Akhtar awarded scholarship with Congress-Bundestag Youth Exchange

CIEE, the world leader in international education and exchange, is pleased to announce that Sophia Akhtar, a rising junior at Vestavia Hills High School, is one of 350 Americans from across the United States to be awarded the prestigious Congress-Bundestag Youth Exchange (CBYX) Scholarship for the 2018-19 academic year. 

CBYX is a bilateral exchange program co-sponsored by the U.S. Department of State and German Bundestag (Parliament). 

As a CBYX scholar, Akhtar will spend the school year in Germany living with a host family, attending a German high school and participating in a four-week language and cultural immersion camp to gain a better understanding of German culture, language and everyday life. 

Additionally, there will be the chance to visit the German Bundestag, meet with American and German government officials, participate in intercultural seminars and explore the country through numerous excursions to nearby cities, historical sites and more.

Each year, as a U.S. Department of State partner, CIEE awards the fully-funded CBYX scholarship to 50 high-achieving high school students from the Southeastern U.S. and Puerto Rico, allowing youth from a diverse array of communities to participate in a full cultural immersion experience. 

The CBYX program, which is jointly funded by the U.S. Congress and the German Bundestag, was created to foster mutual understanding and strengthen ties between Germany and the U.S. through citizen diplomacy. 

The program is a true public/private partnership, leveraging the contributions of host families, educational institutions and local communities.

Not only do American students go abroad to Germany, but German students also come to live and study in the U.S. in order to promote the same level of understanding on both sides of the Atlantic. Since its inception in 1983, the program has allowed more than 26,000 students to expand their intercultural understanding, strengthen their leadership skills, and become global citizens. Many participants go on to study at top colleges and universities, and all participants become part of a global network of U.S. Department of State program alumni.

Those who would like more information about CBYX should visit exchanges.state.gov/cbyx or contact CIEE at (800) 448-9944. German language skills are not required to apply for the scholarship. 

To learn more about hosting an international high school exchange student coming to the Vestavia Hills area for the 2018-2019 academic year, please visit ciee.org/host.

– Submitted by CIEE.