About Us

In 1989, it all started with a nearly unbelievable story: two graduates of the University of Latvia arrived in New York with eight dollars between them. Then one of them had a crazy thought: “if we pulled this off, others probably can too” — the idea that grew into International Exchange Center.

At first, it’s just a summer plan: an unfamiliar city, your first job, new connections. And then you realize that decisions like these change you from within, helping you grow up faster and look at the world with wide-open eyes. IEC helps students take that leap, and often one program is just the beginning of a journey to new countries, opportunities, and discoveries.

Explore the site. Choose a program. Start your own story.

Shortly before flying to America, two University of Latvia graduates, Eduard Potapov and Eduard Geller, applied for J-1 visas stating they were going to work at an American summer camp. To the U.S. Embassy staff, this sounded so unusual that it took them several hours of consultations with Washington. On June 27, 1989, the Eduards arrived in New York with barely any grasp of spoken English, but with the feeling that something bigger than just a summer job was beginning. Later, after returning home, the thought struck them: if such an experience was possible for them, it could be possible for other students too. That is how International Exchange Center gradually took shape.

On June 27, 1989, two founding fathers of IEC flew to New York on a J-1 visa to join the CCUSA program. At JFK Airport, they were greeted by an American who could hardly believe it was really them, that they had actually made it, and that he wasn’t meeting any KGB agents, but rather two recent grads heading to work at a summer camp in Maine. That was followed by two and a half months of working at the camp, and then a month-long trip on Amtrak trains along a massive route across the entire country: from New York west through the northern part of the USA, then south, back east along the southern route, and north once again. And much later, after returning home, International Exchange Center was born.

In 1990, the first three dozen IEC participants set off through CCUSA to work in an American summer camp. Back then, the company didn’t have a network of offices and representatives yet, so everything went through the main and only office in Riga. Future participants traveled there by train and flew in from various cities to interview, get advice, and prepare for their very first trip abroad. That is how the personal story of 1989 started turning into a real path for other students—complete with applications, interviews, visa waiting times, tickets, and their first independent summer in America.

That same year, the International Exchange Center logo was created, featuring the word EXCHANGE spelled out with flags from different countries—a logo that is still used today.

IEC started developing the Work and Travel USA program. The first participants headed to the US for the summer to work, travel, experience a new culture, and try living independently abroad for the first time. Over time, Work and Travel USA became one of IEC’s most famous programs: a few months of work, travel, and experience that many participants later look back on as one of the highlights of their college years.

In the first half of the 90s, IEC already had its first representatives, mostly program alumni. Demand for student programs grew, and IEC continued to expand its network of representatives. Offices opened in various cities so participants could get advice, prepare documents, and complete their enrollment closer to home. By this time, IEC was gradually turning into an international network, with company offices operating in dozens of cities across 10 countries.

At the turn of the millennium, in late December 2000 and early January 2001, a joint workshop for IEC and InterExchange—one of the company’s main partners for student programs—took place in New York. Representatives from various countries and cities gathered to share experiences, discuss program development, and coordinate shared operating standards. The IEC team rang in the New Year in Times Square alongside thousands of people from all over the world. For IEC, this trip was a major milestone: programs were becoming more international, routes and participants were increasing in number, and preparing students for travel required ever-closer coordination between offices, partners, and host organizations.

You could practically study a world atlas by following the routes of IEC participants. You can work in Cape Town, complete an internship in Australia or Mauritius, volunteer in India, and combine your project with camel safaris and trekking in the Himalayas. You can help sea turtles in Costa Rica, work in Germany or China, or teach English in Brazil or Thailand. Or you can head out on the Work in France program, spending your break in Paris, on the French Riviera, or at Alpine ski resorts. Brittany, Provence, and Alsace turn from romantic names in novels into real work-and-travel destinations.

IEC launched EXCHANGE!, an online community for Work and Travel participants, students, travelers, and anyone interested in studying, working, and living abroad.

On the platform, you can find friends and travel companions, share stories, photos, and itineraries, run blogs, and book flights online at special rates—to America and all over the world.

By IEC’s 25th anniversary, over 100,000 students had participated in IEC programs. For many, it was their first job abroad, their first independent income, their first real conversation in English, and their first experience living in another country.

Behind these numbers are thousands of personal stories: new friends, first itineraries, summer jobs, post-program travel, and the feeling that the boundaries of the familiar world have expanded.

IEC is developing the IEC.Study educational platform and mobile app. The platform features courses like AI Travel Hacks and Turnkey AI Production, a virtual marketing internship, and conversational practice with FluentGo, a voice-based AI conversation partner.

IEC is launching a new portal, iec.exchange, a digital ecosystem for program participants, students, young professionals, and anyone looking to study, travel, build their career, and gain international experience in new ways.
The portal keeps everything that has always been at the heart of EXCHANGE!: our participant community, stories, itineraries, and the ability to apply for IEC programs. But now, it’s enhanced with new digital services for studying, traveling, career growth, and personal AI guidance:
IEC Hero — chat with AI characters: a visa expert, Max from Work and Travel, the philosopher Socrates, and more.
StudyHub — a course generated from your lectures and notes or any topic you describe: concise notes, flashcards, quizzes, and an AI tutor for your questions.
TravelHub — free accommodation with hosts in 24 cities, flight search, budgeting tools, and visa rules by city.
IEC Career Lab — a catalog of virtual internships and work task simulations that you can complete from home and add to your resume.
IEC Hero, StudyHub, and IEC Career Lab are currently available for free!

The very first Work and Travel participants are now bringing their college-aged children to IEC, and a brand-new generation is setting off for their own international experience.

Just like years ago, IEC participants continue their grand voyage: working, traveling, discovering new countries, testing themselves in real life, and coming back with stories that stay with them for a lifetime.