CIEE High School Abroad programs, Summer High School Abroad programs, and Gap Year Abroad programs provide U.S. high school students and recent high school graduates with an unforgettable international experience. Since 1947, CIEE has sent over 50,000 U.S. youth to locations around the globe. These programs allow U.S high school students and recent high school graduates to study abroad, to live with a native host family, work abroad, and/or volunteer, and to challenge themselves on a new level by becoming fully immersed in a language and a new culture.

the CIEE Story

CIEE is the leading U.S. non-governmental international education organization. CIEE creates and administers programs that allow high school students, university students and graduates, and educators to study and teach abroad.

Into the chilly postwar world of 1947, CIEE launched the next generation of study abroad programs, the first since they'd been suspended during World War II. Senators and scholars worried about how to increase international understanding and establish trust between nations. As soon as there was enough capacity aboard trans-Atlantic ships to carry students, CIEE programs began teaching.

Today, CIEE has 118 Study Abroad programs in 40 host countries and Teach Abroad programs in Chile, China, Spain and Thailand. American families can participate in hosting international high school students studying in America on our USA High School program. Educators can participate in summer International Faculty Development Seminars in over 15 countries. Our U.S. specialists, who have studied or lived abroad, can advise you how to choose a host country and program that fits you. They will help with any concern that you have– academic, administrative, or day-to-day – and give you insider tips on the city and country. We also have English-speaking staff members at all of our program sites overseas.

Who could argue? We need understanding and trust more than ever today. Gain that understanding; build that trust on a CIEE program.

why study abroad?

benefits of high school and gap year study abroad programs

Study abroad for high school students or recent graduates provides a powerful path to personal and intellectual growth. For many students it will prove to be a life transforming experience. Students on CIEE High School Abroad, Summer High School Abroad, and Gap Year Abroad programs will find themselves looking at the world and their own culture from a new perspective. On a CIEE program, students will:

• Gain independence by living away from home, managing their own money, planning their time, and caring for themselves
• Become aware of cultural, religious, and political differences and learn to function in a new cultural environment
• Gain language fluency, opening doors to exciting university and career opportunities in the future
• Distinguish themselves from other college applicants by showing curiosity about the world and global affairs
• Gain social and academic skills that help them live in a globally interdependent world
• Feel at ease in new places, meeting new people, and exploring their own beliefs and opinions
• Make lifelong friends and acquaintances and HAVE FUN doing it!