Program Reviews

I have grown so much as a person and made lifelong friendships because of this program. I cannot recommend it enough. Thank you CIEE. When I left for Spain and I was super nervous but excited at the same time! When I arrived, at first there was a culture shock, and of course, jet lag. However, I soon settled in really quickly and felt like a part of the family. On the last day of the program, I was heartbroken. I couldn’t imagine my life without those around me anymore.

I had no idea what to expect when traveling abroad with a group of people I had never met before, in a country I had never been, speaking a language I had never once talked in...and it turned out to be amazing. It was almost freaky how quickly everyone on the trip clicked with each other. We were instantly best friends. All of us, which made the entire trip so much more fun, and were able to help each other out on our Japanese homework or be there when someone was having a rough day. Exploring and learning in Tokyo opened my perspective on the world, how not every society thinks and operates the same as the U.S. Everyone was so friendly and helpful and I never had a problem making my way around despite the language barrier. Most memorable of all was the weekend spent with my host family. They made me feel right at home and the two young children kept me laughing the entire time. I was initially anxious about staying in a Japanese household on my own, but I quickly realized how similar their family was to my own. There were many aspects that were different, but at the end of the day a family is a family. I wouldn't trade that experience for the world. If I were to give anyone a tip when visiting Japan, it would be to step out of your comfort zone just because you're afraid you'll make a fool of yourself, because that's the best way to learn and create memories to last forever.

I don’t even know where to begin. The trip was out of the ordinary for me. I mean I’m from Massachusetts and have never been out of the country before and then one day I’m on a 12 hour flight to China. I was nervous but excited. CIEE made it all so easy. They had staff meet us at the airport and bring us to the hotel we’d be staying at. The first night we ate dinner at a restaurant close by and just got to know each other. The next couple of days we started off by going to a local university to learn about the language and culture. After our lessons we’d go and explore the city together. We went to museums, temples, the forbidden city, etc. The second week we went a Friends of Nature farm and volunteer there. My favorite memory of that place was feeding the sheep and taking naps under plum trees after pulling weeds that morning. On our third and final week we went back into the city and was given the freedom to explore the city on our own. Overall it was a once in a lifetime experience that I’ll cherish forever.

My experince on this trip was nothing but amazing! Exploring Berlin and the outskirts of Germany was just one piece of the cake. Other things involved us talking to locals, and local business people. There were lots of fun things like taking weekend trips to a city in the outskirts of Germany that was filled with cobblestone roads and the most beatiful sunsets I’ve ever seen. I can still remeber the taste of currywurst from the street venders and how we and my newly found friends would walk two blocks too our new favorite coffee shop “no need for fancy names.” Each day was something new and made an everlasting imprint on my lives and i’m sure everyones elses. Even after the trip I still talk to the friends I met in Germany. Even though we are scattered across the country we still skype and even send each others gifts.

CIEE is a wonderful program that works hard to make sure every participant feels satisfied with their experience and become true global navigators. The staff members were as eager and excited as the students and CIEE did a really good job of matching students with their home families. I personally fell in love with my home stay family and I plan to visit frequently in the future. In addition, I made amazing friends that live throughout the United States and we are in contact till this day. CIEE not only makes sure that it's participants feel safe and comfortable throughout their trip, but they also make sure participants experience a diverse set of activities, all which help them understand the culture of Chile. My experience was amazing and I felt like I was part of a new family.

I would’ve never thought I would get such an amazing opportunity like traveling to China and live there for 2 months during my high school years! Attending this program was something that I’ beyond grateful for, it gave me the global awareness that I was lacking as a sophomore in high school. I have made lasting relationships and meaningful one throughout my stay. Studying abroad to Nanjing, China was honestly the best thing that has ever happened to me.

This program brought some of the best weeks of my life.
I was deeply well prepared by an educational program CIEE has you take before attending the program and got to know the people in my group really well.
There was a great balance between volunteer work time, tourist activities, and social time planned for each us all.
My host family was very kind, the maid always helped clean our rooms so that made life 10X better, and we always had breakfast, lunch, and dinner prepared it was always beyond delicious.
We would usually spend the morning in service, and then do something related to tourism or exploring the area in the afternoon, or take Spanish classes.
We went to a local school to play sports with kids, and really just have fun with them. It was really interesting to see differences in countries with the school system.
The best part of the trip was the three - day excursion where we went to kind of a resort like area and we had our own cabin rooms that were super beautiful. We had little waterfall pools by us all and there were horses everywhere! We got to go hiking, and see an area that Pirates of the Caribbean was filmed at. We got to help plant trees and chill at the beautiful beach. I remember going to places with little mini tiki huts, and hammocks, it was absolutely beautiful.
The trip was so fun, helping the kids out and playing with them was beyond an adventure, and I remember how I learned so much more about the world just by being in a different country. It was an absolute gift and an experience I'll never forget.
If you're looking to volunteer, grow, learn more about the world, life, and meet incredible people looking for more experiences, I 10/10 reccomend.
This was an amazing experience in my life that I am beyond grateful for, and I hope that you get to experience this too.
Post program, I was more driven to travel in the future because I now know how beautiful, fun, and fulfilling it can be. I now value a lot of things that are in the US that many countries don't have like AC in most buildings, and clean drinking water.
Some useful tips if you decide to go
1) Don't come in with expectations and be prepared for a whole different way of living
2) Sometimes the showers only have cold water
3) Their are A LOT of bugs in Santo Domingo
4) Be prepared to be around people a lot and try your best to socialize to have a fuller experience
5) If you try everything, you won't regret it! You have to get out of your comfort zone or else you're not going to be truly happy
6) Things on this trip WILL NOT GO perfect. If you complain, you'll only make it worse. If you accept it, and do what you can about the situation than life will be 10X better for you
7) Allow yourself to have more fun on this trip!!

When I first signed up for this program, I was nervous about it because I had never traveled out of the country by myself, and I had never been away from home for a month. Taking the leap to fly to Mexico with a group of other teens from around the states was the best choice that I have ever made, and I have no regrets. I grew so close to the other students that traveled with me, and I advanced my Spanish more than I could have in any class in the states. My host family took me in like I was part of their own, and I even grew close with my friend's host family. After doing this program I feel like I have a wider, clearer view of the world as a whole, and I am inspired to try more new things and travel at every chance that I get. The main tip that I could give to anyone considering doing this program is: take the leap, you will not regret it.

This was a delightful summer to grow and improve my knowledge in Leadership. All lessons were led by professional lecturers and there was a lot of practical tasks. For example, we had to work with Portland baseball team, analyze their image and make suggestions to improve the game experience. There was enough support provided to ensure quality work and fun experience. The facilities were amazing with locally cooked buffet meals, gym, beautiful Maine scenery. Overall, it was one of the best summers I had had.

Thanks to CIEE and my wonderful host family, I spent a month fully immersing myself in a language and a culture completely foreign to myself. It was refreshing to be surrounded by like-minded students who also shared the same passion for language learning and were willing to succeed and fail with me. Through the moments that made me laugh and cry, I came away a far more open-minded, independent, and adventurous student than when I left.