Reviews

My time with Maximo Nivel in Quepos, Costa Rica was absolutely amazing! First of all I met some amazing people who have become really good friends of mine! The classes were also good. I had two different teachers during my month here and they were both very nice, qualified, smart and talkative - the classes being solely in Spanish has helped me improve my level a lot! Campus is very nice with open classrooms and a pool! And then lastly the atmosphere and location where this program takes place is of course incredible. Quepos is such a nice little city - the people are very friendly and open to everyone. Manuel Antonio is amazing and I feel like I’ve been living a dream. Thank you!

My study abroad experiences in Stirling, Scotland through CIS Abroad was one of the most transformative and unforgettable experience of my life! I truly loved every single second of my time abroad, from the incredible people I met along the way, the memories I made, the places I traveled, the things I got to try, and the tremendous growth I experienced. Stirling is a smaller town situated between the bigger cities and the Scottish Highlands, which made it an incredible place to travel from to see other places in Scotland. During my time, I grew to love Scottish traditions, culture, values, and ways of life— I really enjoyed how they viewed work-life balance. I also thoroughly enjoyed how easy it was to use public transportation to get around to other places in Scotland and travel to other countries, it truly enriched my experience and has made me yearn for when my next trip will be already!! CIS played an immense part in making this experience one I will never forget. The amount of support and friendliness from the staff, the lifelong friendships I gained, and the cultural immersions put on through the program were absolutely amazing and made me feel like I was getting the most I could out of this experience.

I had an incredibly rewarding experience volunteering in childcare in Delhi, India. From the very beginning, the organisation was well-structured, supportive, and genuinely committed to making a positive impact on the local community. The placement allowed me to work closely with children in a safe and nurturing environment, where I was involved in daily activities such as assisting with learning, playtime, and providing general care. It was both challenging and fulfilling, and it helped me develop important skills such as patience, adaptability, communication, and cultural awareness. The house coordinators and caregivers were absolutely wonderful. They were kind, attentive, and always made me feel welcome and supported, creating a warm and comfortable home environment throughout my stay. The local team and coordinators were always available to offer guidance, which made the overall experience even more meaningful. Being immersed in Indian culture, particularly in a city as vibrant and diverse as Delhi, was unforgettable and broadened my perspective both personally and professionally. I would highly recommend this childcare volunteer programme to anyone looking to make a real difference while gaining valuable hands-on experience and cultural exposure.

The Buffelsdrift Volunteer program was an incredible experience, with wonderful people and so many new experiences. I learned a lot in my time there and had so much fun working with the team and helping with all the conservation work.

I could not believe when I had to leave Daugavpils that the time passed so quickly! The spring 2025 semester in Daugavpils, Latvia was without a doubt the most impactful semester of my college experience. In Daugavpils, I was fully immersed in the Russian language both at the university and by living with my amazing host family. All of my classes where very interesting and the professors where absolutely phenomenal people. That being said, a great chunk of my learning was done on the weekend excursions organized by the program to Riga, Vilnius, Kaunas, and Tallinn. The plethora of history in the Baltic States is incredible and to be able to live and interact with locals was a truly an eye-opening experience. The friends and connections I made in Daugavpils will last a lifetime and I cannot wait to visit Latvia again!

My first time doing a research project and my first time travelling abroad on my own. What a life changing experience. My research group at BAYESCOMP has been incredibly welcoming, and I deeply appreciate their patience and guidance, especially as someone new to research. The environment is a closed fenced campus that has everything from supermarkets to clinics, which provide safety and accommodation (within campus) with kitchen make my first time living abroad easy to settle in. And most importantly the opportunity to meet people from all over the world has been truly amazing.

Unfortunately, our week included a public holiday so we only had four days to study in, not five. However, it was a good thign to have done as it helped us greatly when there were no English speakers in the hotels and tourist information centres.

Hello! Having worked in finance and real estate for the last 20 years completing the TEFL course was an exciting breath of fresh air. Overall I felt that the course was a solid introduction to the world of teaching. I personally learned a lot from watching videos other instructors teaching in a live environment. I would suggest adding as many ‘real world’ type videos to the curriculum as possible. These videos really help newbies like me solidify concepts like ‘elicit the target language.’ I kind of understood what that meant when I was initially going through the course, but when I watched the longer full length video of the teacher giving a PPP lesson to a class the concept really hit home for me. I also am 41 years old and if/when I proceed with this career I’ll be focusing on adults/business language. There was some business language in the level 3 course. I did take the level 5 business add on course which I felt was just ok. It wasn’t nearly as thorough as the level 3 and without and assignments to submit it almost felt like it was ‘too easy’ to just complete the quizzes without having to submit a final assignment. S

Alles lief wie geschmiert und die Leute von der Meiji Akademie waren top! Der Unterricht war teils intensiv aber man hat sehr viel in der kurzen Zeit gelernt. Gerade die Lehrer haben viel Wert darauf gelegt, dass alle Schüler ein gutes Verständnis vom Lernstoff hatten. Die extrakurrikularen Aktivitäten waren vielfach und gut geplant. Die Citytour am Anfang meines Studiums in der ersten Woche war als Orientierungsphase und Kennenlernen der anderen Klassenkameraden gedacht was ich sehr angenehm fand. Ich habe das private Apartment mit Meiji gebucht und Sie arbeiten mit einer sehr guten Immobilienfirma zusammen die mich rundum beraten hat beim Einchecken und allen anderen Sachen bezüglich meiner Wohnung. Alles in allem war es sehr gut und Hokkaido...ich kanns net anders sagen alls obergeil! Immer gerne wieder!:)

I’ve had an amazing experience with Maximo Nivel. They’ve been a real God send, the reasurance they give you from the start is wonderful & calms any nerves or doubts. The experience of volunteering itself has been an utter delight & a real privilege. In the time you volunteer you are offered many day outings to many wonderful places to break up your volunteering time & also for Marlon, Rina, Mckensie & all the incredibly dedicated staff to show how much they appreciate you volunteering your time. The whole experience has been one I will remember very fondly for the rest of my life. I hope to be back volunteering again with Maximo Nivel again very soon. Thankyou so much to such an amazing organisation!