Educational Exchange

Short-Term Professional Exchanges

International Visitors (IV) are nominated by posts in accordance with country plan objectives, to participate in individual or group programs, generally 21 days in length. Escorts and escort interpreters are provided as needed. Grants are charged to IV country allocation each fiscal year. Participation in these programs is by invitation only. There is no application process for becoming an International Visitor.

International Visitors Program - International Visitor candidates are nominated by U.S. Embassy Selection Committees from among the most influential people in various fields of mutual interest to the United States and host countries. The professions from which these visitors come are very broad ranging, from supreme court presidents, to designers of textbooks and curriculum about the United states, to parliamentarians. Candidates are proposed to the office of International Visitors in Washington, D.C., by the Public Diplomacy Section (PDS) in Addis Ababa. Once the nomination has been approved, a suitable time-frame for the visit is negotiated and information on the visitor's specific interests is solicited and used to design the program.

Group Projects

Each year, the United States government conducts a number of exchange programs on various themes. These programs bring together in the United States, for a period of 21 days, individuals from many countries to observe American institutions and to meet with their professional counterparts in the United States.

There are three types of group projects. Multi-Regional Projects (MRP) examine relatively broad topics and are open to English speaking grantees from all countries. Regional Projects (RP) accommodate the interests of participants from one region and can be conducted in French, Spanish, Arabic, English or Portuguese. The Young African Leaders (YAL) project is designed on the model of the International Visitors Program for young people aged 25-35.

Voluntary Visitor Program - is designed for individuals or groups who are coming to the United States for other professional reasons and who are offered USIA assistance for two days to two weeks of their stay. Appointments are arranged for the visitors during this time. An escort/interpreter and a grant covering some of the visitor's expenses during the Voluntary Visitor portion of the stay are sometimes provided as well. A Voluntary Visitor must meet the same leadership criteria for the program as a fully U.S. Government funded International Visitor participant.