General Info

The Council for International Exchange of Scholars, also known as CIES, helps in administering the Fulbright Scholar Program, which is the United States government's academic exchange effort on behalf of the state departments and the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs. Founded in 1947, CIES is a private organization and is a division of the Institute of International Education. The organization maintains relationships with the U.S. higher education community, including individual universities and colleges and major scholarly organizations. It also works with a network of binational Fulbright commissions in more than 50 countries and 90-plus U.S. diplomatic posts around the world, as well as international universities and higher education associations. The day-to-day work of CIES is carried out by more than 60 program officers and staff. The council is headquartered in Washington, D.C.