Experiment in International Living

Experiment in International Living, commonly called The Experiment, is a U.S.-based international education program that uses cultural immersion to help students understand societies beyond their own. Its programs combine residence with host families, language learning, local community engagement, travel, and study organized around themes such as arts, ecology, culinary traditions, peacebuilding, public health, and regional culture. The organization is administered by World Learning, the nonprofit international development and education group headquartered in Brattleboro, Vermont, and functions as one of World Learning’s flagship educational programs. The Experiment began in 1932, when Donald Watt, formerly personnel director at Syracuse University, sought an alternative to conventional international education. The first undertaking sent 23 students across the Atlantic on an eight-day voyage designed to promote peace through direct contact, communication, and cooperation. Participants traveled with French and German students and hiked in the Swiss Alps. In 1933, Watt developed the host-family model that became central to the organization’s identity: American students lived with French and German families, using everyday life as a setting for language practice and intercultural understanding. This approach helped establish the homestay as a recognizable method of international experiential education and was later adopted by other exchange and student-ambassador programs. The organization expanded its educational work after the Second World War, including teaching voyages conducted aboard decommissioned warships in cooperation with the Student Council on Travel. In the early 1960s, Sargent Shriver, an alumnus who later became the founding director of the Peace Corps, selected The Experiment to help train the first group of Peace Corps volunteers. These activities extended the organization’s role beyond student travel into international service, leadership preparation, and peace-oriented education. By the period described in the available reference material, The Experiment had served more than 70,000 participants over roughly 85 years. Its contemporary programs are primarily summer opportunities for high school students, with the organization offering 17 programs in 15 countries in 2022. Destinations and subjects included Japanese language and culture, anime and manga, Korean popular culture and peacebuilding, French and Spanish studies, international relations and the European Union, culinary training, LGBTQ+ rights advocacy, climate change, peace and conflict studies, global health, humanitarian action, and environmental or Indigenous studies in Latin America. Some programs provide college credit or internships. The application process reflects the organization’s emphasis on host-family relationships. Applicants submit an online application and write a letter to a prospective host family in English, Spanish, or French, depending on the destination. Local representatives use the letter and an applicant profile to support family matching. Financial aid is also part of the program model: in 2018, The Experiment and partner organizations awarded nearly $2 million in scholarships, primarily based on financial need, with awards reported in the range of $250 to $2,200. The brand’s enduring positioning is educational rather than tourism-oriented. Its stated mission is to foster peace through understanding, communication, and cooperation, while encouraging participants to share experiences, languages, and customs. Through World Learning, it sits within a broader nonprofit family that includes the School for International Training and related international education and development activities.

Experiment in International Living was established in 1932 by Donald Watt, a former Syracuse University personnel director who believed that international understanding required more direct contact than conventional travel or classroom instruction provided. The inaugural program brought 23 students across the Atlantic on an eight-day voyage. The group interacted with French and German students and traveled in the Swiss Alps, linking travel with cooperation, communication, and peace education. The following year, Watt introduced the practice that would define The Experiment: placing American participants with French and German host families. Rather than treating a foreign country as a destination to be observed, the homestay made ordinary domestic life part of the curriculum. Participants could practice language, share meals and customs, and form relationships with people from another culture. The model became influential in international exchange education and was later used by other student travel and ambassador programs. After the Second World War, The Experiment contributed to international education through teaching voyages organized on decommissioned warships with the Student Council on Travel. The organization’s work also became connected to the development of international service. In the early 1960s, Sargent Shriver, an alumnus of The Experiment and later founding director of the Peace Corps, engaged the organization to train the first class of Peace Corps volunteers. Over subsequent decades, the program expanded its destinations, subject areas, and educational formats while retaining the basic combination of immersion, homestay, and experiential learning. Its portfolio came to include language study, arts, community service, ecological exploration, culinary programs, and regional or cultural studies. The organization reports that more than 70,000 people had participated during its first 85 years. The Experiment is administered by World Learning, a Vermont-based nonprofit active in international education, exchange, and development. World Learning’s wider family includes the School for International Training, which provides study-abroad and graduate education programs. Within that structure, The Experiment remains focused mainly on secondary-school participants and short-term immersive programs. The modern program model uses thematic travel rather than undifferentiated sightseeing. In 2022, the organization offered 17 programs in 15 countries. Examples included Japanese language and culture, anime and manga, Korean culture and peacebuilding, European languages and institutions, culinary training, LGBTQ+ rights advocacy, climate change, peace and conflict studies, global health, humanitarian action, and environmental and Indigenous studies. Several offerings incorporated college credit or internships. Admissions and host-family placement are central operational features. Applicants apply online and provide a personal profile and a letter to a prospective host family, written in a language specified for the destination. Local representatives use these materials to help match students and families. The organization also maintains a scholarship system supported by alumni and external donors. In 2018, The Experiment and its partners reported nearly $2 million in scholarships, with most awards based on financial need. The organization’s stated purpose remains the promotion of peace through understanding, communication, and cooperation. Its identity therefore combines youth travel, language learning, nonprofit exchange, and international development education rather than commercial tourism.

• 2022

  International program portfolio

  [1]Experiment in International Livingen.wikipedia.org

  The organization offers 17 programs in 15 countries across Africa, the Middle East, Asia, Europe, and Latin America.

• 2018

  Scholarship support reaches nearly $2 million

  [1]Experiment in International Livingen.wikipedia.org

  The Experiment and partner organizations award nearly $2 million in scholarships, mostly based on financial need.

• 1960

  Peace Corps volunteer training

  [1]Experiment in International Livingen.wikipedia.org

  Sargent Shriver, an Experiment alumnus and founding director of the Peace Corps, engages The Experiment to train the first Peace Corps volunteer class.

• 1945

  Postwar teaching voyages

  [1]Experiment in International Livingen.wikipedia.org

  After the Second World War, The Experiment participates in teaching voyages aboard decommissioned warships with the Student Council on Travel.

• 1933

  The host-family homestay model is introduced

  [1]Experiment in International Livingen.wikipedia.org

  American participants begin living with French and German families, establishing the homestay approach that becomes central to The Experiment’s intercultural education model.

• 1932

  The Experiment is founded

  [1]Experiment in International Livingen.wikipedia.org

  Donald Watt creates The Experiment in International Living and leads an inaugural transatlantic program involving 23 students, French and German peers, and travel in the Swiss Alps.

A nonprofit, peace-oriented alternative to conventional student tourism, using host-family living and hands-on community experiences to deliver cross-cultural education.

• International education

  High School Summer Abroad Programs

  The Experiment’s principal offering consists of immersive summer programs for high school students. Participants travel in small groups, live with host families, and explore a country through a defined academic or cultural theme. Program subjects include language, arts, environmental studies, peacebuilding, public health, culinary traditions, and regional culture. Activities emphasize direct participation in local communities rather than sightseeing alone. Some programs include college credit or internship components.

• Cultural exchange · 1933

  Homestay Programs

  Homestays are the defining educational mechanism of The Experiment. Students are matched with local families using application information, a participant profile, and a letter written to a prospective host family. Living in a household gives students sustained exposure to everyday customs, language, food, and community life while creating opportunities for reciprocal learning and personal relationships.

• Language education

  Language and Cultural Immersion

  Language and culture programs combine formal or informal language learning with local travel, host-family residence, and practical engagement. Reported examples include French, Spanish, Japanese, and Arabic programs. The language component is connected to the broader goal of understanding social practices and cultural perspectives, rather than being offered as an isolated classroom course.

• Experiential education

  Thematic Community and Regional Programs

  Thematic programs use a destination as a setting for focused study of issues such as climate change, Indigenous communities, LGBTQ+ rights, international relations, humanitarian action, peace and conflict, contemporary art, and culinary culture. Depending on the program, participants may receive college credit or complete an internship, combining secondary-school travel with more structured academic or professional experience.

• 1960

  Expansion into Peace Corps trainingStrategy

  Background

  The Peace Corps required preparation for volunteers working across different languages and cultural settings.

  Action taken

  At Sargent Shriver’s direction, The Experiment trained the first class of Peace Corps volunteers.

  Aftermath

  The organization’s role broadened from student exchange to wider international service and intercultural preparation.

  Source

• 1933

  Adoption of the host-family modelStrategy

  Background

  The founders sought a more personal and practical form of international education than conventional travel or classroom study.

  Action taken

  The Experiment placed American students with French and German families, making household life and interpersonal exchange central parts of the program.

  Aftermath

  Homestay became the organization’s signature method and an influential model for later student exchange and cultural immersion programs.

  Source

1. 1Experiment in International Livingen.wikipedia.org
2. 2Experiment in International Living official websiteexperiment.org