The best advice I was given before going to Israel was have "no expectations" and an "open heart." It's not always an easy thing to do, but it made my trip the most rewarding, and a greater adventure.

This proved to be the best experience of my life. I was on Masa Israel Teaching Fellows in Ashdod which ended up being my favorite city in all of Israel. It is beautiful and safe and extremely cultural. The apartment accommodations are literally right on the coast of the Mediterranean! I spent about 25 hours a week in school teaching English to small pull out classes. I taught 3rd - 6th grade, all of which were absolutely amazing and so glad to have me. I took 4 hours of Ulpan a week, and ended up able to read, write and speak English! I also attended Achva Academic College for pedagogical classes. Masa is an incredible organization that provides so many different opportunities. I was able to go on many different trips all over the country thanks to them, as well as a week long leadership conference in Jerusalem and a delegation to Poland. I would highly highly HIGHLY reccomend anything Masa does, but especially Teaching Fellows!!

The first couple of months was hard just because of the transition. However, i started having a positive outlook on everything and realized time was going to fly and to try and make the best of every moment. I really liked my city and my fellow cohorts. It was hard not having a car handy, but i loved getting used to the public transport. I loved how everything was walking distance and the weather definitely helped with that. I wish i could do another year again. I hope to come back again.

I volunteered with ITF the year following graduating from undergrad. It was only the 2nd year of the program and they were still working out the kinks, but I had an incredible year! It was a great time to go because I wasn't ready for real responsibility/ figuring out my next big life move, so it gave me a much needed break from education to figure out my future. You don't really get paid that much but you live rent free in a nice sized apartment close to other participants...just accept that you are volunteering, and you can quickly learn to stretch the stipend. The most expensive part about Israel is cost of living, so by not worrying about rent you can live cheaply but comfortably.
Rishon Lezion is great- so close and accessible to Tel Aviv and it has its own, small, quiet beach that you can easily get to any day of the week. Working in the school was fun, because small children will find you to be a novelty and in my experience, that meant they gave us no trouble and we were able to just have fun with them.
The program staff is likely different every year, but honestly, I never met someone who worked in the hospitality/tour guiding/ israel program realm who wasn't amazing. They are knowledgeable, helpful, and have a real passion for their job (which shines through, because they don't get paid enough to deal with some of the whiny americans finding themselves abroad for the first time in their lives). Love to Mati and Ilan!
The great thing about this program is that each individual provider (for Rishon, it was "The Israel Experience") and Masa offer you a ton of opportunities to explore all of Israel, meet other people, go to cultural events, learn, and get free stuff! I wouldn't trade my experience in for anything and still miss being there!

Living in Be'er Sheva Israel for the academic year was one of the best experiences in my life! I gained hands on teaching experience that prepared me for my graduate program, met life long friends that I still talk with frequently, and grew as a professional I knew I always was. The night life was incredible, especially because I lived in a college town such as B7. What I learned from my students and the teaching experience in general was that with Students can achieve anything they put their minds and hearts to as long as they have someone that believes in them. This is the role of a teacher, to not only inspire your students to unlock their unlimited possibilities, but support them in improving their self-confidence so they can contribute to society in their own way.

The year I spent in Beit She'an, Israel was the best year of my life. Yes, there were difficulties and troubles to overcome, but the overall experience was intoxicating. Thinking back on my time there gives me a range of emotions so intense, that I sometimes try and distract myself from those thoughts.

The group experience was unique. Six strangers living in one large house, sharing a giant kitchen, and four rooms; it sounds like the Real World! And it kind of was, but without all of the messy drama.

I had a love/hate relationship with teaching that year because it challenged me in ways I never expected. But overall, thinking back on teaching, my memories are fond.

If someone asked me if I were to do it all over again, without hesitation, I would say, "Absolutely!"