CIEE Gap Year Abroad Options

Choose Your Gap Year Experience

A successful college career begins with CIEE Gap Year Abroad! We offer three unique tracks that help you learn more about the world and yourself, improve your language fluency, develop career skills, and immerse yourself in the history, art, culture, and customs of historic cities.

A growing number of recent high school graduates are choosing to defer college for a semester or year, giving them time to explore the world and learn more about themselves. Research shows that taking a gap year has multiple benefits, including improved graduation rates, stronger GPAs, higher campus involvement, and more fulfilling careers after college.  After your CIEE Gap Year Abroad program, you’ll return refreshed and ready to thrive in college.

Learn more about the proven benefits of a gap year from CIEE’s accrediting partner, the Gap Year Association.

3 Ways to Spend Your Gap Year with CIEE

CIEE Language & Culture

Learn a language at lightning speed. With CIEE Language & Culture programs, you’ll:

• Take 15-20 hours of college-level language classes per week  
• Experience full immersion with a homestay
• Gain fluency while exploring your goals and career aspirations
• Participate in CIEE cultural activities and guided excursions, making memories and fostering friendships that last a lifetime
• Go for a single semester or combine two to study abroad a full year

CIEE Internships & Culture

Strengthen your resume with real-world work experience and explore a career path you’re interested in. With CIEE Internship & Culture programs, you’ll:  

• Intern for 15-20 hours a week with a CIEE partner organization  
• Live in dorm or apartment housing
• Have the option to participate in a career readiness course
• Join guided excursions, growing your global network while immersing yourself in a new culture  
• Go for a single semester or combine two to study abroad a full year 

CIEE European Tour

Make the most of your gap year abroad. With CIEE European Tour programs, you’ll:

• Spend four weeks in three separate cities with a small cohort of CIEE students
• Take 15 hours of language class during your first month abroad
• Connect with a host family through a homestay during your first month, then live alongside fellow students in dorms or hotels for the remainder of your trip
• Expand your understanding of history, art, politics, and more through CIEE cultural activities and excursions
• Go for a single semester or combine two to study abroad a full year

Explore Program Options

Broaden Your Horizons

CIEE Gap Year Abroad programs focus on supporting participants in acquiring knowledge and developing skills to live in a globally interdependent and culturally diverse world. We understand that you decide to travel with us, in part, because of the opportunity to experience the local culture of a destination abroad. With CIEE, you’ll get to know a new country, live with a carefully-screened host family, meet with college-age peers on cultural activities and excursions, and have local CIEE staff support every step of the way. These life-changing experiences build your language fluency, strengthen career skills, and immerse you in the history, art, and culture of global cities. You’ll return with a refreshed perspective and prepared to thrive in college and beyond.