High School Student Exchange Programs in Ireland

Studying abroad in Ireland with Greenheart Travel’s High School Study Abroad Program was a valuable experience, though not without its challenges. I spent a semester in Ballybay, Co. Monaghan, attending Transition Year at Monaghan Collegiate School. While there were many positive moments, the program’s partner organization often lacked adequate support, which created unnecessary difficulties. The program began with a stressful arrival. As a first-time solo traveler, I was told staff would meet me after customs, but no one was there. I spent over an hour searching for assistance, which could have been avoided with better communication. Fortunately, the orientation camp at Maynooth University helped me settle in, offering a fun and welcoming introduction to Ireland. My host placement was one of the best parts of the experience. I lived with a single woman who was incredibly kind and supportive, providing a safe and comfortable home. Not all students were as fortunate, which made me even more appreciative of my situation. School was a mixed experience. Transition Year focused more on activities like work placements and trips than academics, which had its enjoyable moments. However, the school environment was not always welcoming, as I witnessed some of my peers facing discriminatory behavior that wasn’t addressed. Living in Monaghan had its challenges. The small-town setting felt limiting, and with so many exchange students placed in the area, it sometimes seemed the program prioritized filling spots over thoughtful placements. Traveling to iconic Irish landmarks was expensive and difficult, which was disappointing. Another issue was the lack of support from Greenheart’s partner agency, Educatius. Beyond the airport mishap, the local coordinator wasn’t approachable, and concerns often went unresolved. However, the trips organized by Educatius were highlights, especially visits to Giant’s Causeway and Belfast, which provided opportunities to explore Ireland’s beauty and culture. Overall, my semester in Ireland was a mix of highs and lows. The friendships I made and the personal growth I experienced were invaluable, but the program’s organizational shortcomings were frustrating. For future travelers, I recommend researching placements and support thoroughly. Despite the challenges, the experience was worthwhile, and I’ll carry the memories and lessons with me for years to come.

Sure, the exchange year changed my life, but without such an amazing company, I don't think my experience would of been as good as it was. When my parents and I were looking at different companies before we left, Greenheart caught our attention. My heart was set on Ireland and Greenheart had the most information of any company we had seen. Even after I had applied to other companies, I knew for sure I wanted to go with Greenheart. My mom and I felt really comfortable being able to ask questions to a real person on the phone, and accessing any information we could need on their beautiful website. When I came back my friends asked me about Greenheart and if they were to exchange, should they choose Greenheart. I was quick to say yes and explain all the reasons why. Having Greenheart on my side during this experience is the reason it changed my life. Thank you Greenheart!

Greenheart Travel gives a bunch of pre departure materials that help you prepare yourself for what's coming next and if you have any questions they respond to emails fairly quickly. It would have been better to know my town and host family slightly earlier so I could research the town and talk to my host family. Also I suggest making how to call that country from the US part of the information provided. My advice to future students is to stay calm. It'll all be okay. Also say "yes" to anything your host family asks if you wanna do. You'll get more out of your experience!

We chose Greenheart Travel because we were looking for an established, reputable agency that participated in a regulatory/screening organization, and found them listed on the CSIET website. Greenheart Travel was also one of the agencies we found that would place students in Ireland, and take a high school student who would turn 18 during his year abroad. Hope Pavich, our Greenheart Travel program manager, was superb! She clearly communicated all the steps of the application and preparation processes, hosted a fantastic “getting ready to go” Skype call with several young people, kept us informed of our son Cooper’s progress, and was available for any questions we had. Hope is the best! Bernadette and Christopher, Cooper’s host parents, were beyond lovely to him and to us when we visited Ireland at the end of his program. They clearly cared for and about Cooper while still understanding the needs of older teenagers and the unique challenges of parenting this age of an individual. We couldn’t be happier with how they supported Cooper in his time abroad. Nula, the area representative, did a wonderful job of helping Cooper when he required assistance as well.

As my daughter, Julianna, boarded the plane in August for Ireland, I was excited, nervous, and a little sad. We had been planning this departure for almost a year and Greenheart Travel was extremely helpful through the entire experience. Hope Pavich, High School Program Director, worked closely with us, explaining everything as we got closer and closer to Julianna's departure date. Hope set Julianna up with the most fantastic host family, it was a perfect match. Hope worked with Greenheart's Travel Specialist, Amanda Stevens, to arrange all the plane trips to and from our home city of Detroit. Julianna trip was not without problems. Her flight out of Detroit was very late. Her luggage was lost for days. She was sick and had to visit the pharmacist three times. But worst of all her flights back home were cancelled over and over due to an untimely monstrous snow storm. Thankfully Amanda made it her personal mission to get my girl home. While many people were stuck sleeping in airports, Julianna was belted in her seat (3 days late) flying the unfriendly skies home. I know many parents worry about sending a high school student across the sea for five months, living in a foreign country with strangers. But I am here to attest to the fact that Julianna's semester abroad was the experience of a lifetime. She came back more mature, more confident, more independent, and fully prepared to go off to college in the fall.

The summer of my 18th year was sounding grim, but then I thought why not follow my dreams of traveling and travel before I am in college. So I decided to follow my ancestors to their homeland of Ireland. Amy Neal, my terrific travel coordinator helped through the whole process. Also CCI was a great company to go through, because I could choose where and when I wanted to go. After everything was settled with my host family Miceal and Mary McCormack, I found out there would also be a German girl my age. Later I found out she was Theresa Koch a seventeen year old. I stayed two weeks in Fethard, Co. Tipperary, Ireland. My flight into Dublin was a great view and so my journey began. As soon as I stepped off the plane I felt the friendly atmosphere. I took the two hour bus ride to Cashel to meet Mary. She knew exactly which one I was. The lingo for everything was different, but I caught on in a couple of days of listening. The food was great and always filling. Mary was a great cook. Tea, at least hot was a new experience for me, about three times a day. Bingo is also fun; Mary, Theresa and I went four times a week and just had a fun time with all the ladies. Pubs are another huge part of the culture, and it isn't just for drinking. We went just to enjoy each others company eating Tayto Irish Crisps. Yum! Long walks around the town and countryside completed off our days. It was a great experience and I would do it again in a heart beat.