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 10, 2019 (11:59 p.m. Pacific Time).

Semi-finalists Notified By
January 30, 2020

Semi-finalist Interviews*
February 15 - 16, 2020 (Herndon, VA)
February 29 - March 1, 2020 (Denver, CO)
March 14 - 15, 2020 (Atlanta, GA)
March 21 - 22, 2020 (Dallas, TX)

Finalists Announced By
April 1, 2020

Pre-departure Orientation
August 6 - 8, 2020

Language and Cultural Immersion Camp
August 9 - September 5, 2020

Program End Date
June 2021

* Semi-finalists must be present for an interview at one of the four 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 2020-2021 program is now closed.

To be notified in Fall 2020 when the applications for 2021-2022 become available, please enter your contact information.

Read our Participant Blogs

Berlin

By Grace W.

Last week, my social studies class took a trip to Berlin. It was my first time being in Germany’s capital, and I definitely enjoyed seeing the typical Berlin attractions. I...keep reading

Petty Differences

By Grace W.

Even though I’ve been living in Germany for a while now, there are still some things that I continue to find a little odd. These cultural differences are too small...keep reading

Mid-Year Orientation

By Grace W.

This past week, I met up with the other CBYXers in Cologne for our Mid-Year Orientation. It was great to see everyone again; I couldn’t believe that it had been...keep reading

Christmas

By Grace W.

Fröhliche Weihnachten! Christmas has always been one of my favorite holidays, so I was super excited to celebrate it in Germany. My host family celebrated Christmas primarily on Christmas Eve,...keep reading

Before Christmas: Vor Weihnachtszeit

By Olivia L.

It's hard to believe it's only two days left until Christmas! I have been able to see and do so much this Christmas season and I cannot wait to see...keep reading

Christmas Markets

By Grace W.

One of the things I was most looking forward to about Germany was the Christmas markets, or Weihnachtsmärkte. Needless to say, I was beyond excited to go when they opened...keep reading

View All

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