Congress-Bundestag Youth Exchange (CBYX) Program

Jointly funded by the German Bundestag and the U.S. Congress, the Congress-Bundestag Youth Exchange Program (CBYX) is a full scholarship exchange program that offers young Americans the opportunity to live with a German host family and attend high school in Germany for a year. This program is sponsored by the U.S. Department of State and administered by CIEE.

CBYX aims to foster cultural understanding and diplomacy while also promoting the German and English languages. Participants are also encouraged to learn about the political systems of their host country.

Become fluent in German, learn about another culture, and expand your horizons.

Eligibility

To apply for the CBYX program, you must:

Be a U.S. citizen.
Have a GPA of 3.0 or higher (on a 4.0 scale).
Be born between February 1, 2002 - August 1, 2005

Please note that German language proficiency is not a requirement.

Important Dates

Deadline to Apply
December 11, 2018

Semi-finalists Notified By
December 11, 2018

Semi-finalist Interviews*
February 16-17 (Herndon, VA)
March 9-10 (Atlanta, GA)
March 16-17 (Dallas, TX)

Finalists Announced By
March 30, 2019

Pre-departure Orientation
August 8-10, 2019 (Washington, D.C.)

Language and Cultural Immersion Camp
August 11 – September 11, 2019 (Germany)

Program End Date
June 2020

* Semi-finalists must be present for an interview at one of the three listed locations. Transportation assistance is available for students with financial need on a case-by-case basis.

Resources

Frequently Asked Questions

In addition to the frequently asked questions and participants stories below, please read the CBYX Quick Fact Sheet. Here you fill find information on scholarship inclusions, program duration, application instructions, and more.

Apply

The application for CBYX program year 2019-2020 is now closed.

To be notified when the application opens for 2020-2021, please fill out this form.

Read our Participant Blogs

My First Week in Language Camp: Meine erste Woche im Sprachcamp

By Olivia L.

DAY 1- Sprachcamp (language camp) Jetlag is a real thing. Sleep depravation, also, very real. I stayed up for the entire plane ride, nervous excitement exuding from every part of...keep reading

Saying Goodbye: Departure to D.C.

By Olivia L.

I have been preparing for this exchange year since I received my confirmation letter, and I knew one of the hardest things I would have to do was to say...keep reading

From Small Town Nebraska to Historical Germany

By Olivia L.

Nebraska… prairie, boring, prairie, at least that’s what everyone thinks. What they don’t know is that we have over two dozen lakes (picture 1), a waterfall (picture 2), a national...keep reading

Returning Home to Germany

By Mohamed-Amin Z.

Hi folks! I have arrived in Germany safe, and already started to figure life out over here. So many things are different here, and I still have to get used...keep reading

T-MINUS 23 DAYS!

By Grace W.

Hello! My name is Grace, and I am so excited to share my exchange experience with you! I’ve wanted to study abroad for as long as I can remember, so...keep reading

Introducing Myself!

By River H.

Hello everyone! Since this is my first ever blog for CBYX, I thought I would start out by introducing myself. My name is River Harper, I'm 18 years old, and...keep reading

CBYX

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Congress-Bundestag Youth Exchange Program (CBYX)

This program is sponsored by the U.S. Department of State and administered by CIEE.

Please contact us with any questions about this program:

Congress-Bundestag Youth Exchange Program
CIEE: Council on International Educational Exchange
300 Fore Street
Portland, ME 04101 USA
1 (800) 448-9944
cb@ciee.org