Program Reviews

Normally, I don’t write and post reviews, but I felt like I needed to warn others about CIEE. CIEE is an organization that is just full of lies. I’m actually kind of sad to write negatively about them because I really did have a very positive experience doing a study abroad program through them back in college. Therefore, I assumed I would have an equally positive experience doing a teach abroad program through them. Unfortunately, I assumed wrong. When I received my first contract offer from Luke Beland, the CIEE person in charge of communicating about job offers, I had many questions. I wanted to make sure that this was a good offer. He said that I probably wouldn’t get another offer and I should just accept the one I was given. He also assured me that 2.2 million won was much higher than the average salary because most teachers only get paid 2.1 million won. In fact, he was quite wrong. For a kindergarten hagwon, a 9am-6pm job, the pay should be at least 2.4/2.5 million won for all the work you must do. I asked him if he had any concerns about the contract and he told me no. Yet, this job couldn’t have been with a worse hagwon. The director of the hagwon had me work at 3 different branches within my 4 months of being in Korea. I never felt like I ever got into a routine because I was constantly being moved from school to school. For 2 of those months, I had to commute back and forth between 2 different schools, which were on opposite sides of the city, and which was also time-consuming and exhausting. I purposely chose the hagwon route so I would only be at one school, so obviously I was upset. There were also so many changes, extra work not specified in the contract, and a lack of help or understanding from CIEE. I paid CIEE all this money for support, yet Brad, who is supposed to be your go-to in-country support, continued to gaslight me and make me seem like everything I was going through was “normal.” In fact, none of it was normal, as I found out after talking to other foreign teachers who had been teaching at hagwons in Korea for several years. In fact, he assured me that everyone who used CIEE has had positive experiences at this particular hagwon. Actually, 5 different foreign teachers who also used CIEE have quit from this hagwon in the 5 months that I have been living and working in Korea. So that was another lie they told me. Our orientation was also a joke and was really just an excuse to eat one dinner together and then have the rest be free time. We weren’t actually given any advice on how to be good teachers or anything related to teaching. I felt burnt-out after only 3 months. In fact, I had to move to an apartment all the way across the city, a 12km distance, in a completely different neighborhood in order to be closer to my new school. This particular hagwon has many different issues. First of all, there was no support whatsoever for the foreign teachers. I was thrown into my new school with my new kindergarten class with no help or guidance, yet I was expected to do everything perfectly. Some of the students were also really badly behaved, but because their parents were paying money to the school, they wouldn’t be kicked out. They would always listen and respect the Korean teacher, but never the foreign teacher, which made classroom management nearly impossible. The foreign teachers were also required to pretty much do everything, except talk to the student’s parents. This means taking the kids to the bathroom, serving them lunch, writing weekly logs, writing weekly comments, and writing monthly report cards for all the students. We also taught up to 9 classes a day, including classes such as Math and Science. In fact, I know some teachers who taught 45 classes a week for only 2.2 million won. We were also in charge of all the special events, which occurred frequently each month. In addition, there was a complete lack of communication between Korean teachers and foreign teachers, and usually the Korean teachers would expect the foreign teachers to guess what they were thinking and get mad when we didn’t do things exactly how they wanted. There were also many last minute projects, last minute requirements, and constant changes to projects/expectations. Even though we had “break” times which were only 30 minutes here and there, we couldn’t really take the break because we had to do all of these other preparation things for classes, events, etc. I couldn’t even relax during lunch since I was constantly serving the kids more food, so by the time I ate, my food was cold. This particular hagwon is also quite cheap, as seen in the very crappy apartments we were given. I know that if I had just used a different recruiter, I would probably have ended up at a much better hagwon and I wouldn’t be leaving my contract early. Unfortunately, my mental health has deteriorated and seeing as this country does not have adequate resources to support me, I had no choice but to leave. While I did enjoy living in Korea itself, the job couldn’t have been worse, and CIEE is a large part to blame for this, seeing as they set me up with this school. Hopefully my review will help others avoid the same HUGE mistake I made choosing CIEE to guide me in this work abroad journey.

Teaching in Spain as an Auxiliar de Conversación has changed my life. I studied Spanish in college but never studied abroad. Coming here ignited a passion for teaching abroad as well as the Spanish culture. If you're on the fence about doing something like this, especially with CIEE, then I say DO IT! It has changed the trajectory of my life in such a better way and I've met such amazing people along the way. Teaching in Spain was a great way to better my Spanish, the 3 day weekends let me travel all the time and the activities put on by CIEE allowed me to make a lot of great friends.

CIEE has been so helpful in navigating the moving/teaching abroad process. Their staff is always on hand to answer any questions or guide you in the right direction; they also have staff in the US for anything you need before you leave and staff in Spain for when you arrive and are living here. I don't think I would've been able to get through all the paperwork without their guides and help. They even hold an orientation where they go more in-depth about what to expect and how they can help. I 100% recommend CIEE if you're looking to teach English abroad.

I am currently a Conversation Assistant in Madrid through the help of CIEE, and I enjoy what I do. I have studied abroad before, and CIEE has offered a more meticulous and detailed process. The best support they can offer is through the visa process, which is no small feat for Spain. They are quick to respond to questions and are 100% transparent on what needs to be done from your application to your arrival. I would recommend to anyone who has never studied abroad before, take a chance and take that journey.

When researching teach-abroad programs to apply for, I was conflicted between choosing those which did not charge a program fee and CIEE which does. I am so happy that I ended up choosing CIEE because the money was well worth it. The organization provided thorough support regarding the VISA process and simply transitioning to life in a foreign country. Additionally, meeting friends/finding roommates was incredibly easy since the facebook page and the orientation week connects you with fellow teach-abroad people! The CIEE staff is very proactive at responding to emails quickly and it feels secure to know that there is always support if I ever need it. I highly recommend beginning your study/teach abroad adventure with CIEE!

CIEE has provided me with an incredible experience to travel overseas for an extended period of time while also making enough money to break even and even save money to return to the U.S. I am so happy with my school placement and cannot wait for the adventures of a lifetime these next 10 months in Thailand.

CIEE has provided me with an incredible experience to travel overseas for an extended period of time while also making enough money to break even and even save money to return to the U.S. I am so happy with my school placement and cannot wait for the adventures of a lifetime these next 10 months in Thailand.

I have had a great experience with this program. Before leaving I was nervous about going to another country by myself and living with a host family I had never met before but everything worked out so well. My host family is so nice, I love the school I work at, and having the support and friendship with the other people in this program has been very helpful. I have been able to improve my Spanish, but I also am able to get by without being fluent. I would recommend this program to other people.

I am really happy with my school placement with CIEE Teach in Spain. It is far away, but I understand most people are placed far away. My hours are amazing and I love everyone I work with. I felt prepared to figure out how to get my Visa beforehand and once we arrived, the CIEE orientation certainly helped me gain a better sense of what being a language assistant would be like. I wish that we had had more guidance with finding housing. In addition, the stipend for the program is very fair given the hours, but it is smart to have another source of income.

The course is completed within 11 weeks! I was astounded by how much significant information could be packed into such a short period of time. Due to there only being 14 other peers, I was able get frequent feedback on the subject matter. The practicum will be taking place and ending during the summer, so make sure you set up your teaching arrangements before schools let out for summer. There are career options, after obtaining this certificate, for both college graduates and students with less than undergraduate degrees.

This is my review after doing a year of teaching abroad in Madrid by going through the CIEE "Teach in Spain" program:

There are pros and cons to going through CIEE which I will outline below, but overall for the cost to benefit ratio I would suggest not using them if you are motivated and decent at researching on your own.

Pros:
CIEE will provide you with detailed outlines of how to complete certain application processes such a applying for a VISA, a TIE (Spanish resident card), a bank account, a transportation card, and general information on what to bring to Spain including a packing list and paperwork.

CIEE provides a timeline of when you should complete certain steps and documents (though I would start looking at housing a little sooner than they suggest).

CIEE will provide an "orientation" which is useful for meeting other people in the program. That is about the main reason for it though. You will be put up in a hotel for your first week while you look for housing, but paying for it yourself would likely be cheaper.

Along these lines, you will be put into a CIEE Facebook group which is useful for sharing information and meeting other Auxs (teaching assistants). However, there are also plenty of other expat/aux groups to join.

CIEE will guarantee you are placed in Madrid (keep in mind "Madrid" is huge and that does not necessarily mean the city center). You can apply to be an Aux in many regions of Spain.

CIEE will provide insurance (called iNext) and this is useful for getting documentation together for your VISA, but there are cons too (see below).

Cons:
Most of the information CIEE provides can be found through other resources/blogs for free. Some of the information they provide is not as accurate as it could be (however, this is also due to the Spanish system which is rapidly changing and not universal in its requirements).

If you run into trouble with your VISA, due to consulate issues or anything else, CIEE really can't help. It is simply outside of their scope of influence.

If you run into trouble with your teaching assignment, CIEE also cannot do much other than direct you to the official channels. Again this is simply outside their scope. (I did not personally run into issues with this, but a few of my friends did).

If you go directly through the Ministry of Education in Madrid to apply, you can save a significant amount of money, you just have to do a lot of your own research. The Ministry also provides, what I have gathered to be, superior health insurance through Cigna (based on comparing experiences with my friends who went through the Ministry).

Assistance with housing is not provided. They will direct you to Idealista and online housing groups. That is by far the most stressful part of moving to a new country, and you are really on your own.

Overall:
After going through the program I am not upset that I used them for my first year. CIEE provided a level of comfort when moving, but I would not use them again, nor would I suggest a friend use them. I would tell my friends to do their own research and go through the Ministry.

Note: I did not go through their TEFL program, and have heard that is decent, so they may be a good option if you want a TEFL certificate.