Program Reviews

Studying tourism in school, I was always a little weary that I would have a hard time finding a professional internship or career in my field. But CISabroad proved me wrong!! After skyping with them, they were able to find me a great placement with a travel/marketing agency where I learned about tourism marketing and designing a travel catalog. From my experience in Barcelona, I felt more confident moving into future internships and now have landed a job in strategic marketing and event planning.

Since my time in Barcelona, I maintained relationships with three close friends that I met while interning abroad and keep in touch with to this day. I have been able to travel to Boston, Denver, and Cheyenne to travel and see my friends again. Having friends from different parts of the state is a great way to learn just how diverse the states really are.

While I was in Barcelona during the heat of the summer, I got very sick and had to go to the clinic to be seen by a doctor. I was nervous to do this on my own so CIS contacted the hospital, an interpreter, and even called a cab for me!! I felt safe and well taken cared of while over seas. They even set up an appointment for me to see a therapist for a visit while I was home sick and it felt so good to talk to someone and get some things off my chest. Knowing I was okay on my own and that CIS workers genuinely cared for their students well being, made it easier for me to enjoy my experince.

The program was nothing short of incredible and I will never forget the wonderful experiences or people I met.
At first, I was scared it would be difficult for me to make friends, but there were a lot of program "mixers" that forced the students to be together. I made lifelong friends pretty quickly and we still talk pretty regularly.
The activities were incredible. We went on the famous Garden Route tour, travelled to Cape Town, and had wine tasting tours. We travelled so much it almost didn't feel like school.
The classes were interesting and very informative. Everyone was required to take a South African history course, and it was amazing. I learned so much and the professor was very knowledgeable and helpful.
I feel very blessed to have been able to do this program. I wish that I could go back to see some of my South African friends and to travel around the country again. It was such an incredible experience and highly recommend it to anyone even considering studying abroad.

I had an amazing time in Costa Rica, there are times I still listen to the music and think about my time there. I miss the friends I made while I was abroad and it is truly a once in a life time experience. I would recommend everyone to take a semester to study abroad while in school. I think that my favorite thing that I was able to do in Costa Rica was the white water rafting (I ended up doing this twice!) I also loved the ziplines! I highly recommend the ones in Monte Verde.

I’ve been asked multiple times why I chose to go to Cape Town of all places for my experience abroad — I never truly had an answer, but knowing what I do now about living in South Africa, I would have never picked a different place to go! This country has SO much to offer: wildlife, activities, food, culture, diversity, language, adventure, experience, etc. And everything there is CHEAP! There wasn’t a single day that I didn’t do at least *something* while I was there. The housing was conveniently located and everyone in the program was within walking distance of each other. I went into the program not knowing a single person, and left the program with some of the most amazing lifelong friends (I even extended my stay by a week). The onsite VACorps and CISabroad teams gave us an orientation on our first day, checked in with us often, and hosted weekly activities - which was one of the best parts! I went surfing, skydiving, hiking, and sand boarding for the first time among a ton of other fun activities. The application process was easy, and both VACorps and CISabroad were helpful throughout. I recommend South Africa to anybody! If you’re even slightly considering going abroad, I’m telling you the answer is already YES!

Sidenote: if you go in the summer session, it's their winter/rainy season, so pack accordingly (unlike what I did RIP - but don't worry because there is a very nice and convenient mall downtown if you forget or need anything while you're there... trust me, we went there frequently).

I have never traveled out of the United States before so I experienced a huge culture shock after traveling to 2 different countries. The trip was amazing and was an experience that I will never take for granted. I came back with new knowledge on culture, architecture, political policies, basic language and communication skills, and a more broad outlook on the world itself. I now have a greater curiosity of what other places in the world are like and feel the need to get out and explore. Because the program I chose was a multi-country program, we spent 1 week in 3 different cities. After the trip, I left wanting more. More time to really get a feel of what it would be like to live in Rome, Florence, and my favorite of the 3, Barcelona! To future participants who are doing a shorter length program, if you really want to get the most from where you are traveling, I would suggest choosing a trip that only has 1 destination. My favorite memory from my trip was getting to spend New Year’s Eve and day in Rome! We all went together to watch the fireworks right outside of the Coloseum, and it was absolutely amazing!

I never expected to be so impacted by this experience, it is one you will never regret. I took a Marine Biology class and I genuinely feel that is where some of my most memorable moments come from, snorkeling in clear blue water and studying different species in the water is not an experience I get to have here in New York City. The program itself makes you feel welcomed and very safe which was one of my biggest concerns; giving you tips the first orientation on the dos and donts of the city. The biggest impact on my life was not only the culture that is experienced but the different individuals you meet along the way. You take a bit of each one with you, you learn from them because everyone shares a different story. My favorite memory would be going to Capri (free trip, courtesy of the program).
Tip: once in Europe you can go anywhere for a great deal! I got the opportunity to go to Prague and Croatia!

I attended Veritas Universidad which is a small college in san jose. It was a cute school with fantastic teachers -seriously, they were all beyond fantastic, friendly and welcoming. My host stay was more difficult getting adjusted since my host mom knew no English and had a very thick accent that made communicating in Spanish difficult as well. Every place we visited, Manuel Antonio, Puerto Viejo, ECT, was absolutely stunning and beautiful. They were also easily and cheap to travel to on your own! Our program coordinator, Jess, was really helpful and always available if you needed her. She even went out of her way to drive me to the health clinic late at night after a cat bite my hand. I would highly recommend this program to anyone looking into going to central or south america.

I had the absolute best semester in Edinburgh thanks to CIS. Edinburgh was beautiful, you could walk anywhere in the city in 20 minutes. The public transportation was cheap and simple. The airport was incredible, and you could fly anywhere! I took biology classes, so I had it a little harder than my friends who were business majors. The night life is incredible, and Edinburgh has the most pubs per square mile in the entire world. Through CIS, we even got a weekend tour of the Scottish Highlands, which is the most beautiful place I have ever seen. There's something for everyone in Edinburgh - shopping, hiking, history, pubs, cafes, and more! I would definitely recommend Edinburgh as a place to live, and to use CIS! If you go, take me with you!!!

I loved my experience in Dublin, I though both in my advisors were very helpful. John and Lisa both kept in touch with us through out our experience and were kind and fun when they brought us in the excursions and anything else we did with them. I also really enjoyed the campus of DCU me and the friend I meet enjoyed going to the campus bar and other cafes on campus after classes. It was also convenient because our houses was so close to canous. Lastly I loved the overall experience of being aboard I was lucky enough to meet great people and do some traveling.

I had the absolute best time studying abroad! CISAbroad offers so many excursions and activities - things I actually wanted to do. They also kept us together a lot during the first few days so we could make friends quickly. I thought the scavenger hunt was a good bonding activity idea because you're not just sitting there, you're actually doing something fun. I stayed in Marlyebone Hall and absolutely loved it, aside from London's lack of AC (Luckily I was able to buy a fan!). I was a short walk from everything I could ever want or need, and truly had the greatest experience thanks to CISAbroad.