Study Abroad Programs in Chiang Mai, Thailand

My semester in Chiang Mai Thailand was one of the best chapters of my life. I met so many incredible friends in the program, many of whom I still keep in touch with now. The city was perfect for living in, exploring, and travelling around. The staff from the Thai buddies to Jum, the program coordinator made it their job to make us feel at home and comfortable while also encouraging us to branch out and try new things. Between the food, friendly people, and amazing memories, this is a program I'd recommend to everyone wanting to go abroad!

USAC in Thailand gave me numerous opportunities to go out of my comfort zone, travel, learn, and make memories. I made life-long friends in the program, many of whom I continue to stay in contact with. Now that I am back in the United States, I miss the friendliness of the Thai people and the DELICIOUS cheap food. I, along with many other program participants are already trying to plan a trip back to South East Asia.

Had so much fun and all the supervisors were amazing, especially Am and Braxtin. Overall the program was very organized and had a good mix of planned activities versus free time. Couldn’t recommend more.

I have nothing but great things to say about my time in Chiang Mai! This opportunity was a nice mixture of clinical observation, hands-on learning, and cultural immersion. I will never forget the partnering foundations and families we had the privilege of working with, and I am deeply grateful for the trust and openness they shared with us. This program pushed me outside of my comfort zone and allowed me to grow not only as a future clinician but also as a person. Every day was intentionally designed and filled with meaningful experiences. While the schedule was often physically and mentally demanding, I truly believe this intensity allowed us to make the most of every opportunity and fully engage in all that the program had to offer. I am also extremely thankful for our local facilitator P Pann, whose organization, knowledge, and passion made this trip run so smoothly! Overall, this trip was unforgettable and something I will keep with me throughout my future career.

This Therapy Abroad Trip brought so many positive things to my life. I got the chance to practice my clinical and interdisciplinary collaboration skills, got to immerse myself in a completely different culture than my own, and I made some amazing friendships that I will cherish long after my time abroad. Everything down to the food and transportation was arranged and thoroughly organized (thanks to our local program facilitator P Pann!), which made it easier for us students to enjoy every aspect of the cultural and clinical experiences.

I wasn’t sure what to expect on this trip but my experience was something that will stick with me for a long time. I had an amazing time and met amazing people and gained experiences that will help me throughout my entire life. Amara was an incredible leader for our pt/ot group. She always made everything a fun time and picked out the best places to eat. I would absolutely recommend to anyone that they should go on a trip through therapy abroad. The staff and facilitators are all incredible and it is easy to tell that they enjoy their job.

My time studying abroad in Thailand was truly unforgettable and deeply meaningful. From the moment I arrived, I was welcomed into a culture filled with warmth, compassion, and connection. Through this experience, I was able to observe Occupational Therapy in real-life settings, work with children, and witness the impact of care across different cultural perspectives. Every day challenged me to grow, not only as a student, but as a person. Living abroad pushed me outside my comfort zone, helped me gain confidence and independence, and reminded me why I chose this path in the first place. The friendships I formed, the lessons I learned, and the moments I shared will stay with me forever. Thailand didn’t just teach me about OT, it helped shape who I am becoming.

This was such a fun and educational experience! I grew so much personally and professionally over these past two weeks! Everything I saw was eye-opening and I look forward to taking what I have learned with me about the culture and clinical practices in Thailand to the U.S.! Thank you for this once in a lifetime opportunity!!

I absolutely loved my time studying abroad with USAC in Chiang Mai, Thailand! The city is wonderful (as somebody who is not a city person), very walk-able, and near to a lot of other great places to visit. The CMU USAC staff are phenomenal and planned a ton of great events to help us get to know the area and were great resources for everything. The Thai buddies program that USAC sets up is a really great way to meet Thai students and get to know the area better. The courses were not very difficult (compared to my usual STEM courses) but they were very engaging. Chiang Mai is very affordable and I always felt safe. The food is phenomenal, I miss it every day! I got my degree in geology and didn't take any major related courses while abroad, but I still had a lot of opportunities to engage with my field outside of classes. I truly cannot recommend this program enough! (I also have pics and a website if you want those! I couldn't get the form on the website to go through but I uploaded an image there)

Deciding to study abroad in Chiang Mai through USAC was one of the best decisions I have ever made. The staff was ridiculously helpful and the city itself was amazing. Wonderful field trips and all of the students became very close. Highly recommend a specialized program as the community you gain from being in the same cohort as other students is hard to beat. I would highly recommend this program to anyone, but especially those who love nature and learning about Buddhism and psychology. The professors are amazing as well.

Studying abroad in Chiang Mai was the best decision I have made during my academic career so far. This program has a stellar staff that genuinely care about you and want you to succeed. During my Spring semester, I was able to take several interesting courses including Buddhist Psychology and Buddhism in Thailand, which had accompanying field trips and applied practice. The community around us was welcoming as we were introduced to our "Thai Buddies" who helped us get acclimated to the new environment around us. I spent my days exploring Chiang Mai and trying a wide variety of new foods. The Songkran water festival in April was life-changing and an incredible cultural experience. I would recommend this program to anyone who isn't afraid to explore and embrace a new culture. The dorm situation was superb, with a spacious single room and bathroom all to myself on a floor with the other students in the program. We had a community built on our shared classes, went out for dinner together each night, and went on arranged field trips with our program advisors. I can't emphasize enough how amazing the field trips were, and I recommend signing up for all of them (most are completely free). We had the chance to make traditional crafts, bathe elephants, tour gardens and farms, and bicycle through the countryside. Additionally we explored waterfalls and national parks with our new friends from Chiang Mai University through the Thai Buddies program. During this study abroad, we had several periods of holidays from class and many people were able to explore more of Thailand and visit places like Bangkok and Krabi. This is one of the least expensive programs, but it has some of the greatest staff and field trips of any program and I would highly recommend it.

I really enjoyed my study abroad experience in Thailand as I was immersed in so many different cultures within the span of 12 days. These cultures vary from traditional Thai, special needs, Deafness and tribal traditions. I had an amazing time interacting with the people of this country and had nothing but friendly & positive encounters! Interacting with the children at each school and foundation was amazing! Although the different languages spoken was a contributing factor to my interactions. It was not a barrier. The beautiful thing about this experience was finding different ways to connect with people from a different culture! As a future American Sign Language (ASL) interpreter, I was ecstatic to visit the Anusarnsuntorn School of the Deaf & Autism School. Seeing a different dialect of signed language was eye opening and heart warming. The signs for “my name is” is the same in ASL and Thai Sign Language (TSL). It was amazing to see the children were so excited to communicate with me in their language. We were even able to introduce ourselves to each other and it was so fulfilling. I left feeling inspired and wanting to learn TSL being able to communicate with the deaf population of Thai people. But, none of this could have been possible without our AMAZING tour guide Amara. Amara was eager and enthusiastic from the moment we met her to the moment we left. She is very knowledgeable about her country and was able to answer our questions and tailor our trip in order to make this an experience of a life time for all Therapy Abroad students. She did great translating for us everytime we needed to. Overall, I had an amazing experience and my perspective, heart, and mind had been broadened through a cultural lens!

I had a truly unforgettable experience. There were certain times where we felt lost or confused and could have had better instruction. Additionally, I could have used some more time in the tykes camp itself. I loved working with the kiddos, and I would’ve LOVED to get to know them better! However, the cultural experience, professional experience, and connections I made with others were unmatched (whether it was with locals, our group, other travelers, or CMU students). We jam PACKED as much as we possibly could into a two week trip to Thailand, and I wouldn’t have it any other way! This was in (HUGE) part to our guide and mentor Amara. She was the glue that held all of us together and would drop everything in an instant for any of us. You could instantly feel the love she gave to all of us, and I am going to miss her dearly. Additionally, there was much much MUCH to learn from our supervisor Cheri, and I am very appreciative to learn more about AAC from her and about her experience. I look forward to learning more about the world of speech and furthering my career!

It’s not often that you get to travel abroad, and it’s a very rare case that you get to travel abroad for an experience in your field. Not only was it amazing to experience another culture and country, but to teach using AAC to underrepresented populations and provide communication for those who are unable to use verbal cues. The people I’ve met were amazing and this is an experience I’ll never forget. I do think that the curriculum could’ve been more specific and provided us with more detail ahead of time. I felt uncertain at times what the intent/purpose of the program was. However, our Thai guide (Amara) was amazing and did whatever she could to make our stay comfortable and make this experience memorable. Even when our supervisor wasn’t as helpful.

I had fun while learning about my profession in a different country. It was a unique experience that allowed me to immerse myself in Thai culture, observe diverse clinical practices, and gain a deeper appreciation for the global impact of my field during my two-week study abroad in Thailand.

I thoroughly enjoyed my Thailand experience! The food, people, culture, schools, learning experience, and teachers all exceeded my expectations. I would recommend therapy abroad to anyone looking to study abroad! I was a little hesitant coming as an older student but am very fulfilled and glad I came.

I had a good time, I think it’s very packed schedule, I wish we had chosen of we wanted to go to dinner when we were doing other activities so we didn’t have to leave the activity we were doing but over all am and beer were amazing. And we did lots of family meals which was fun but I wasn’t prepared for it and I’m a bit picky. Overall would do again.

My experience with therapy abroad was relatively good. I loved Amara and Beer who were our Thai coordinators! I wish we had more time hands on with the kids instead of tours of facilities. I also wish we had more guidance or structure to what we had to do for camp. I also think that a lot of your program depends on your supervisor and the group of people you are with!

I have a lot of problems with dirt, mud, the ground, grass, heat, mosquitoes, and just nature in general. It’s an absolute nightmare, but overall, I had fun, and I would do it again. The food was good, and I liked most of the activities. I’m going to miss lychee juice.

I thoroughly enjoyed my time in Thailand! The people, culture, food, experiences all exceeded my expectations. I feel grateful for this opportunity and would recommend to anyone looking to study therapy abroad. I was nervous to come, as I am a lot older than the other students, but feel like the impact it made in my life, was worth coming as an older student.