Program Reviews

CIEE was so helpful and made moving to Madrid so easy. I don’t regret going with them at all. They help with the visa process, provide and orientation with a leader who lives in Madrid. They always answer emails quickly and are very helpful. The money you pay is worth it as the transition with CIEE has been extremely easy. I would recommend this program to anyone who is trying to teach abroad. They have options for other places outside of Spain as well so you can really pick the best fit for you And where you want to teach.

I chose to teach abroad through CIEE’s program in Thailand during 2022 and loved it so much that I applied a second time for their Madrid program! I am currently teaching in Madrid now and the transitional period was so much easier having CIEE to lean on. The week long orientation allowed for sleep reorientation and basic info about the city of Madrid! My orientation leader aided in all things including metro passes, bank accounts, and city recommendations! Meeting other travelers and English teachers has been so easy because of the community CIEE creates.

CIEE helped to make my transition from the U.S. to Spain seamless. There was ample information provided throughout the pre-departure orientation and even a canvas course to help! Once I arrived in Spain, CIEE was there to make sure I knew how to get settled in a foreign country and also was incredibly helpful in helping me to navigate and secure the long term documents for residency. They also planned a few cultural events throughout the year. Price was worth it for me never having lived abroad.

This was my first year with CIEE and hopefully not my last. I had an amazing experience with CIEE and they provided excellent support during the whole visa process and throughout the year in Spain. They were fast to alert us on any changes the consulate had with visas and were super helpful with the TIE process as well. I have gotten job offers right after this experience because it is valuable experience most employers are looking for. I regret not staying another year, but I knew that I wanted to go back to graduate school in the United States.

Teaching abroad in Spain has been an amazing year and Ciee has really provided so much help to make this transition easier. They helped us with applying for a visa, how to navigate the TIE process, gave us resources on how to get an apartment, a bank account, public transport card, and insurance.
Going abroad is a wonderful experience and it has been so helpful having these resources and advice before and after arriving in Spain. I have met so many other people teaching abroad through other programs that did not have this much support in moving abroad.

I really enjoyed living in Madrid, and CIEE was a means to get situated here easily (emphasis on easily - they were super helpful with the visa process, the foreigner's identity card process [TIE] and a lot more of the technical governmental things that are pretty confusing to handle on your own). They provide office hours so you can stop by the CIEE center to ask questions which is also really great. During orientation, they put us in a pretty solid hotel and provided us with informational tours and all of the information we needed.

I really enjoyed my CIEE TEFL Certification course. The course is completely online, so you are able to complete each module at your own pace. Because it is quite a bit of work condensed into just 10 weeks, I found the weekly deadlines for quizzes and assignments very helpful to keep me on track. I am not sure where I will teach yet, but I imagine if you are planning to teach right away, being able to complete the certification in 10 weeks would be very helpful. My teacher was wonderful and very quick to respond to any questions I sent her through Canvas. I actually really enjoyed the discussion boards to discuss the material with peers, and the weekly assignments were engaging and thought provoking way. Overall, I do feel prepared to teach!

Being an aux has been such a fun job, and becoming one through a program is so helpful. I don’t know if I would have been able to get to Madrid without CIEE. They walk you through every step to getting here from getting your visa to your metro card. Things that would be hard to do without speaking much Spanish, like getting insurance, is all set up for you. Also having an orientation before starting school is so helpful because they introduce you to Madrid and help with all the appointments and paperwork that has to be done when you arrive.

CIEE is a great program for becoming an auxilliar in Madrid. Because they guaruntee placement in Madrid and help you with your visa and documents once you arrive in Spain, I think this program is worth using if you want to teach abroad. I would have probably given up on the visa process if not for the support and resources that CIEE provided for us. They also were there for any questions or problems througbout the entire year, and this came in handy several times. Additionally, they set up your insurance plan, which is really helpful and would not be something I would want to figure out on my own.

My experience teaching abroad in Madrid with CIEE completely changed the trajectory of my career. I never thought that teaching was going to be a passion of mine, but I ended up staying in Madrid for 2 years as a language assistant. The highlight of my experience with CIEE was definitely the in-country orientation- it was super comprehensive and helped me to successfully start my teaching contract with confidence. During my time in Madrid I was even invited to a few events by local staff and always felt that CIEE employees were responsive, friendly, and attentive to my questions and concerns. Would highly recommend this program to anyone looking for a smooth transition to life abroad!