modifying words like “very” or “really.”

Embrace

�Expressive Adjectives

Helpful
Extroverted
Animated
Bright
Active
Energetic
Outgoing
Friendly
Warm
Flexible
Easygoing
Caring
Generous
Considerate
Patient
Well-rounded

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Bio what NOT to include in the bio

PLEASE DO NOT WRITE:

Identifying information

The student’s favorite activity is shopping (they are not coming here to shop)

The student loves video games (can be viewed as anti-social)

If it is a major interest for the student, make sure to balance it out with other activities that make it clear it is not the student’s only interest.

Details that would be a turn off in your area

“She loves big cities!” (when you live in a rural area)

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Sample bio leads and endings

Sample bio leads:

With a passion for music and dance, Elin is an outgoing and positive young lady.
Friendly, hardworking, and creative are just a few of the words to describe Anne-Katrin.
As both a boxer and a member of the school orchestra, Henry is a curious young man who enjoys trying new things.
Meet Theresa, an outgoing and highly-motivated student from Austria.
With hobbies including drawing, playing guitar, hiking, and biking, Clara is a well-rounded young lady.

Sample bio endings:

Marco is looking forward to meeting his new family and engaging in his host community in the U.S.!
She's eager to arrive in the U.S. to begin her exchange year!
Jessica can’t wait to get to know her U.S. host family!
She looks forward to experiencing a new culture and new traditions.
Alessandro would enjoy ___ here in (your state). (examples: the bike trails, going fishing, watching baseball, seeing snow)�

NOTE: An exciting detail about the student’s interests or future plans can work too, depending on the rest of the bio.

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Let’s review a student bio

Find their application in Global Link

Read their application, especially:

- Student Statement (Letter or Answered Questions)

- Parent’s Statement (if available)

- ELRF (Student Writing Sample)

- Notes from the student's teacher

- Confidential placement summary (student interview): lists personality traits of the student, family structure, everyday life.

Add Bio Tags

Write Bio Summary

Save! Your name will be recorded, as will approver’s name.

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Emanuel is an athletic and friendly young man from central Argentina. He has an older brother and sister. They live with their mom and her husband. Emanuel's all-time favorite sport is basketball, and he practices six times a week! In his free time, he enjoys solving various types of puzzles, listening to music, and playing the piano. His favorite classes in school are music, geography, ethics, history, and physics, and teachers say he is an attentive and responsible student. Emanuel is looking forward to coming to the U.S. and getting to know a new culture and new traditions. He would be a great fit for one of upstate New York’s basketball-oriented host families!

Real Example: Emanuel

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Complete entry and save

Type content in “Biographical Summary” field (start after the coding “%%empty%%”)
Review and Edit Tags
Click “Save Good To Know” button (AFS Staff will approve)

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Words are Powerful!

Bio 2:

Matteo is a mature student from Italy who has excellent grades. He is a typical teenager who enjoys sleeping in and spending time with his friends playing games and hanging out. Having strong friendships is important to Matteo. At home, Matteo has a little sister, and while they have different interests, they both enjoy family ski trips to the mountains and taking their dog for a walk. In the future Matteo hopes to become an aerospace engineer.

Bio 1:

Matteo is an 18-year-old Italian student who is shy and studious. Despite getting good grades, he doesn’t like getting up for school, and his parents say he enjoys arguing with his little sister. With his friends, Matteo enjoys playing video games and going skateboarding. He also likes skiing in the winter and wants to study engineering in college so that he can make lots of money one day. Matteo has allergies and can’t live with cats.

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Amy Kiana Rendon-Patel regarding training for bio writing and any Global Link or MyAFS issues

Amy Kiana Rendon-Patel

Senior Hosting Operations Manager

arendon-patel@afsusa.org

Julie Ball and the marketing team for bio writing and approval questions. Hosting Onboarding Team is currently reviewing and approving bios.

Julie Ball

Director of Marketing and External Communications

marketing@afsusa.org

Want to sign up to write bios?

Please reach out to Sara Roberts, Regional Director: sroberts@afsusa.org.

Where to Go with Questions?

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Questions

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afsusa.org

THANK YOU!

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Appendix / Reference

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Strong bio examples

“Tayeb shares a close relationship with both his family and friends. He can often be found on the soccer field, watching movies, hanging out or discussing the day's events. Tayeb is interested in economics and politics and hopes to one day become a businessman or diplomat. A responsible, respectful and sociable student, Tayeb's teachers are impressed with his overall character. Hoping to discover a new world and become more independent in the process, he is looking forward to participating in this exchange program. Tayeb is excited to meet his host family and learn about a new community.”

“Maria is a motivated young woman who places importance on being a member of the international community! Her parents taught her from an early age to work hard and bring a positive attitude to everything she does. This is one of the reasons that Maria has been involved with international NGOs for a few years now. Her hard work has really paid off, as she's been able to participate in student leadership programs all over the world! For fun, Maria enjoys acting and watching movies. She's already been involved in several interesting productions!”

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Edited Bio Examples

How bios are edited:

Original bio:

“Yusei is a friendly and kind young student from Japan who has a passion for marching bands. He is a member of one in Japan where he plays the tuba. He very much hopes to participate in a high school marching band while living in the US. Yusei also has an interest in agriculture* and hopes to study farming in university. Yusei is very close with his family but excited to experience life in America to further broaden his perspective. He is well respected by both his peers and teachers and is very easy going and participatory in class. He is looking forward to meeting his new family in America!”

Fixed as:

“Yusei is a friendly and kind student who has a passion for music. He is a member of a marching band in Japan where he plays the tuba. He hopes to participate in a high school marching band while living in the U.S. Yusei also loves nature* and hopes to study agricultural science in college. At home, Yusei is very close with his family. He is excited to experience life in America and broaden his global perspective. He is easygoing and well-respected by both his peers and teachers. Yusei is looking forward to meeting his new family and engaging in his host community in the U.S.!”�

*Marketing Tip: Instead of saying he’s interested in agriculture; say he loves nature (it’s more relatable to host families)

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More Strong Bio Examples

“Federica’s many interests and commitments including theater, tennis, and seasonal sports, such as snorkeling. She is passionate about animal welfare and nature protection. As a strong science student, Federica is interested in becoming a Forensics Analyst, partially due to her interest in justice. Federica is also very sociable and is usually surrounded by close friends and family. In her free time, she enjoys going to the lake, the movies, and musicals with loved ones. Federica is looking forward to getting to know her new host family in the U.S.!”

“Anne is creative, open-minded, and extroverted. She likes to incorporate her creativity into anything she does, including baking, cooking, decorating her room, and playing the guitar. She is health-conscious and active and participates in both soccer and handball. In her free time, she enjoys hanging out with her friends, playing sports and even solving Rubik's cubes! Anne is very social and loves to engage in conversations of all sorts, including ones about ethics. She is excited about being a part of an American family and looks forward to experiencing a new culture and new traditions.”

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Another Edited Bio Example

How bios are edited:

Original bio:

“Maryam is an outgoing, energetic and independent young woman who enjoys listening to music, singing and cooking. Maryam has a close relationship with her father and sister. She and her sister often cook together! As a family, they enjoy traveling to see family, watching TV and cooking. Maryam loves to sing and listen to music. She is part of a choir. Maryam and her friends enjoy doing homework together, inline skating and going to the cinema. In her free time, she enjoys singing, reading, baking and listening to music. Maryam loves to travel and be outdoors when the weather is nice.”

Fixed as:

“Maryam is outgoing, energetic and independent. She loves to sing with her choir group or by herself and likes to listen to all sorts of music. Maryam is especially close with her father and her sister, with whom she shares a passion for cooking and traveling. When the weather is nice, Maryam usually spends her free time outside, where she can get on her roller-blades and ride around. With her friends, she loves to watch the latest movies and enjoy herself. In school, Maryam works hard and receives good grades. She's eager to arrive in the U.S. to begin her exchange year!”

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