Alberta schools attract students from all over the world. In the 2005-2006 school year, over 1,200 foreign students attended school in Alberta as an exchange student or international student.

Exchange students
The term exchange student refers to a student who is participating in a reciprocal exchange program recognized by Alberta Education. To facilitate the exchange of knowledge, culture and/or language, exchange students are partnered with Alberta students. Depending on the exchange program, the partners may live and study together in Alberta and then subsequently in the exchange student's country of origin. Alternatively, they may switch places to live and study in their partner's home country for the duration of the exchange (generally up to a year). Alberta Education coordinates student exchanges with states in Germany, Mexico, Spain and Japan, where it has negotiated specific agreements enabling these types of programs.

International Students
International students generally come to Alberta to live with members of their extended family or with a host family for the duration of their studies. They tend to stay in Alberta for a relatively long period of time (from several months up to several years); some even graduate with an Alberta High School Diploma. To find out more about how to study in Alberta as an international student please see the Application Process page.