Congress-Bundestag Youth Exchange - High School Program

High School Program

The largest portion of the scholarship program has been the high school scholarships. Originally the program was only open to high school sophomores and juniors, who would spend their scholarship year in Germany, during what would be their junior or senior year in high school. Currently the program makes 250-280 (the number fluctuates, depending on funding) national scholarships available to any high school student between the ages of 15-18, with a 3.0 or higher GPA on a 4.0 scale, and who is a U.S. citizen, national, or permanent resident. Applications are due in December of the year prior to the scholarship year. After receipt of a full application, select students will be offered an interview, conducted by selection committees in various locations in the United States. These selection committees then put forward the names of the best candidates to receive the scholarships, which are usually approved by the administering organizations.

The following organizations currently administer the high school program by regions:

• AFS Intercultural Programs (AFS) - Northeastern United States
• American Scandinavian Student Exchange (ASSE) - Northwestern United States, Alaska and Hawaii
• Academic Year in the U.S.A. (AYUSA) - Southwestern United States
• Council on International Educational Exchange (CIEE) - Southeastern United States
• Youth For Understanding (YFU USA)- Midwestern United States

Each program in the USA has a sister program in Germany, the main counterpart being Partnership International e.V. Through CBYX's first decade and a half, Youth For Understanding (YFU) had been the primary administrative organization for the program. YFU’s organization administration of the CBYX program ended after the dissolution of the United States Information Agency (USIA) in late 1999. The USIA had overseen the program on behalf of the U.S. Federal Government. In 2008 YFU again became a primary administrative organization for the grant.

American students who win the scholarship usually spend 11 months in Germany. The first few weeks of the program are taken up by an Orientation and Language Seminar. The remaining 10 months of the program usually see the students spread out over Germany, staying with their initial host family unless problems arise. They attend a Gymnasium, the German equivalent of high school, for an academic year. Other seminars take place over the course of the year, including a trip to the capital in Berlin, where the scholars speak, in German, to the German Bundestag.