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By Alaa Mahmoud, J-1 Summer Work Travel Alumnus A version of this story was originally published on CIEE blog Hello everyone! I’m Alaa Mahmoud from Egypt. I’m currently enrolled as a fourth year medical student in Suez Canal University, Egypt. In 2006, I participated in the J-1 Summer Work Travel program and attended the Council on International Educational Exchange’s (CIEE) Civic Leadership Summit 2016 (CLS16). These experiences influenced me as a person and made me a change maker. After completing my J-1 program and participating in CLS16 where I had the privilege to meet 62 young leaders from all around…

By Seema Tamang, Secondary School Student, Kathmandu, Nepal A version of this story was published on Rotary Voices Seema Tamang, the first rotary youth exchange student from Kathmandu Nepal talks to us about her high school exchange in the United States. Describe your home life in the United States. During the 2016-17 school year, I was thrilled to be the first outbound exchange student from Nepal. Being blind, I have to admit I was a bit scared at first, as home life in the United States was much different than in Nepal. In my host-family’s home I had my own…

By Eva Dolezalova, J-1 Short-Term Scholar from Czech Republic You can see my husband and me on our wedding day in the picture above. If you guess that we married in Las Vegas, you are right. We married in 2012 and since then we fell in love with the USA. The breathtaking view of Half Dome at sunset will always be imprinted on our hearts. We were just tourists at the time, but we knew that we wanted to come back and stay a little longer to experience more of the life and culture in America. A few years after,…

By Jody Mayo, Communications Manager, Alliance Abroad Group A version of this story was originally published on Alliance Abroad Life-defining moments are always unforgettable.  For Vanja Dokic, a third year hospitality and tourism student, that pivotal moment happened almost a year ago. The decision to volunteer at the annual World Youth Student Travel Conference (WYSTC) last year in his hometown of Belgrade, Serbia, determined his destiny.  After seven days at the conference, interacting with people with diverse backgrounds from all over the world,Vanja made up his mind that his professional calling would in the hospitality and tourism industry. But never…

By Olga Adamovich, Director of Participant Experience, CIEE During the first week of August, a select group of participants from the Summer Work Travel (SWT) program gathered on the campus of the American University in Washington, D.C. for the fifth annual CIEE Civic Leadership Summit. This is the third time two different designated J-1 sponsor organizations, CENET and CIEE, have partnered to bring together participants. This year, 45 fellows from 40 countries participated in the activities. This diversity of the participants intensified the richness of the summit experience as fellows worked together across country, culture, and language borders. The three…

By Cecile Schoberle, Director of Marketing and Communications, University of Colorado Denver A version of the blog was originally published on International Newsroom Dr. Tabata and his daughter in a fitness center at the CU Anschutz Medical Campus Dr. Izumi Tabata, PhD, and “father of high-intensity interval training (HIIT)” is currently a visiting J-1 scholar at the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus. “If you’re seeing stars and feel as if you can’t take another step, you’re doing the exercise right—but it is all worth it.” Variations of this theme are expressed by enthusiasts of the Tabata Training method worldwide. Also…

By Nick Hvidtfeldt, J-1 Intern from Denmark During my four months in New York City I made sure to take advantage of all the exciting opportunities this place has to offer. I rarely had a dull moment, and my friends would often ask me, “Are you even interning?!” because of all the cultural activities and traveling I did. I promise I was! But I utilized every second of my free time to go somewhere new and do something fun. I made it a priority to visit every New York City borough and explore every neighborhood of Manhattan. I found that…

By Joanne Hritz, Director of Marketing at AuPairCare A version of this story was originally published on AuPairCare As if leaving her family, friends and her familiar life in Brazil to come to America as an au pair wasn't adventurous enough, au pair Tamires also decided to take on the challenge of a solo cycling trip through Historic Route 66! From its golden days in the 1930s, to the decline in the 1960s and the resurgence in recent years, Route 66 has always had a prominent spot in popular culture. Known also as the ‘Main Street of America,’ it was…

By Nathan Arnold, Director of Press Relations for Educational and Cultural Affairs               This past summer, State Department monitoring teams visited 446 placement sites across 25 states in our efforts to monitor the health, safety, and welfare of participants. Along the way, we also stopped to listen, as J-1 participants shared with us ideas for continuing to improve the program. In total, our teams interviewed 1,582 J-1 students and 362 American host placement supervisors. The findings of these monitoring visits are now available in the 2016 Summer Work Travel Monitoring Report, including charts breaking down the findings, ranging from participant…

By Faith Nyamakwere, J-1 Summer Work and Travel participant from Zimbabwe During my J-1 program, I had the privilege to work at the Gaylord Opryland Resort and Convention Centre, which is reported to be the largest non-casino hotel in the Continental United States outside Las Vegas, and is also ranked as 28th in the list of largest hotels in the world. Most people come to the resort to experience the unique “Country Christmas” offered by the Gaylord.  As a Gaylord star, I provided all the guests with the flawless services that they deserved and at the same time got to see…

By Camille Ferland, J-1 Au Pair from Canada A version of the story was originally published in Au Pair in America Camille is an au pair from Canada living with her host family in Illinois and is also a State Winner for the 2016 Au Pair Community Service Awards. She shared the following observations on her extensive volunteer work at many fundraisers and community events.  During this past year working as an au pair, I volunteered for many different causes and events. My first volunteer experience was with a community event, the Sheffield Music Festival and Garden Walk, where I worked as a beverage…

By Xiaowen Niu, J-1 Summer Work Travel participant from China The J-1 Summer Work and Travel Program has been the best life experience I‘ve ever had. During the summer of 2014, I worked at an ice cream and candy store in Baileys Harbor, Wisconsin in scenic Door County. It was the first job that I had ever held in my life. Everything seemed so challenging, especially communicating with customers in English. At the beginning, I had trouble understanding my supervisor’s instructions and customer orders. My boss noticed that I was struggling and gave me a lot of training to help.…

By Erik, J-1 Camp Counselor from Iceland A version of this story was originally published on Camp America. Hi everyone, my name is Erik and I'm from Iceland. I went to Camp Letts in Maryland during the summer of 2012, and I will never forget it. I have a lot of good memories from camp! Being a camp counselor is more than just clocking in and out. You actually become a very important part of the children's lives. Believe me when I say it, they will remember you for a very long time. The reason I know this is the…

By SunJeong Lee, Client Relations Officer, Cultural Vistas A version of this blog post was originally published on the Cultural Vistas Blog. [Note: This is part of a series featuring reflections from J-1 exchange visitors about how their perceptions of America changed after living, working, traveling and studying in the United States. This week, J-1s discuss how their cultural exchange experience helped them build lifelong friendships and networks.] Time and time again, when we evaluate our programs we learn about the many meaningful friendships made, as well as the close contact that continues with colleagues and locals alike. Nearly 80%…

By Mariliis Eensalu, J-1 Intern from Estonia Climate change affects everything, including the Ocean. The cause for this change is not fully understood; nevertheless, humankind can work towards reducing the ecological footprint. On September 15-16, I had the pleasure of attending “Our Ocean, One Future Leadership Summit” hosted by Secretary of State John Kerry in Washington, D.C. The conference was organized to engage the next generation of political leaders, entrepreneurs, and scientists to identify solutions and commit to actions to protect our ocean – so it can continue to sustain us all in the future. The reason I wanted to…

By J-1 Intern Anna Martynova from Russia Originally published on InterExchange Blog As a marketing intern, I am very curious about marketing, branding and advertising of industry leading companies. So, I was thrilled to receive an invitation to InterExchange’s cultural meetup at Barneys New York Madison Avenue location. Luxury retail is one of the most challenging and interesting industries for marketing, especially in New York City, and I was very excited to get a chance to learn more about it. Barneys is more than a luxury department store in NYC: it’s an iconic store that has become a part of…

By Linda Haglund, J-1 Intern from Finland Something has happened to me, and I have changed. I’m stronger, more confident and more hopeful about the future. I’m happier, more open and more in the present than I’ve been in the past. I have 60 new friends from 30 different countries. And I feel it in my bones: I can do anything! My week in Washington, D.C. has made me a new person, and I’m not exaggerating when I say that the leadership training I-LEAD 2016 was one of the best and finest experiences I’ve ever had. Sixty delegates from 30 countries…

Today, we continue to highlight some of our favorite J-1 Visa Exchange Visitor Program memories from 2015. We’re looking back and celebrating all that we’ve accomplished. See how community groups and host organizations embraced and expanded the reach of the program, sponsors created the best possible experience for participants, and participants enacted positive change in their local communities. Here are more highlights from 2015 – an amazing year: J-1 Participants Celebrated J-Day: International exchange participants came together with their American hosts to share cultural diversity and American customs, to give back to their communities, and to have some fun. J-1…

New Year’s is a time to reflect and reminisce about the past year and to look to the year ahead with new goals and resolutions. In the spirit of the season, let’s take a moment to reflect on some of the accomplishments of the Exchange Visitor Program over the past year. We’ve seen community groups embrace and expand the reach of the program. We’ve worked with over 1,420 sponsors (for-profit, non-profit, federal, state, and local government entities) to create the best possible experiences for participants. We’ve built new networks with leaders of other countries to strengthen important bilateral relationships and…