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

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

Thanksgiving

By Olivia L.

Thanksgiving has always been one of my favorite holidays, and it was a wonderful experience to be able to share the traditional American traditions as well as my own family...keep reading

Thanksgiving in Germany!

By River H.

Hallo zusammen! This week, we were able to share one of the oldest and most celebrated traditions of American culture with our German host families: Thanksgiving! There is a similar...keep reading

Say Cheese!

By Grace W.

Being lactose intolerant, I haven’t eaten a lot of good cheese in my life. Due to this, I was expecting to miss out on a lot of good food in...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