The 20-year-old Northern Irishman joined the Academy full-time as a teenager in 2019 after making the switch from Linfield, joining the club’s network of host families.
And speaking as part of RangersTV’s Host Families feature, celebrating the unsung heroes of the Gers Academy, McCausland reflected: “I remember being nervous and anxious about [moving to Scotland], likewise my mum, dad, and my whole family.
“At that stage I didn’t really know how to cook, and little simple things like that. I also remember brief conversations with my mum, being nervous and generally scared, but I managed to settle quite quickly.
“My host family were amazing with me, and you could tell that they were genuinely quite good people. That made it a lot easier.
“The biggest thing is that they feel like your mum and dad, and that you’re one of their children.
“It made it a lot easier that my mum and dad both got on well with them too. They would often come over and spend a day with us all.
“Both of them are big Rangers fans so they take a lot of interest in your football and want to see you do well.
“They have played a big part in my career until now and I’m grateful for it.”
McCausland’s trajectory since first arriving at Rangers as a fresh-faced 16-year-old has taken him into Philippe Clement’s first-team.
Indeed, the Northern Irishman celebrated his first piece of silverware as a senior player back in December when the Light Blues lifted the Viaplay Cup.
His rise through the ranks at Ibrox has only served to sharpen his appreciation of those who helped him on his way, chiefly the environment that he called home in Glasgow after making the move.
McCausland added: “There’s definitely some things that I do now that I question where I learned it, such as hoovering even the tiniest piece of dust. I think that just comes from seeing other people do it.
“Gav [my host parent] was big into his golf, which is something that he got me into, taking me to the driving range, and I’ve now picked it up in the last three or so years.
“Pat is also into her baking and, although I wouldn’t say that I’m the best baker, I’ve definitely learned some things from her.
“I look back now and I think, yeah, it definitely helped.
“Moving over at such a young age, I didn’t have the life experience that I do now, and going into the host family meant that I didn’t have to worry about anything; it was about going into training, coming home, and being able to go out and see a bit of Glasgow.
“I still speak to them both to this day, and Gavin often comes up and looks after my dog.
“I’m grateful for it all and I wouldn’t be here without them.”
Watch the full feature on RangersTV now!