CIEE Council on International Educational ExchangeReviews of ciee.org

I studied abroad in Madrid, Spain with CIEE through their Spanish Language & Culture program during the summer after my junior year of high school. It was hands down the most transformative summer of my life. Living with a Spanish host family completely immersed me in the culture, and my Spanish speaking skills improved more in a few weeks than they did in a whole year worth of classroom learning. The CIEE staff was incredibly supportive, guiding us through daily classes and amazing cultural excursions around Madrid. It forced me out of my comfort zone, taught me independence right before heading to college, and gave me lifelong friends. If you are on the fence about applying, do it!!

I had the best time with CIEE Yucatan, and CIEE High School Study Abroad, and I would recommend this program and this experience to anyone who asked. Staff were supportive and kind, excursions were varied and immersive, and my host family became my foundation in Mérida. Overall, I would rate my experience 5 stars without a doubt.

I studied a summer abroad in Mérida Mexico, and I had so much fun! It was such a cultural and exciting trip, and I made so many new friends and had great experiences over there. I recommend to go to Mérida, and also on a CIEE trip!!

Hello, my name is Alexis. I studied in Tokyo, Japan for Japanese Language & Culture Session 1 which is in June. I made new friends and got a chance to meet my amazing host family. CIEE is a wonderful program for teenagers that are interested in learning about a culture they aren’t familiar with. We would have student activities everyday besides free days, which created a space where students could see different arts and meet other students from another class. The leaders were extremely helpful, and nice which also made my trip better.

As a parent I was really happy with CIEE for high school summer study abroad. My child had a great experience with all the staff, host family, teachers, and other students. The host family and program leaders in particular were amazing in supporting the kids and making sure they had a great experience. The kids were occupied with great classes and activities so there was hardly any downtime to miss home or be bored and they saw so many places and got to experience really unique cultural activities. Highly recommend!

This summer going into my junior year was my first time leaving the country. I live in California and have been exposed to another culture like this. Because of CIEE I was able to meet people whom I would consider to be some of the most influential people in my entire life. I met someone who i will consider one of my best friends and spending time with my host family was extremely educational. Being at CIEE was fun because it wasn't all educational, and what I mean by that is when I was going around around with my group everything I did didn't to be some history lesson. MY PL's and PG's never not once gave us some history lesson on everything we. They answered when we asked and they told us when they thought it would be appreciated or considered cool. Overall my experience with CIEE was truly special and I will forever cherish the time I had.

For those skimming the reviews on CIEE, and deciding whether to do it or not, here's an extensive, honest review from a student who went during freshman-sophomore year. 1. Application Process + Scholarships Application Process: The application process was fairly easy. Personally, I didn't encounter any issues with applying. The CIEE team came out to my school and gave a presentation, (which they do for most schools but not all) and I put down my contact on their sheet, and they called to give me a quick interview (call) before setting me up with an alumni for me to ask them any questions I had. The interview part usually does not happen, and you don't need it to apply, I'm not sure why I had one. In the application, you have to write 3 short essays and fill out some information, but it's definitely worth doing for the possibility to get in! Scholarships: Regarding scholarships, they offer (I think) over 7 million dollars in scholarships a year, and they give out pretty hefty scholarships per person. My friends have gotten full rides, and the lowest I've heard someone get is 1,000 dollars, but that doesn't mean that a scholarship is automatically provided, it is just pretty likely that you will get it. They have 2 scholarships, global navigator (regular scholarship (based on finances + application) and Academic Merit scholarship that they give out max 500 dollars for things like grades, application, etc. Definitely recommend applying for them! 2. How to Apply It's pretty easy to apply to CIEE, and all you have to do is look up "CIEE login application" on Google, and you will see a result from CIEE that says "Start Your Application Today". Then, scroll down to all the different countries that they offer, choose your desired country to study abroad in. From there, you can browse all the different types of programs they offer, and once you want to apply, click start application/enroll. From there, the application is pretty straightforward on how to apply. If you're getting confused at any moment, either reach out to the CIEE team at your school (if they have one) or troubleshoot your issue on google. 3. The Actual Program: I can't speak for all programs, but here was my experience studying in Seoul, South Korea (Language and Culture Program). In short, it was great. There was 3 levels of learning the language (pretty sure goes for any program), and if they don't place you in the right level, just express to them that you need to be put in the right level. In the programs, you live with a host family, (and you can request any dietary restrictions and to have same gender roommate.) My Host family was really nice and it is a great way to learn the language and be immersed in the culture, and my roommates (I had 2 but you usually have 1 or sometimes none..) were the best!!! It's the best way to make friends, and your roommates will be your lifelong best friends. (I miss them so much ) The program overall was just an amazing experience, and if I name all of the amazing things about this program, this review will be too long.. 4. Thank you for reading! If you stuck around this long, and read the whole thing, thank you so much! I really hope you end up studying abroad with CIEE, getting the discount, a scholarship, and having the time of your life!! So my final answer: Yes, you should do it. (Not unless you don't want the best experience of your life!!)

CIEE provided incredible support through its staff, host family immersion, and well-designed program. Cultural experiences helped me learn about Spanish culture, while free time allowed me to gain independence and confidence. Lessons strengthened my language skills, and community interviews gave me opportunities to connect with locals. I could not recommend CIEE more!