Advisor Resource Center
Welcome! Here you’ll find handy information and links that make working with us easy.
FOUNDATIONAL RESOURCES
At CIS Abroad, we provide U.S. university students with the best value in education abroad, considering affordability, academic relevance, cultural immersion, and support. We are boldly committed to providing the highest quality service to students, their families, and their home institutions as a trusted partner in education abroad.
We meet you, our U.S. university partners, with integrity and a commitment to our mission, vision, and values. Get to know us by reading more about our approach and focus on affordable, engaged learning and our core strengths.
Do you need a list of application deadlines, the start and end date of one or more programs, a breakdown of program fees, or lists of estimated additional expenses? Look no further!
The programming created and implemented by CIS Abroad reflects high quality academics and co-curricula, with a focus on innovation, distinction, and creativity. Our approach to academics is guided by five principles: Accessibility, Academic Quality, High Impact Practices, our Local Life Co-Curriculum, and Innovation.
Read more here, watch the above video, and also see the ‘Academics at CIS Abroad’ section below for more detailed information about accreditation, schools of record, programs by major, micro-credentials, virtual campus internationalization solutions, and more.
CIS Abroad offers a full suite of experiential learning abroad programs, including Intern Abroad programs with placements available in 21 career fields. Under the general category of “internships,” CIS Abroad offers traditional, work-based internships as well as community-based service opportunities and hands-on research placements that will help students apply their knowledge and gain skills that will set them apart. Academic credit is available through our School of Record, Jacksonville University.
Check out our Internship Advising Guide!
Did you know that 70% of all CIS Abroad students receive scholarships, grants, or discounts to study or intern abroad? Our scholarships and grants are available spring, summer, and fall, and have been developed to align with our core values and designed to help break down barriers to education abroad for underrepresented student populations. That’s why we offer First-Generation Student Scholarships, TRIO Student Grants, and Student of Color Scholarships, in addition to many others. Please see the above link for more information.
In addition to these fixed funding opportunities, we also offer promotions that vary throughout the year and from term to term. Sometimes they are early-bird promos, sometimes they’re location-based, and then there are student favorites like BRINGAFRIEND and GOAGAIN. Please encourage your students to check this webpage before applying.
While we’re talking financials you can find our Refund Policies here.
Our Custom Programs team is ready to design the program that best meets your institutional goals. Whether it’s a faculty-led program, an internship experience, a semester-long cohort program, or a hybrid model, our team can design the program that best suits your needs. Within every model, CIS Abroad guarantees consistency in communication, logistical expertise, 24/7 onsite support, diligent planning and professional execution. Explore what we offer, learn about or process, and view examples here.
To request a proposal from our team for a custom program, access our questionnaire here.
Risk Management & Emergency Response
The safety of our participants (your students) is our No. 1 priority at CIS Abroad. Many of us are parents of study abroad alumni, and we know our greatest responsibility is to develop and operate programs with the health and safety of our participants at the forefront of our decisions. We also know, from our own international experiences, that studying or working abroad involves a certain amount of risk. Our job is to mitigate these risks while providing the wonderful opportunities that only life abroad can offer.
In addition to staffing our front-line emergency phone 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, CIS Abroad’s Emergency Response Team supports the larger work of the Risk Management Team (RMT). The RMT meets monthly to review incidents and examine our responses, ensuring that we adhere to guidelines from the Forum and NAFSA for best practices in risk management and emergency response. Read more about our approach to risk management here.
Emergency Communication
CIS Abroad’s Emergency Communication Plan has been developed to protect the safety and well-being of all program participants, protect CIS Abroad and its partners, and to inform all relevant stakeholders – home universities and families of participants. Read more here about our process for crisis and emergency communications.
Health & Accident Insurance
Our insurance coverage was designed in conjunction with Cultural Insurance Services International (CISI), a brokerage firm that is a leader in the education abroad industry. All participants in onsite programs are automatically enrolled in the CISI Accident and Health Insurance plan as part of their program and are covered for the duration of the program.
Resources available upon request (please email Kent Moore at kmoore@cisabroad.com):
- Current Accident and Health Insurance Policy Brochure
- Reportable Incident Guidelines for CIS Abroad Working with U.S. institutions
- COVID-19 Related Program-specific Risk Mitigation Information (available in our Advisor Portal; contact Kent Moore [kmoore@cisabroad.com] if you need access)
At CIS Abroad we are committed to helping your students “live the local life.” Built into each of our programs is our Local Life culture series. Facilitated by the CIS Abroad Site Director, the activities combine high energy group challenges with more focused cultural encounters and reflections in order to encourage students to:
- create dialogue about issues in the local environment
- share cultural experiences and observations with fellow students
- engage with the local community
- compare culture(s) at home and abroad
For more on the purpose and objectives of our Cultural Curriculum, as well as activity examples and what The Local Life looks like on different program models, visit this webpage.
The CIS Abroad Program Finder is helpful for viewing all of the programs that might work for a specific major, but we know sometimes you need the top choices from our portfolio, and so we have written a series of blogs recommending semester, summer, and intern programs by academic field. Below are some of the most popular, and you can find all of them here.
Learn about our program offerings using these quick 3 minute program overviews. Designed for study abroad advisors, these brief videos touch on the most salient point of each program and are an excellent tool for new staff. View the full playlist here or begin watching below.
Our four Pillars of Institutional Support are designed to help you:
- Motivate and keep your people
- Develop or refine your strategy
- Create capacity to do more with less funding
- Offer adaptable and accessible programs
Visit our Consulting Services page to learn more.
ACADEMIC RESOURCES
CIS Abroad programs are fully accredited and at some of the best institutions in the world. CIS Abroad programs either carry a transcript from the host institution, accredited in that country, or carry a fully accredited U.S. institution transcript. Determining how credit will transfer is a crucial part of the study abroad application process for students, parents, and advisors. We have compiled some guidelines to help facilitate credit transfer process from our host institutions abroad.
We also offer options for academic credit for our Intern Abroad and Virtual Global Internship programs through our School of Record, Plymouth State University. Please see Intern Abroad credit information here.
CIS Abroad micro-credentials are competency-based, digital forms of certification indicating that students have demonstrated competency in a specific skill or set of skills through participation in our programs. Each credential documents specific key competencies that the National Association of Colleges and Employers (NACE) has designated as being essential for new college graduates. They allow educators and employers to more easily recognize the skills a student has developed through experiences such as virtual or on-site internships.
Discover the credentials that are available to your students here and learn more about the requirements and competencies represented by each.
At CIS Abroad, we’ve established a set of learning outcomes that guide the curricular and co-curricular elements of all our programming – and that focus on students’ cultural, professional, academic, and personal development.
Learn more about the specific learning outcomes in each of our various program models here.
PROGRAM KNOWLEDGE
While the best place to look for details on our programs, including host university, course availability, housing, excursions, dates and prices, etc. will always be the program page, there are a number of other great sources of program knowledge as well:
- The CIS Abroad YouTube Channel is a great place to start. Here are some recommended playlists:
- Check out our lively Instagram account not just for pretty photos but also for informative student takeover content
- Visit our blog, where you can select tags that interest you.
- See what students have to say about our programs: Go Overseas, GoAbroad, Study Abroad 101
Our work-based Intern Abroad programs, available in over a dozen countries around the world, are focused on career readiness. We also offer community-based service opportunities and hands-on research placements designed to help students apply their knowledge and gain skills that set them apart.
Academic credit is available for an additional fee. All of the details can be found here.
Looking to deep dive into a specific program or topic? We compile recorded advising sessions and informational presentations into a YouTube playlist. See the full playlist here or begin watching below (and check back for more content!).