CIEE Teach Abroad & TEFL Reviews

Before I decided to embark on this journey with CIEE, I had already been abroad several times on my own and through my school. Thus, having a decent level of international exposure and experience with many international providers that cater to students and volunteers studying or working aboard, allows me to truly gauge this CIEE experience without any "first-timers" bias and "perfect-world" expectations.

Bottom line, CIEE is the best in the business of placing volunteers in teaching positions abroad. To make it plain, this company really stretches its arms and makes the effort to reach out to each individual volunteer that has signed up for its program. It is no secret that the greatest challenge that these types of programs face is being able to keep tabs on all of their signees. But CIEE has a cobra grip on this issue, and performs it with ease. Communication is actually this program's strongest asset. They don't just say in a tag-line on their website or send emails explaining how much they value their signees. They show it. I can appreciate a company that doesn't run like a "company" or a "system." This company makes sure that you have everything that you need, and holds an orientation that is beyond informative. They bring in providers that lend you their services throughout the duration of your stay aboard.

I couldn't be more pleased with this program, and if you are looking to channel your inner "Indiana Jones" or just go out and gain some life-changing international experience working with students of a different culture, choose CIEE. Don't pass up on this opportunity of a lifetime. I thank the Lord everyday that I didn't. I hope this helped!

I had the pleasure of teaching two years in Madrid through CIEE and wouldn't have had it any other way. Moving to a country where you don't know anyone, or speak the language can be an extremely nerve-wracking experience, but through the help of CIEE, this process couldn't have been better. The support I received, pre-departure, during orientation, and even throughout my first year made my decision to re-apply through them in my second year.
Although there are numerous programs one can use when applying to the auxiliar program, I truly felt like the assistance, support, and knowledge of the staff at CIEE is unparalleled. I enjoyed this program so much that I applied to be a Orientation leader both the summer of 2015 and 2016. It is such an incredible way to share experiences and advice with those who are in the same position as I was when I first came to Madrid. Being able to see both sides of this Teach Abroad program (applicant and staff) only reinforced my satisfaction with using CIEE to come abroad.

I've currently been living in Spain for two months now and I have loved every second of it. This is the farthest and longest I've been away from my family but it has allowed me to grow as a person, both professionally and personally. CIEE was a big help when it came to the paperwork. They helped walk me through the Visa process, how to find an apartment, getting an international cellphone, opening up a bank account, applying for a TIE, etc. Without their help, I'm sure I would've been really lost because the paperwork is very intimidating to say the least. They made sure that everything was filled out properly and a lot of times, they even made appointments for us which was one less thing we had to do. They placed us in our schools based upon our preferences which was extremely helpful. I am teaching in a secondary school and I know that if I were placed in a primary school, I would not be as happy. Some of my closest friends in Spain are some that I met during orientation. There's also a Facebook page that allows everyone to post for various events or trips so that we can all stay connected which is very helpful and nice as well.

I met Brad at the orientation in Seoul back in September. What I really enjoyed about the experience and his style of leadership is that I always felt his sincerity in wanting us to become acclimated with the Korean culture. There was a feeling of compassion for being a foreigner in a new country while also feeling challenged to make the most of my experience here and step out of my comfort zone.

I started my application process with CIEE in January, 2016 with the intention of travelling to Korea in the Spring. Unfortunately, some unforseen circumstances kept me state-side longer than I anticipated and I was not able to travel to Korea until September. CIEE did a great job of staying in contact with me and providing quick and informative answers to any questions I had. Their pre-departure programs, including the TEFL program and the course on what to expect in Korea were both highly informative and easy to access. I have now been in Korea for almost a month and can honestly say that I am thoroughly satisfied with my job placement.

Teaching abroad with CIEE Teach Abroad was the best thing I ever did. After I received my master's degree, I wanted to travel, but I wanted to travel with meaning. CIEE Teach Abroad helped me do just that! I loved that they took care of all the tricky stuff -- housing, my visa, school placement, they offered an in-country orientation upon arrival, and pre-departure assistance and an online course to prepare us. It was all so easy, and the staff was awesome. They are so easy to work with and they have all taught abroad so they know how you're feeling before you go.

I taught in Bangkok Thailand, and it was the most rewarding job I have ever had. The kids were so much fun to work with, and I learned so much from them. I met people I will be friends with for the rest of my life, and my weekends were filled with fun adventures all over South East Asia. While I was teaching, I was able to visit 8 different countries, so I was able to fulfill my travel bug and work with kids all in one go! It was so much fun, and so rewarding. I highly recommend CIEE Teach Abroad to anyone! They also offer an awesome TEFL Certification course, and it helped my teaching skills tremendously. I had previously taught at the university level, but this TEFL course taught me so many things I hadn't considered in regards to teaching.

I am so thankful for CIEE. They truly changed my life.

My application process with CIEE began as I was working my way through my final year of undergrad. Juggling both my school work and an application to teach abroad wasn't the easiest task. Overall I was very satisfied with the process, and assistance I received along the way. Email communication was always quick, and there was never any trouble contacting my application supervisor by phone.

After choosing my program (Teach in South Korea) the application process hit the ground running. Everything was clearly outlined with specific information of what was required, and the deadline that it must be met by. If there was ever a time I was confused, or had any questions CIEE was always there to help me out. I'm very thankful I had CIEE there to help guide me.

Working with my placement team was great as well. We maintained contact over email, and they constantly kept me updated with the happenings regarding my placement. There was a bit of an issue with receiving my FBI background check w/ apostille in time, and my placement team came up with a quick workaround solution that allowed me to meet the deadline for my Visa. They've been nothing but nice to me, and have made it clear that should I ever need any help with anything, they're there for me.

When deciding to work overseas, the most important thing you can be is flexible. Also, I believe it is important to understand where CIEE's obligations begin, and where they end. Everything I've expected of CIEE (a recruiter) has been met. Working with my school has been fine as well. While I've had some small issues at work, they're only minor inconveniences. I do not hold CIEE accountable for those.

Again, I was very satisfied with service I've received from CIEE. They helped me get to where I am now, and I feel I was more than prepared. The TEFL course, the pre-departure course, and my own research (and one would be foolish not to do their own research before making such a big move) left me feeling confident with my decision. I believe these programs are wonderful for anyone looking to spend time abroad and teach!

My experience with CIEE so far has been excellent. They have been friendly, professional, patient, easy to contact, and straightforward. Before you read some of the negative reviews on the CIEE South Korea listing, you have to understand what CIEE is.

CIEE is a recruiter. They help you find a position.

They are not your landlord, they are not your attorney, and they are not your babysitter.

I came to Korea prepared, and I came to Korea prepared not only because of CIEE's help but also because I was able to do some independent research and get a good picture of what it would be like when I arrived.

CIEE was actually very helpful in pointing out some potential problems and helping me get ready for them.

Their pre-departure information showed statistics on the apartments that previous applicants had occupied and I knew that a few of them didn't have beds. To a lot of people this is a problem, understandably, but I came prepared to lay out some blankets on the first night because I was given that information.

From hearing stories about awful hagwons, I was able to ask questions about the curriculum and determine that their practices would probably be acceptable for me. I am here and my days are crammed, but that's what I knew would happen.

If you're flying to the other side of the world, you have to be able to roll with things and pick your battles. When I arrived in my apartment it was nasty. The previous occupant was a teacher who left my school and he never cleaned it out. I spent three days cleaning it. I didn't mind, because it's not that big of a deal.

My apartment has no hot water. Personally, I don't mind this. If I wanted it fixed, I would talk to my director. But even if I want it fixed before winter, you know what? It can wait. I have bigger fish to fry right now.

I understand if you would not be willing to wait to get your hot water, or if you'd be upset if you walked into a dirty apartment. However, please understand that a part of making moving to a new country a good experience means rolling with the punches. I read one review wherein someone said that their hagwon closed, and when CIEE's follow-up for a NEW POSITION was "delayed and full of contradictions" they decided to just leave the country. This is the opposite of rolling with the punches. Yes, CIEE probably was scrambling to get their stuff together on that, and a recruiter might have written something unclear. But he or she is missing the huge positive here! CIEE was ready and willing to find a new position for this person, and he or she realized it would take time and effort, had enough, and gave up.

Let's look at that again: if you get stuck at THAT crappy of a school and you get fired for crappy reasons or your school closes, CIEE will stick it out with you and find you another position.

Now obviously, you are a free person. You are also taking a risk by getting a job and it's your responsibility to research them first. I and everyone from my orientation seems to be having a great time so far. I have had no complaints from the dozens of people I have met.

My director and regional director are amazing, a husband and wife team, and they buy me food all the time and are helping me in all kinds of ways that they don't have to do.

My coworkers are great. Friendly, supportive, patient, and all in all wonderful people.

So many people go on the internet just to complain and try to get revenge on someone they feel wronged by.

Think about this:

A TEFL course could cost from 600-2000 dollars, easily.
Airfare to Korea would cost 600-1000.

If you're a first-time teacher, I would highly recommend it. Remember, if you don't like the position they offer you, YOU CAN TURN IT DOWN.

And think about all the people who aren't leaving reviews because they came in prepared and had a great time and never thought twice about it.

Just sayin.

When I started looking for teaching jobs and TESOL programs, I wasn't sure where to begin. Choosing a TESOL program, finding a job, and getting a visa can be rather daunting. It was really helpful to have one source for completing all these things. The TESOL program was informative, and much more thorough than I was expecting. I took an additional 30hr CIEE TESOL course later on, which was a great addition to the main certificate. The coordinators in the US were especially helpful in keeping in touch once I was abroad. The pre-departure information was pretty good as well. Now that I am in the country, I could probably find my next job ( if I stay another year) on my own, but for my first job it was good to have help with the entire process. I think it would have been quite difficult to do this on my own. Overall I had a great experience with CIEE, and would recommend it for those who are getting started working abroad! I would especially recommend teaching abroad as a first job after college, as it is a great way to travel and gain job experience.

I enrolled in CIEE’s 3-month volunteer program in the Castilla La Mancha region of Spain that ran from February 1, 2016 to April 30, 2016. Below, I have broken my review into sections so that it is more reviewer friendly.

Quick Personal Background:

I am 26-year old male who decided to quit his corporate job to pursue a life-long dream of living and working in another country. Traveling and experience other cultures is one of the things that truly excites me in life and so I made a concerted effort to save money over the course of three years for future travel plans. Prior to enrolling in CIEE’s teaching abroad in Spain program, I neither had formal knowledge of the Spanish language nor of its culture. I now am working to master the Spanish language and hope to eventually relocate back to Spain.

Learning About & Enrolling with CIEE:

I was referred to the CIEE organization through a college friend who enrolled in their year-long program upon graduating college in 2012. That friend, like me, did not speak Spanish and had never been to Spain and I felt her experience/perspective was a good barometer for me to decide if teaching in Spain was the correct opportunity for me. I did some further research and read reviews about CIEE and most of the information was positive. I even reached-out to a previous CIEE Spain blogger who responded and was very helpful with my questions. CIEE offers several different programs if you want to live and work in another country. Since I did a volunteer program, I was responsible essentially for all costs. You are provided housing and two-meals per day which helps to subsidize some of your costs.

Pros about CIEE:

• CIEE was prompt in responding to my questions (I had a ton!) about the program such as, insurance scenarios, host-family contact information, transportation information, etc. My phone calls were almost always answered and I did not have to leave many messages but did receive return calls when required to leave a message

• It was comforting to speak with someone and a company located here in the U.S. and not overseas. I have had other friends apply for teach-abroad programs that turned out to be scams and you can rest assured knowing that CIEE is legitimate. Knowing that CIEE was located in the U.S. reassured me that the fees, documents, and other information were all legitimate and I could trust that important items were not going to be missed or lost in translation

• This point may echo the last two, but I did enjoy that there was a more formalized application process with CIEE compared to some other teach-abroad opportunities that I came across on the web. It was nice having someone to contact who could walk you through the application process and answer your questions

• I thought that CIEE also did a tremendous job at coordinating the host family living situations. There is a section during the application process that allows you to give some input so that you can be best matched with a host family. My match could not have been more perfect! I still keep in contact with my Spanish family on a bi-weekly basis

• Three-months in Spain was the perfect amount of time to gauge if Spain was really a place I could see myself living and if I would enjoy staying longer. CIEE seemed to be one of the few companies who provided a 3-month opportunity. Although we weren’t getting paid, the housing and meal compensation really helped to reduce the cost of living abroad (i.e. not worrying about finding temporary housing and paying for rent) and provided a unique experience of living with a host family.

Cons about CIEE:

• Changes in Program Start and End Dates: This is my most frustrating point regarding CIEE but to be fair, some of this may have indeed been out of their control. The application deadline was late October 2015 and the program was originally listed to run from January 1, 2016 to March 30, 2016. I technically missed the deadline to apply but after calling and speaking with a representative, they informed me that the deadline had been extended and I could go still complete my application. I was informed within a week that I had been accepted to the program and that additional information would follow with a BOLD note stating NOT to book any flights at this time. This made me very nervous for several reasons:
1) I needed to resign from my job in order to partake in this opportunity. Since it was a volunteer opportunity and I was voluntarily leaving my employer, I would not be able to collect unemployment and therefore would not have any income for the next several months.
2) Flights are expensive and the costs only increases the longer you wait to book.
3) Non-sufficient time to make arrangements for life obligations while I would be in Spain. I have my own apartment, bills, etc. that I need to find ways to address while I was overseas

It was not until December that the program participants were notified that some items were unable to be finalized and that the program start date would need to be pushed-back until February 1, 2016. I consistently followed-up with CIEE on the status of our program through the month of December and it wasn’t until the second week of January 2016 that we received confirmation on the definite dates of the program and permission to book our travel arrangements. This left me barely enough time to properly resign from my job and make arrangements for my American life while I would be overseas. Thankfully, I was able to more or less leave on a moment’s notice but not everyone is afforded this luxury. If this is your first time going to another country, I could only imagine how stressful this would be for someone traveling to another country for his or her first time. However, as I mentioned in the beginning, much of this may have indeed been out of CIEE’s control as processes definitely do tend to move much slower in Spain. Still, this was a frustrating time throughout the process.

• On-site orientation: The orientation was held in the city of Toledo. It was nice that CIEE provided a two-day orientation upon arriving in Spain but I was left feeling somewhat confused at its conclusion. For instance, once the education representatives of Castilla La Mancha were done giving us an overview of the program and providing us tips for classroom instruction and activities, we went downstairs to meet with our host families. Note: Some participants had already made prior arrangements (facilitated with the help of CIEE) to take trains to meet their host families since Toledo was a bit of a drive for some. I had pictured more of a meet and greet type setting where we would all have some time to speak with our host families and say goodbye/exchange contact information with the other participants. In contrast, we met our hosts and then immediately were on our way to our Spanish homesteads. I wanted to say thank you to the organizers and other instructors and barely had the chance to do so. In the big picture, this is rather a minor con but I thought I would make the suggestion to allow a little more time at the end of the orientation for a meet and greet opportunity.

The overall Spain and CIEE Experience:

Participating in CIEE’s program has undoubtedly been one of the best decisions I have made in my life. I found the Spanish people to be extremely friendly, hospitable, and patient. As someone who did not know but one or two words of Spanish prior to arrival, it was truly refreshing to find so many people willing to help me even when they themselves did not speak English. I could not have wished for a more compatible host family—they reminded me so much of my own that we had no issues getting along. The wife was a teacher at my assigned school and spoke fluent English but her husband only spoke Portuguese and Spanish. However, over the three months that I was there, the husband and I learned to understand each other very well even though we couldn’t speak complete sentences. By using only a few context words, we knew what each other was trying to articulate. If you believe in telepathy, than this was it at its finest.
I could write a novel about my experiences in Spain and how great the culture is but you can find much of that information readily available by doing a quick Google search. If there is one phrase that I feel best captures Spain and its culture, it’s that Less is More. They do care about their fashion (as is typical amongst Europeans) but they also know how to appreciate and enjoy and take advantage of the simple pleasures in life. The Spanish Siesta is greatly exaggerated concept here in America. Yes, many places do shut down for lunch (more prevalent in smaller villages than large tourist destinations) but not everyone goes home to take a 2-hour nap. While processed food exists and is readily available, I found that much of the food I ate in Spain did not contain all of the additive ingredients as American foods—chicken was actual chicken and not compressed chicken parts to look like a chicken breast. BUT I also live in a small village where most of the food was grown fresh (also without as many chemicals/pesticides). It is very safe country compared to the United States. Everyone, and I mean EVERYONE, I personally spoke with questioned me about America’s obsession with owning and carrying guns. Spaniards and other Europeans simply don’t understand our obsession with carrying guns. It’s not that gin violence and homicides don’t happen in Spain but they are nowhere near as prevalent and glorified by the media as they are in the U.S.

BOTTOM LINE: Keep an open-mind and always be aware and alert of your surroundings. You don’t need to be nervous, just cognizant of what is happening around you—as you should always be anyways no matter where in the world you are located or activity you are doing.