An extensive amount of anecdotal evidence, program descriptions and empirical research has been published detailing experiential learning opportunities and outcomes in the study abroad context (e.g. Bloom & Miranda, 2015; DuFon & Churchill, 2006; Godfrey et al., 2014; Hernández, 2010; Jackson, 2011; Twombly et al., 2012). Although international study, service learning and internships provide ideal experiential learning opportunities for language learners, very few post-secondary students in the United States study abroad. According to the 2015 Open Doors report (Institute of International Education, 2015), nearly 10% of undergraduate students in the United States studied abroad during the 2013–2014 academic year and of the total number of students studying abroad that year only 7.8% were majors in foreign languages and international studies. Thus, educators looking to infuse their language programs with experiential learning often must turn to the domestic context to create opportunities at home. Unlike experiential learning abroad, there are fewer publications devoted to experiential learning in the domestic context. Much of the research published is focused on program descriptions and/or anecdotal evidence of service-learning contexts in either English as a second language or Spanish as a second language in the United States (e.g. Auerbach, 2002; Hellebrandt et al., 2004; Hellebrandt & Varona, 1999; Purmensky, 2009; Wurr & Hellebrandt, 2007), with more limited materials available for French learners (e.g. Thomas, 2012). Beyond a few isolated articles (e.g. Bown et al., 2011; Dewey, 2004; Dewey et al., 2011; Martinsen et al., 2010), there are no published volumes that detail second language learners' experiential learning in either professional engagement activities or unique engagement contexts such as language housing. The paucity of published work in the area of domestic experiential learning in second language contexts is what led to the development of this volume, whose purpose is to highlight research-based innovations in experiential learning in domestic contexts, focusing particularly on the United States.