• School placement in an accredited American school
• DS-2019 form to support the J-1 visa application
• University training and orientation program, exclusively designed for IAG teachers
• Supplemental medical insurance
• 24-hour emergency support while in the USA
• Member benefit information is available here.

Your program includes:

1. Professional training – Before arrival in the United States, you will have access to an online training program designed exclusively for IAG Teachers by Northern Arizona University. The program includes instruction in English for the classroom and Classroom Readiness and Teacher Preparation instruction.
2. School work – You will have a full-time teaching position at a school. As a valued member of the school, you will collaborate with other educators to gain insight and offer your professional techniques to colleagues.
3. Cultural exchange – The program promotes mutual understanding between the people of the United States and other countries. You will learn about the culture of the United States, and you will teach your class and colleagues about your home country culture. You will be required to participate in and report to IAG at least two cross-cultural activities each year, one that teaches about your home country and one that involves cross-cultural communication between your students and students of another country.
4. Personal growth – You can expect to grow both professionally and personally as you gain understanding of U.S. culture, society, and teaching practices. Immersive environments provide the opportunity to improve English language skills. You will return to your home country with increased knowledge of the United States and the U.S. educational system. In addition, the experience can provide both professional direction and personal understanding.

• SpanTran: all states $290 – Please request a US equivalency
• AZICE: AZ & Texas $250 – Automatically completes a US equivalency.

As part of the IAG exchange program, it is important that participating teachers follow the program rules.

• Within 7 days of arrival in the United States, submit an Arrival Report to IAG to confirm your safe arrival and report your housing address.

• Maintain an accurate and up-to-date host school and housing address and contact information. Report to IAG any address or email/ phone change within 10 days of any change.
• Teach effectively and work cooperatively with administration, teachers, and staff in your designated school to best meet the educational needs of the student population.
• Follow the rules, policies and procedures of the school and district.
• Participate only in authorized employment at the host school that has been approved by IAG.
• Maintain the minimum medical insurance coverage required by Department of State regulations and IAG.
• Important Note – It is extremely important to inform IAG when you arrive to your host community and if you make any address changes, as IAG is required by U.S. government regulation to report your location in the SEVIS system. Failure to follow these important rules and regulations of the program may result in program termination, requiring an immediate return to your home country.

It is important that you carefully plan a budget for your IAG program. As part of the application process, you will complete a Budget Exercise to calculate your expected income and expenses. Participating teachers should be aware that your teaching salary may not cover your total expenses — including the cost of the program, visa application/ SEVIS fees, travel, housing, transportation, and living expenses – so you should plan to bring additional personal funds. You should have at least $4,000 – $6,500 available to you when you arrive in the United States for settling costs, including transportation to your host school, housing deposits, food, and other personal expenses until you receive your first paycheck. For additional information, please review the ‘Financial Considerations’ section on our Teacher’s page.

IAG does not partner with any third-party recruitment or placement agencies in the administration of its J-1 Exchange Teacher program. Accordingly, we encourage you to work directly with IAG and not pay any fees to a third-party recruitment or placement agency located in Participant’s home country or in the U.S. If you have already registered with a recruitment or placement agent, it is important that you disclose the agent fees paid and provide IAG with a copy of the agreement signed between you and the agency.

Costs that participants will likely incur while in the U. S. include:

• Visa application fee ($185)
• SEVIS fee ($220)
• Foreign credential evaluation fee ($250, estimated) – recommend utilizing AZICE for the required transcript evaluation.
• Travel to host school – flight/ bus
• Housing* – rent, housing deposits, utilities
• Transportation*
• Teaching requirements – Background check, teaching certificate
• Personal expenses – mobile phone, travel, savings, entertainment
• Medical insurance premiums or out-of-pocket expenses not covered by medical insurance policy
• Taxes (estimated 15-20% of your paycheck)
• Food*

*See budget exercise for estimates/ranges for these costs: Sample Budget Exercise

It is important that you carefully plan a budget for your IAG program.

As part of the application process, you will complete a Budget Exercise to calculate your expected income and expenses. Participating teachers should be aware that your income may not cover your total expenses, including the cost of the program, visa application/ SEVIS fees, travel, housing, transportation, and living expenses. For more information, visit our ‘Financial Considerations’ section on our Teacher’s page.

You should have at least $4,000 – $6,500 available to you when you arrive in the United States for settling costs, including transportation to your host school, housing deposits, food, and other personal expenses until you receive your first paycheck.

• Paying Your I-901 SEVIS Fee

Short-term Housing Arrangement
Before arriving in the United States, it is important that you make a short-term housing arrangement so that you have a safe place to stay while you search for a more permanent housing solution.

You can make a hotel reservation online through hotels.com or orbitz.com

IAG can provide assistance with securing short-term housing.

Long-term Housing Arrangements

We recommend talking with your teacher, co-workers, or supervisors for suggestions on affordable, and safe housing options in your work area.

To reduce housing expenses, you may want to consider sharing an apartment, or home with another teacher or local community member.

IAG can assist exchange teachers in locating and securing reasonable housing options.

Housing costs in the United States vary, but you should expect to pay 20-40% of your take-home salary in rent.

You also typically have to pay separately for utilities, such as electricity, heat, air-conditioning, water, garbage, and internet.

Most apartments or rental homes require a move-in deposit, typically “first and last month’s rent” (meaning two months’ of rent) when securing the apartment.

Most will require a lease, which is a contract typically of one year to pay rent to the landlord. For additional information on cost of living/living expenses, please review the ‘Financial Considerations’ section on our Teacher’s page.

Here are a few resources:

• Roomies.com
• Nextdoor.com
• zillow.com
• Facebook Marketplace

Your salary information will be provided to you as part of the Letter of Intent to Hire. You should receive a paycheck directly from your school on your school’s pay schedule (typically every 2 weeks). You will notice that federal and state taxes will be taken out of your paycheck at a rate between 15-20% of your paycheck. Additionally, your paycheck may include a deduction for your medical insurance premium, depending on the type of insurance you elected.