Emergency Contact
Our emergency contact number in the US is 800.225.4262. A US-based staff member is available through this number 24 hours a day. Students are instructed to call the local emergency numbers provided to them at orientation once on site.
News & Alerts
Visit our News & Alerts page for up-to-date information about our sites. Need additional information?
Have concerns? Contact us. We’re here to help.
Our Approach to Health & Safety
We take a comprehensive approach to emergency and risk management. We believe preparation, staff training, and regular review of resources are key to effectively managing crises, whether individual or group. In our 40 years of operation, we have built a strong reputation for effective risk management. Learn more about our approach to health and safety.
Communication with Home Universities
CET is dedicated to supporting our US university partners in complying with laws such as Title IX and the Clery Act. We will, for all institutions, share incident reports with the appropriate designated campus contacts to a reasonable extent. Students are made aware of our reporting obligations in signed policies and reminded of that fact both during orientation and in the case of individual incidents. We will work cooperatively with you to support students using trauma-informed care. We are committed to resolving health, safety, or disciplinary matters in consultation with our US partners.
Annual Partner Survey
We ask partner study abroad offices to detail their reporting preferences each year as part of our Annual Partner Survey. We hope you or a colleague in your office will complete this survey, as it allows CET Campus Relations Managers and our Health & Safety team to adjust our approach to your institutional needs.
Standards for Every Program
CET’s Plan for Overseas Emergencies emphasizes prevention and preparation. Some of the efforts employed by CET in emergency prevention and preparation include:
All CET staff, both in the United States and overseas, undergo staff training on how to prevent and handle emergencies when first hired. We also hold additional training sessions related to student health and safety and risk management throughout the year.
Based on their knowledge of each program’s region, environment, and history of past incidents, Program Managers assess risk, providing guidance about the kinds of events that pose the highest risk to students or program operation. They utilize US Department of State guidance and maintain person-to-person contact with staff at the US Embassy in each program site. CET leadership also receives daily risk alerts and updates from Global Rescue, and when needed, can engage Global Rescue in customized risk assessments.
At each site, overseas staff perform an annual audit of general health and safety measures in order to ensure that basic safety preventive measures (such as fire exits, first aid kids, emergency alert plan, etc.) are up-to-date and ready for use.
At each site, overseas staff compile a brief, site-specific Emergency Evacuation Plan (EEP). The purpose of this plan is not to determine exact steps for every kind of eventuality, but to think through the potential resources, operations and communication chain should a group evacuation be warranted. The EEP addresses both general risks and any specific risks associated with the region.
CET has country-specific Safety Guidelines that apprise students of safety precautions and local laws particular to their region, and provide them instructions for responding to an emergency situation. Overseas staff review the Safety Guidelines at each orientation, and ensure that all students sign them.
Each site also provides students lists of hospitals and health centers in their city. The list contains medical facilities approved by GeoBlue, our insurance provider.
All students receive an Emergency Contact Card at orientation. These cards contain the “911” equivalent in the host country, emergency contact information for on-site staff, the address of the CET center (in the host language and in English), the address of nearby CET-recommended medical centers, and contact information for the US Embassy.
Overseas staff also run an emergency alert drill with all students within the first two weeks of the term. The idea of the emergency alert drill is to ensure that students respond promptly to emergency instructions or confirmation of their whereabouts.
Students must apprise overseas staff of any independent travel plans before departing their host city. Overseas staff inform students of how to register their independent travel during orientation and share any submitted travel plans forms with US staff.
