AIFS Abroad Reviews

If you are a recent college/university graduate and you think you’ve missed out on your once in a life time opportunity to study or intern abroad, look no further. I thought I’d missed my chance due to the pandemic but GE gave me the chance to still fulfill that dream of mine.
My goal was to explore different industries and my internship at a chamber of commerce allowed me to do just that. The housing was centrally located gave us access to a gym, dance studio, study rooms, and lounge. 6 interns shared a kitchen and living room and we each had a private bedroom and bathroom.
Gregg, GE’s London program coordinator, provided almost weekly outings full of London’s gems beyond the typical tourist attractions. He was very attentive to all of the interns needs, checking in frequently and taking action when needed. London is an expensive city so it was nice that most expenses for Gregg’s outings were prepaid by our program fees.

While there are definitely both pros and cons to interning with GE, the experience overall was enjoyable. London is made especially fantastic by the on-site coordinator, Gregg, who provides invaluable support, fun and educational activities, and will go to bat for you to ensure you have a good time. The housing was excellent, my internship was educational, and I was given many opportunities to learn and grow from the experience. The housing is in a great location, is incredibly safe, and very clean. You are guaranteed to enjoy the social activities provided by the location coordinator.

I loved every second being in London. The internship I was placed in was not necessarily super aligned with my major but it ended up being awesome! The company I worked for and my coworkers were amazing. I found my love for marketing through this experience. Also, Gregg made sure there was an activity/trip planned EVERY weekend so there was limitless opportunities to meet people and see all around England. The housing was also very nice and we had private bathrooms and private rooms with a shared kitchen.

London is an absolutely amazing place to study abroad but DO NOT choose this program to do it. It is horribly ran and organized in every aspect from the social events to academics. For starters no information about or program including classes, housing, food, etc was shared until about 2 weeks before departure for London. Then our housing was changed on us last minute from a nice flat with a dining hall right next to the school to essentially a private room at a hostel about 40 minutes away by train. They give you almost no support for food/cooking/dining while you are abroad for three months so be prepared to spend a good amount on top of what you have already paid to keep yourself properly fed. Additionally the classes were pretty horrific as most professors were incredibly disorganized with no syllabi, clear assignments, or regular grading. Finally the support from the staff is an absolute joke, when I was sent to the hospital one night it took them forever to reach out to my friends who had been frantically calling the 24/7 emergency line asking for support and help with the healthcare system in a foreign country. Overall please choose to study abroad in London as you will make so many friends and have great experiences but choose any other program besides AIFS. If you do decide to choose them be sure to take LGBT+ communities with Dominic Janes or any class with Nicole Moody (they were the only two great and helpful adults on staff!)

I chose to do an internship in London kind of last minute and I’m so grateful I did! Though my placement wasn’t applicable/initially what I thought I’d be doing, I still feel like I learned things from my internship and coworkers that I can carry forward with me. I always felt very supported in London by our Location Coordinator, Gregg. He was so consistent about checking in, planning fun weekend activities, and making sure we knew we had someone to go to for help or questions. I learned so much from him - He knows the city like no one else! London was a great place to work as a young person and I highly recommend going if you can!

This program was awesome! ECES at Charles University has a broad range of academic options and AIFS makes the administrative side of things, especially while preparing for the program, easy. AIFS also has fun side trips and social features that supplement the ECES program. Prague is a city with lots to do/a lively social scene, Prague is inexpensive, Prague has lots of history and the city didn't suffer much damage from World War II, and Prague's central location in Europe makes it fairly convenient to travel to other places in Europe. Ideally the program would start about a week earlier and end about a week later. The professors are generally great but make sure you clarify their academic expectations for assignments. Overall the work load is very manageable except during the universal workload waves during midterms and finals. If the program were to spread the work out a little more and not have quite a narrow work-jammed finals period right on the last couple of days.

Coming into this program, I had a lot of fears, questions, all alongside excitement. As I arrived to my housing, I was greeted with a large, modern, 4 bedroom apartment located a couple feet away from the Ponte Vecchio. Instantly, my roommates were welcoming, kind and felt this bond that completely tossed my fears out of the window.. Right into the Arno. Overall, this program provided easily accessible medical attention, safety protocols, and enjoyable events such as apéritive and bike riding in Luca to enhance our bond and experience. Keep in mind, I arrived with 1 checked bag, 1 carry on, and a duffel bag.. I left back home with 2 checked bags, a carry on and a duffel bag. Shopping is a life time experience here so be prepared!

I made such incredible friendships on this trip. GE had a lot of great events organized for all of us interns so that we could get comfortable and know each other right off the bat. The events were always well-attended and everyone had a blast. I truly cannot say enough positive things about this experience and the people I shared it with. If I could do this program again, i totally would because my 3 months in Florence were some of the best days ever. Everyone became close so quick and I always felt supported.

London was such an amazing experience that I could not recommend highly enough. The internship placement was perfect, the housing was centrally located and very safe, and the team in London could not have been nicer. Gregg in particular was constantly planning fun and unique trips for us that helped us get to know the city and feel supported throughout the program. If you’re considering studying or working abroad than definitely or this location at the top of your list. Such an amazing experience and so worth it!

Living in Italy for three months has been one of the best experience of my life. Florence itself is the perfect city to stay in, not to big that it’s overwhelming and not to small that it get boring. Over the span of 3 months life long connections will be made not only with your roommates but also with your internship. Florence is such a unique city with many thing to offer from it’s beautiful sites ( the duomo, Ponte Vecchio, MichaelAngelo viewpoint) too the in the wall boutiques that can be found on both side of the river. Traveling is made easy with bus to alphas and quick trip, (both companies that plan your trip for you) and for traveling throughout Italy the train can take you from the top to the bottom of Italy.