Embassy of the United States Minsk Belarus

The Youth Cultural Opportunity is a program for teenagers from Belarus to spend 4 weeks in the U.S. living with a U.S. host family, participating in community service activities, and experiencing life in a U.S. community.  Participants will take part in required daily organized activities and will have the opportunity to learn about American culture and share Belarusian culture with Americans. At the end of the host community program, participants will travel to Washington, DC for a 5-day cultural workshop. They will depart for the United States in late June 2012 and return to Belarus in late July 2012.

Eligibility Requirements

To apply for the program, students must meet the eligibility requirements outlined below.  If the student passes to the next level of the competition, s/he must provide documentation of eligibility. To be eligible to participate in the program, the student must:

• be currently enrolled in 9th grade or 10th grade;
• have been born on or after January 1, 1996, and on or before June 1, 1997;
• be currently enrolled in a secondary school in Belarus; 
• have an academic standing of “good” or better;
• have previously studied English, and speak and read English; and
• be a citizen of Belarus and eligible to receive a Belarusian passport.

How to Apply for the Youth Cultural Opportunity

Applicants must:

• Complete the application form and essay questions on-line and submit the required documents listed below by mail, email or to the U.S. embassy in Minsk;

-OR-

• Complete the application form, including the essay questions, print and submit it and the required documents by mail or to the U.S. Embassy in Minsk. (Please note that the PDF application cannot be saved unless you have Adobe Acrobat.)

Required documents:

• The application form, including the essay questions;
• A visa photo or an electronic version of a photo taken within the last six months (photo should contain head and shoulders, only);
• A copy of your birth certificate; and
• An academic transcript on the form provided.

Applicants must provide all parts of the application, visa photo, birth certificate and transcript or they will not be considered for the program. Semi-finalists will be notified of their status after December 15, 2011 and will be invited for an interview and further testing in December 2011 and January 2012. All testing will be conducted in English.

Where and When to Submit Your Application

Applications must be received by the Youth Cultural Opportunity program office by November 30, 2011. Applications may be submitted:
In person to:

U.S. Embassy Public Affairs Section
2A Gertsena St.
220030 Minsk
Belarus
Phone: +375-17-217-0481
8:30-5:30, Monday-Friday
Website: http://minsk.usembassy.gov/

By email: ycoprogram@gmail.com

On line www.ycopportunity.org/yco