Teach English in Spain with CIEE | Guaranteed Placement in Madrid

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!

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.

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.

If you are wondering whether to do the CIEE program or non-CIEE auxiliar program, hopefully this will provide some insight. Benefits of CIEE are the 24 hour support (although rarely used) and health insurance (also rarely used). Another benefit (the biggest one) is the in-person orientation that provides an opportunity to make friends easier. Other than that, the two programs are very similar. CIEE provides little support with housing and visa and iNEXT insurance is a scam. CIEE does makes things slightly easier/nicer with guaranteed placement in Madrid and they have loads of information about the TIE residency card process, but is it worth the $2000 price 🤷‍♀️ . From non-CIEE auxiliares I’ve met, it seems like they just had to go search for the information, making things a bit more difficult and maybe more stressful. It just depends whether you want to spend over $2000 to have the information already collected and get guaranteed placement in Madrid. Otherwise, the housing, the visa, and the insurance is pretty much the same. You cannot go wrong with either 😊

I have had three great experiences with CIEE. My family hosted two exchange students, one from Spain and one from Germany, when I was in high school. Both are now a part of my family. Now I am participating in the Teach in Spain program. I have received a lot of support both before and after I arrived in Spain, especially with completing important documents. Plus, the week of orientation when I arrived helped me start to get acquainted. I would recommend studying abroad or working abroad through CIEE!