As others have alluded to below, CEA misrepresented its product to us and insisted we pay for a product never received. Specifically, students were directed to online photos representative of the housing they would enjoy if they agreed to a 40% upcharge in accommodation fee. After a family discussion, we agreed to the upcharge, even then feeling the price was excessive, but we were willing to pay for a property representative of the one depicted. On arrival in Italy, rather than a nice apartment with 6 flatmates, some with individual rooms, as promised in CEA's communication to us, our son found he was assigned to a HOTEL. A single, solitary hotel room with NO flatmates. More isolation in the already isolating time of COVID. We later discovered the online photos were of a property not even located in Italy. False advertising. Bait and switch. Call it what you like. Certainly NOT worth any extra money. We fought this charge from the moment our son arrived in Italy, to no avail. They unilaterally told us we had to pay full price, with no explanation for their failure to provide the service for which they demanded the money. They threatened to withhold grades AND send our son to a collection agency, even though we, the parents, told them we would like to be named the responsible billing party. Nope, not allowed for some reason. They ONLY send billing information to the student. Not normal business practice. Parents, if you are reading this, be aware that CEA does not keep the parents informed, does not provide receipts to the students for all that they sign, and apparently, misrepresents their product. CEA then holds your student's grades hostage and threatens your student's credit with dire warnings of collection agencies. All this when THEY are the ones who did not fulfill their end of the bargain. They offer no explanations or even apologies. Students, if you are reading this, screenshot EVERY communication you have with CEA. Get EVERYTHING in writing. Make no assumptions. Just because the photo of the housing says "Florence housing" on it, don't assume it is. I am not joking. CEA is generally more expensive than most other semester abroad programs. Don't assume that makes it a better product. It does not. I would not recommend CEA to anyone. However, I would like to give a shout out to Danielle in Italy who went out of his way to make the experience as good as possible for the kids. Thank you, Danielle. read more

Terrible experience to date and the program hasn't started. Our son needs a visa to study abroad in Spain. CEA CAPA has given them a grand total of 6 days (3 if you count the fact that my son didn't check his school email over parents weekend) to get together multiple notorized documents and get a doctors appointment and statement and have us, his parents, provide notorized copies of our financial statements (we are in another city.). And this is the company that we are entrusting to take our son overseas? read more

Extremely disappointed in CEA Capa. Barcelona was a crime ridden cesspool and prepping for the visa process was an absolute nightmare. The "advisors" hold other jobs and this is a side job, so they don't respond and never have "phone appointments" available. Absolutely the most unprofessional situation for what we as parents are paying and entrusting them with!! I asked multiple times for another advisor and was denied with no apology. My daughter filled out the detailed profile for roommates that CEA required and they paired her with individuals she had nothing in common with (personal values were specifically asked about) Her apartment and bedroom were broken into at 3:30 AM and CEA "apologized" and said it was an apartment locksmith (MALE no less) entering the wrong female apartment and the wrong female bedroom !!! just a complete nightmare. We got our daughter a hotel for a week and attempted to resolve. The classes were a joke, harder than they needed to be and attendance was very strict (daughter had great attendance). Classmates were in a stupor from clubbing all night, our daughter did not take to the club and night culture of the city...would have picked another country and program - not this. The program does not do much for all that is paid...the kids are out there floating on their own, make no mistake. The only positive - daughter caught a stomach infection from Morrocco and the health insurance actually worked. Oh...and a student visited his Alabama CEA buddies (classmate of daughter) and died after disappearing from a prominent nightclub...not blaming CEA but they really need to inform about seedy night club culture. Now, you have been warned... read more

CEA is a joke. Disappointed at every turn. No guidance on visa process they took 3 weeks to get the materials back to us which resulted in the visa arriving literally the day of his flight. When arrived literally no shared space they took a living room and made into a bedroom. And no money back of Course. My mission in life is to communicate to anyone to stay away from CEA and to save another family from this nightmare....and to have my son's university stop using them as a vendor! read more

My son studied abroad in Barcelona through CEA CAPA, and while the experience overall was positive, the housing process was frustrating and unclear. He was charged $1,500 for a so-called "Shared Double Plus Room," which we later learned only meant a standard shared room with air conditioning -- a feature not requested or used during the winter. The room itself was extremely small with beds pushed together and no real storage. Communication about housing upgrades was vague, and the responses I received never fully addressed our concerns. I hope CEA CAPA improves transparency around housing options and fees for future families. read more

I really should have done research on the best program for college students abroad. The advisor my daughter was assigned has been MIA. When I've contacted the CEA office for assistance I've received crickets. Getting a visa appointment has been very challenging. If you show up for your appointment and you do not have everything and I mean everything, you will be turned away and have to start the process over again. We counted on the advisor and she told us proof of enrollment feom your school isn't necessary for the visa, not true. Do not count on the advisors I'm concerned if I should need further assistance like an emergency while my daughter abroad I don't have confidence in this program. Do your research! read more

I paid $500 for my daughter to attend a study abroad program in Spain. I then learned that a Spain visa would not arrive in time before the start of her classes. We asked for a refund of the $500, and was told no. What? Shouldn't CEA know how how much time it takes for a visa to arrive, before they accept a payment for a program in said country? Suggest staying away from this organization because if they can't get this right, what else can't they get right? read more

My experience abroad was great because it was my own. However, the customer service is absolutely horrible. I have been put on hold for over 30 minutes 3 times now. I have also been trying to get my CEA transcript sent to my university for 4 months now and I either do not get a response or I am told it will be sent and then it never is. CEA please hire more people or work on your customer service. This is very frustrating. read more

CEA is supposed to be a business that caters to college students or young adults but CEA is a business that has fraudulent practices and as well as employees. I already paid them their fake application fee and did not even attend the abroad trip. Yet they still demand I pay for the trip even though I told them I didn't plan on attending. They made several misrepresentations about the eligibility of the program representing to me that in order for them to even consider my application I had to pay a fee( which I have records of). This fee which they represented as an application fee locked me into paying the full price of the trip. This provision which would be un-enforceable in court because it is fraudulent which is why they never sought out a judgement. But now even though the statute of limitations has passed they have still have sent my collection to a scummy agency next that annoying calls me past well over six years later. Stay away from them. I used CIEE which is a non-profit and is much better business. read more

I studied abroad in Dublin this summer with CEA. i recently learned just how horrible the employees at CEA were. Upon arrival and meeting my classmates, I found out that I was in a farther away housing accommodation than the other 90% of my classmates. Some of the students who got moved with me, were talking about how they recieved a $1500 refund for our housing change because they complained. Naturally I took to emailing them as well so all of my peers who were moved got the refund they fairly deserved. I texted my advisor and she told me she did not know what I was talking about. I emailed her boss after that to get a response about how it is a case by case basis. To be completely honest, I was quite confused how my case varied from the other students who were in the same housing as me. We were told that we all would be a 30 minute walk from our class building, but that was not the case for my housing location because it was a 40 minute bus ride. I would normally take this with a grain of salt and accept the change, however I could not let the refund policy apply to some and not to others. Especially considering my peers and I were in the same housing situation, I was extremely confused how the students who had their parents call and complain are receiving a refund but not others who are also in the same situation. To my reply back to Kayla McGuire (my advisors boss), I was met with no response. I have still not received a response and my program has been finished for 4 weeks. CEA DOES NOT TREAT STUDENTS FAIRLY!!! DO NOT BOOK WITH THEM! read more

I studied abroad with CEA in Aix-en-Provence, France in the summer of 2017. I do not have one single complaint about this program. The staff, both in the U.S. and onsite in France, were absolutely amazing, attentive, and supportive from beginning to end. They did everything to make the application process as clear and efficient as possible and were always there to answer questions and address concerns both myself and my parents had. There is an impressively wide range of cities and courses to choose from. CEA also offers several additional excursions and cultural events for students to take advantage of throughout their study abroad experience. CEA Study Abroad works hard to ensure every student has a positive and unforgettable experience. Not at any point was any part of the program falsely advertised or depicted. Definitely worth every penny! read more

I am writing about my upcoming fall 2022 study abroad in Spain. I applied on the later end of things, and was initially met with a helpful and happy advisor who made everything seem well within reach. After my acceptance, I was transferred to an advisor who did not respond quickly, was not helpful in my issues, and did not offer any support. I was told right away I needed to apply for a new passport, which I did. Because my documents were in another state, I had to wait until the first week of June. I applied right when I was back home, and waited for it so I could make my visa appointment. I expressed concerns that since my program was in early September and I wouldn't get my passport until mid to late July, there wouldn't be enough time to process the visa. I was met with, oh it's fine, book the appointment. I was able to make an appointment but but the time the appointment rolled around, I had to cancel since I didn't have my passport. Now I am 9 days from the withdrawal date where they only take *30% of your money from the program. No one has offered me advice or help other than they might be able to accommodate for a "slightly late arrival" in which I would miss orientation and some of my classes. No more information besides this has been given. No email responses to my dozens of emails. read more

I suggest you find another study abroad program. CEA misrepresents their product, collects your money and does not resolve problems.

I am giving CEA a 1 star for their disappointing first impression and for their poor system of assigning roommates. I have studied abroad once before, through a different program, where I had no problems with roommate requests. If anything, roommate requests should make CEA's job easier when it comes to matching roommates. I had requested to be with my friend back in November, and I was with her when she accepted my request. That should be a big enough indicator that we wanted to be together. CEA is claiming that I needed to also accept her request which seems like a whole unnecessary second step. When I called CEA to ask about our roommate assignments, they were able to see that we had requested each other. When I asked why they did not honor our roommate request, they were not able to give me a valid reason. Not only am I not roommates with my friend, but she's not even in the same building as I am in! I would have been less inclined to complain if she going to at least be placed in the same building as me. CEA should make roommate requests a bigger priority because some people choose to be roommates because of plans to borrow/share clothes, toiletries, electronics or so they can split bills on groceries or taxi cab fees, etc. It is not only inconvenient, but it also adds an unnecessary risk to our safety. Our travel plans include us arriving to airports and train stations late at night and it is unfortunate that we now have to take separate routes to get to our own apartments instead of us just staying together. It is obviously safer to arrive back to your apartment with someone, so if two people knew that they would be with each other the majority of their stay, I don't understand why CEA would not want to honor their roommate requests. I have worked incredibly hard to save money for this program and it is so disappointing that this program does not try harder in granting roommate requests. I have talked to other people on this program and they too have said their roommate requests were not granted. I will not let this roommate mix up incident ruin my trip, but hopefully CEA proves to be more accommodating, organized, and hospitable for the remaining of the program. read more

My daughter signed up for the program and we paid the fee in full. We had to cancel and have been waiting two months to have the money refunded. Funds were paid via electronic transfer, but they are mailing a check they say. I checked in to verify the address it should go to, but then they said they mailed it to a different address. I've given the correct address for a second time now but am still waiting for the check. I would be wary of trusting them with my child after seeing how they handle a refund. They appear to be either very disorganized or dishonest, and both would make me very nervous. read more