CIEE Custom High School Trips
Create the ideal custom travel program for your students!
CIEE’s life-changing academic study abroad programs support more than 3,500 high school students every year. Leveraging CIEE’s large global presence, dedicated local staff at every destination, and longstanding relationships with community leaders, together we can offer your students authentic experiential learning opportunities that complement your curriculum and open your classroom to the world—your way!
This is not a traditional tour.
Picture your students fully immersed in a new culture, mastering a language, exploring climate change, or volunteering with an NGO. With CIEE, U.S. high school students get the chance to go in depth and really connect with a topic in the local community. Your students won’t just visit a place and see a couple of highlights—they will be immersed in a community and culture. Every program is an academic opportunity where the destination is the learning environment for your teaching goals.
Destinations
Imagine a world of possibilities for your school trip in one of the following locations:
Africa
- Botswana, Ghana, Morocco, South Africa
Asia-Pacific
- Australia, Japan, Singapore, South Korea, Taiwan
Europe
- Czech Republic, Denmark, England, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Netherlands, Portugal, Spain
Latin America
- Argentina, Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, Mexico
Cultural Awareness
CIEE wants all our students to feel welcomed, supported, and empowered to succeed while studying abroad. Local CIEE staff have provided details about conditions and cultural attitudes that students with specific identities might encounter.
Sample Itinerary
Our custom school trips are unique to each school. For years, CIEE has worked with public and private high schools to tailor an immersive experience for their students. Ranging from small pilot cohorts of 10 to 15 students to recurring cohorts of over 30 students, our team adapts travel itineraries to each school's student needs and teacher goals.
Check out this sample itinerary of a recent school trip on Health, Wellness, and Inequality in South Africa:
- Experience an onsite orientation & city tour.
- Study food security issues and the role of South African history on community health by visiting a community garden.
- Learn about pioneering heart transplants with a visit to the teaching hospital at the University of Cape Town.
- Get an introduction to medicinal plants and eat a meal of foraged foods. Visit the world-famous Penguin Colony.
- Receive a lesson on health and wellness as practiced by the San people by visiting the Khwattu Nature Reserve (the San Heritage Center).
- Learn about Stellenbosch ecosystems at the Greenpop Helderberg Hospital Garden.
- Meet youth mental health practitioners on a visit to a healthcare provider in a marginalized community. Do a reflection session & give farewells to classmates.
- One academy ran its long-established 20-day program on Social Entrepreneurship with CIEE in Berlin—and added a second program on Global Entrepreneurship in Singapore.
- A school sent its 30-student sophomore class to CIEE’s Monteverde campus to spend a week studying climate science.
- Several students from a school went to Toulouse to live with CIEE host families and take classes to improve their French and discover French culture. CIEE hired tutors for other subjects so they wouldn't miss a beat upon their return to campus.
What's Included
Get ready for expert support to meet your unique needs!
Your custom school trip will be co-designed by at least one faculty or staff member from your high school in collaboration with the expertise of the CIEE High School Custom team and Local CIEE staff abroad. CIEE works to support your unique program outcomes and assists in the planning of all, including:
- Interactive classes
- Cultural activities
- Housing
- Meals
- Transportation
- In-country logistics
You can start working with us at any stage—from just an idea to having a full itinerary in mind!
Interested?
1. Share Your Vision, Develop, and Commit
- Submit custom school trip questionnaire
- Connect with the CIEE School Outreach Manager to discuss your vision
- Let CIEE will prepare a proposal
- Share feedback & finalize plans
- Sign MOU (memorandum of understanding)
2. Spread the Word & Prepare for Departure
- Recruit students and identify chaperones
- Help participants complete enrollment paperwork and book flights
- Set up training call with chaperones & local staff
3. Arrive and Experience the World!
- Be welcomed by CIEE staff
- Attend orientation
- Enjoy your program with ongoing CIEE support
- Have peace of mind with 24/7 emergency support available on-site
Resources
We offer custom school trip resources to help you plan your perfect educational trip. Our team will work closely with you to create a personalized proposal that outlines your vision after meeting with you to discuss your needs.
Contact Us
Email Kaerra McCray, CIEE Outreach Manager, Custom Programs, at hscustom@ciee.org or book a call using our bookings page.