The IUHPFL is an ‘Honors’ Program.  As such, it outlines clear norms of conduct for its students to follow.

The IUHPFL relies on the students’ sense of responsibility and honesty to understand and abide by the IUHPFL Honor Code.  The Honor Code consists of a list of norms students are expected to follow, all of which have been put in place for two reasons: to facilitate maximum language learning and to ensure students’ safety.

While all norms of the Honor Code are crucial to students’ success and thus expected to be followed, there are a few norms that are worth highlighting as essential: 

• Language Commitment: 

Perhaps the most challenging aspect of the Honor Code is the Language Commitment, a pledge designed to contribute to the total immersion environment of the Honors Program.  The students’ commitment to speak only the foreign language during the length of the Honors Program is ultimately the key to their linguistic gains and the pillar of the Honors Program.

By pledging the Language Commitment, IUHPFL students agree to:

• Speak only the foreign language at all times: inside and outside of school, with other students of the program, with their host families, and with any and all individuals in the host culture.

• Significantly limit telephone communicate with their family and friends back home.  Students are permitted to call home once, upon their arrival to the host country.  No other calls to friends or family should be made without the permission of the on-site student coordinator, except for in case of an emergency.

• Limit access to the Internet to one hour a week, using that hour for purposes of communicating with friends and family. 

• Forfeit the use of all cell phones and personal laptops in an effort to immerse themselves fully not only linguistically but also culturally. 

It is crucial for students to understand that agreeing to forfeit speaking English (and their native language, if their native language is not English) in favor of speaking the foreign language at all times is no easy feat, but when achieved, the benefits are innumerable.    

If accepted into one of the IUHPFL’s Programs, tips for how to faithfully keep the Language Commitment will be discussed at Orientation, as well as in the IUHPFL Student Handbook. 

• Prohibition of the Use of Alcoholic Beverages, Drugs and Tobacco: 

This norm exists to protect the students’ safety and well-being.  It is known that the use of alcoholic beverages, drugs, and tobacco can lead to impaired decision making on behalf of those who use them.  Being abroad in new surroundings, engaging socially with new friends and new family members and speaking a language that is not native to them is challenging and disorienting enough for IUHPFL students without adding alcohol, drugs and tobacco into the mix.  For that reason, such substances are prohibited to students of the Honors Program, even in the presence of their host families.  Students are also prohibited from purchasing such items to bring back with them to the U.S., as IUHPFL students are minors.

If accepted into one of the IUHPFL’s Programs, tips on how to faithfully maintain the prohibition of the use of alcoholic beverages, drugs and tobacco pledge will be discussed further at Orientation.      

• Adherence to host family norms: 

An integral aspect of the IUHPFL experience,which contributes to the IUHPFL's goal of total immersion, is living with a host family.  Living with a host family implies that the student participates in daily life with the family, engages in active conversation, and makes an honest and steadfast effort to assimilate to the family’s lifestyle, schedule and consequently, the host culture. 

The host family experience with the IUHPFL can be extremely rewarding; many IUHPFL alum think of their host families in France, Germany, Mexico and Spain as second families, going back to visit them on occasion and maintaining communication with them indefinitely.  Such a close relationship with one’s host family is not automatic, however—it takes effort, hard work, and communication on behalf of both the student and host family.

It is important for students to remember that host families come in all different shapes and sizes: some host families may consist of host parents and host siblings with pets, while others may consist of a single mother with young children, while still others may consist of a widow living alone.  There is no ‘typical’ host family composition; host families are as varied as the cultures in which they live.  A general rule of thumb is that IUHPFL students will get out of their host family experience what they put into it. 

If accepted into one of the IUHPFL’s Programs, tips on how to successfully integrate into a host family situation will be discussed at Orientation.      

• Honors Program Pledge to Excellence: 

This pledge encompasses all of the IUHPFL norms.  In making this vow, IUHPFL students not only agree to abide by the norms of the Honors Program, they agree to do so in a spirit of team cooperation and with a positive attitude.  Agreeing to maintain the Pledge to Excellence means that the IUHPFL student:

• Takes full advantage of the Honors Program by participating actively in classes, afternoon activities, host family life, and excursions. 

• Contributes positively to the student group dynamic, making an effort to interact with all program participants on his/her site.

• Expands his/her horizons personally, emotionally and socially, reaching outside of his/her comfort zone to connect with others in the group and in the host culture.

• Encourages other Honors Program participants to remain committed to the Pledge to Excellence and holds them accountable for doing so. 

For a complete summary of the IUHPFL Honor Code, keep reading here.

After having read about the Honor Code component of the IUHPFL, it becomes apparent that the Program’s structure is unique and requires that all participants are committed to uphold its standards.  If you feel that the Honor Code is a pledge you are ready to make, continue on to take our 'self-inventory' to see if the IUHPFL is right for you.