How to Apply

Dear Applicant,

Thank you for your interest in pursuing J-1 visa sponsorship through the Council on International Educational Exchange (CIEE).

CIEE is authorized by the US Department of State to sponsor eligible candidates on structured and guided work-based learning programs as part of the J-1 Exchange Visitor Program. Recently, the US Department of State issued new regulations for this program category, creating two separate sub-categories within training category of the Exchange Visitor Program. These changes are intended to strengthen the program by providing greater clarity with regard to the roles and responsibilities of all involved parties. As an applicant, there are a number of new regulations that are especially pertinent to you. Below you will find a brief summary of these changes, and their effect on the J-1 visa application process.

Intern vs. Trainee

The new regulations divide the Trainee category into two distinct categories:

Intern:  Interns must either be enrolled in and pursuing studies in a degree- or certificate-granting post-secondary institution outside the US or have graduated from such an institution no more than 12 months prior to their prospective program start date. 

Trainee:  Trainees must either be graduates for foreign post-secondary institutions with one year of work experience outside the US related to the field of their training, or have five years of relevant work experience outside the US.

Site Visits

All prospective Host Companies will have to undergo a site visit by a CIEE staff member unless they fulfill one of three requirements:

• The Host Company has more than 25 full-time employees;
• The Host Company generates more than $3,000,000 in annual revenue;
• The Host Company has previously hosted a J-1 intern or trainee through CIEE.  

To help off-set the increase in cost associated with these site visits, applicants applying for positions at Host Companies that do not meet the above conditions will be responsible for an additional fee of $195. Furthermore, applicants can expect that the site visit will increase the standard application processing time by 4 weeks.

All site visits will occur before the application can be approved.

Applicant Interviews

Pending future changes to the regulations, all program participants will have to undergo either an in-person or webcam interview with a CIEE representative before their application is considered complete. Further instructions on how to complete this part of the application will be provided during the application process.

Form DS-7002

For those applicants that have applied in the past, you will notice that the CIEE Host Company Training Proposal has changed. The US Department of State has issued a new DS-7002 form that will serve as the training proposal for both the Internship USA and Professional Career Training USA categories. This form has been pared down and simplified to make applying easier. Please contact your local CIEE representative to get a detailed explanation as to the differences between the old Host Company Training Proposal and form DS-7002.

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If you have immediate questions about these new requirements, please contact us at 1-888-369-1620; otherwise, please click on one of the links below to continue.

• Locate and contact the CIEE representative in your home country or country of residence
• Complete and submit the Trainee Program Application
• Conduct an embassy interview