Amideast (AMIDEAST)

Exchange programs: governments, donor agencies, educational institutions, and corporations turn to Amideast for assistance in managing scholarships and exchange programs in the united states for middle eastern and north african students. Successful programs require solid logistics and support: sponsors must determine appropriate selection criteria and make the most of limited resources; candidates seek advice on educational choices and on handling applications, financing, and travel arrangements; and participant progress needs to be closely monitored. Amideast ensures that all these requirements are met so that scholarship and exchange programs can achieve their objectives. Amideast's services to education and training program sponsors include program announcement and recruiting of candidates; managing the selection process; placement; predeparture orientation; ongoing advising and monitoring; financial administration; reporting to sponsors. In 2023, approximately 503 students studied in the u.s. with support from Amideast.

Testing: as the leading test administrator in the middle east/north africa region, Amideast handles registration for and supervision of examinations for hundreds of thousands of students. Amideast administers the most required u.s. standardized tests, including the toefl, sat, gre, toefl itp, and toeic. Testing services are provided for individuals and a variety of institutions, from ministries and universities to small businesses. With more than fifty years of experience, Amideast can provide support in all areas of testing: identification of appropriate, recognized exams for academic or professional purposes; registration services; test administration and proctoring; quick, accurate, and secure scoring; and test preparation resources, courseware, and classes. In 2023, Amideast administered 135,500 computer-based, paper-based, and internet-based tests.

English language: Amideast is among the largest providers of english language training in the middle east and north africa (mena). In addition to offering english for young learners and teens; general english and english for business purposes for adults; and test preparation courses for standardized english language exams, Amideast also designs and conducts english for special purposes programs to meet the specialized requirements of public and private sector entities, including national ministries, international and nongovernmental organizations, and businesses. Amideast combines its experience in language training and institutional development to help government ministries, public agencies, and educational institutions develop and improve their own english language training programs. Beginning in 2022, as a sub awardee on usaid's bridge to middle school program, Amideast is supporting morocco's ministry of education to develop new english language curricula for the nation's public middle schools and providing the capacity strengthening needed for effective implement. Through 2023, over 23,000 students and 200 ministry stakeholders have benefitted from innovating teaching and learning materials, training, and mentoring. Amideast also continues to provide its accredited professional certificate in english language teaching (pcelt) for teachers throughout the mena region. In 2023, 122 educators from kuwait, libya, morocco, west bank and gaza, tunisia, and the uae graduated from the program. Since 2004, Amideast has been an implementing partner for the u.s. department of state-funded english access micro scholarship program, through which 40,000 disadvantaged youth have benefited from two years of english language training and developed other skills that expand their future educational and professional opportunities. Amideast delivers english language training in person, online, and in a blended format to meet the respective needs, constraints, and opportunities of each program. In 2023, enrollment in Amideast english language and test preparation programs reached approximately 36,290.

Training: Amideast field offices offer training programs and courses that provide individuals and institutions in the region--including private corporations, government agencies, and nonprofit organizations--with the skills they need to meet professional challenges. Among the subject areas in which Amideast routinely offers training are employability skills, project management, entrepreneurship, stem, and basic business skills. Amideast's signature skills for success program addresses skill gaps such as english language and information technology skills as well as essential workplace skills, enabling participating youth to become more competitive in the job market. Amideast also operates skills centers throughout morocco in partnership with a major foundation there. Amideast delivers its training programs in person, online, and in a blended model as appropriate to meet the respective needs, constraints, and opportunities of each program. In 2023, over 7,100 individuals, including youth, benefited from Amideast's training programs.

Education abroad: Amideast implements undergraduate semester and summer education abroad programs. In 2023, these programs were administered in jordan, morocco, tunisia, and the uae. In addition, Amideast hosts pre-college students for summer and academic year programs through the national security language initiative for youth, and the kennedy-lugar youth exchange and study abroad program, both sponsored by the u.s. department of state. For groups of american students or professionals, Amideast designs and implements academic study, cultural immersion, and professional development programs in the middle east and north africa. These programs are tailored to the needs and interests of each sponsor and can range in duration from a few days to an entire academic year, and be conducted onsite, virtually, or on a hybrid model. Among the program elements Amideast can arrange are predeparture and arrival orientations; academic courses and lectures; memorable cultural experiences; arabic language instruction; excursions, community-based worksite placements, and professional meetings; and housing, including homestays. In 2023, Amideast supported virtual and onsite education abroad programs for 204 students.

Educational advising: Amideast offers expert, reliable guidance on u.s. study and training options. Our educational information centers help individuals and institutions select the right options for their specific needs. Amideast educationusa advisers provide comprehensive, accurate, and impartial support to students in morocco, tunisia, egypt, lebanon, yemen, west bank/gaza and libya. Some of the resources available at Amideast educationusa centers include extensive libraries focusing on the u.s. educational system and study opportunities; presentations on the u.s. Admissions process, specific fields of study, orientation to u.s. life and study, and other topics; individual consultations with our professional advising staff; support for each step of the application process; and assistance for u.s. Graduates returning home. Centers also work with groups of well-qualified but financially disadvantaged students to help them gain university admission and scholarships. In 2023, Amideast educationusa centers provided information and guidance to 100,000 contacts through in-person and virtual events and activities.

Institutional strengthening: for decades, Amideast has contributed to strengthening institutions in the middle east and north africa through a range of specialized services and programs designed to meet the needs of governments, nongovernmental organizations, and companies. We have administered programs that improved the quality of teaching and learning at k-12 and higher education institutions, empowered youth to play active and productive roles in their communities, advanced the quality of judicial training, contributed to faculty development at educational institutions, raised awareness of the importance of transparency and accountability in local government, and increased the participation of civil society organizations in public discourse. In 2023, Amideast administered one institutional strengthening program in yemen.