An immersive French experience July 26, 2022

By Molly A (Geology, Middlebury College) - abroad from 01/03/2022 to 06/17/2022 with

Middlebury Schools Abroad: Middlebury in Poitiers

What did you gain/learn from your experience abroad? Was it worthwhile?

I certainly improved my French, which will be super useful, and I met some pretty cool people. I was also able to travel around a lot, which is really valuable to me. I learned that its really hard to study abroad as the only student in the program, and that really pushes you to immerse yourself in the experience, even if its really hard to do it all alone.

Personal Information

How much international exposure did you have prior to this program?	6 months+

Review Your Program

* Overall educational experience Academic rigor, intensity, resources, etc.	The academic system in France was very different from that of the US, and I found it hard to adjust to the new system and the coursework in French. I generally enjoyed most of my courses, especially my field work-based course and my internship.
* Host Country Program Administration On-site administration of your program	The Middlebury School in France was a great resource for me, even though there was no faculty member in Poitiers. They made sure I was able to go on trips with other study abroad members in Bordeaux and Paris, and the director, David, visited me every few months to make sure everything was going well!
* Housing: How satisfied were you with your living arrangements?	I lived with a host family and I'm so happy to have had this opportunity, as it allowed me to really integrate with the culture and learn things that I certainly wouldn't have if I had lived alone. It also meant I spoke much more French, as I was with people even outside of school.
* Food:	I love French food, and being with a host family was an awesome way to learn about cuisine and the culture of food. My host mom was a great cook, and my family would often encourage me to try new foods, like strong cheeses and wines.
* Social & Cultural Integration: How integrated did you feel with the local culture?	I felt relatively strongly integrated with the local culture, but that wasn't necessarily by choice. As the only student from Middlebury studying in Poitiers, I didn't have the safety net of other students in a similar situation, and as such I had to adapt and integrate myself with the local culture. Looking back, I am really happy to have been encouraged to make French friends and get involved in lots of activities, and my French has certainly improved because of it!
* Health Care: How well were health issues addressed during the program?	I didn't have any health issues while in France, but I found that it was relatively easy to get COVID tests in the country.
* Safety:	I felt very safe in Poitiers, much more so than I've ever felt in bigger cities. The area around the train station is sometimes a little sketchy at night, but I always felt comfortable walking home from the train station to my house (~30 minute walk), even at night, when I didn't have someone to pick me up. There certainly is a different culture in France of catcalling and getting talked to by random men, but I found it was much less prevalent in Poitiers than in other cities I visited.
If you could do it all over again would you choose the same program?	Yes I learned a lot and really was able to immerse myself in the French language and culture.

Finances

* Money: How easily were you able to live on a student's budget? (1 = not very easy/$200+ on food & personal expenses/week, 2.5 = $100/week, 5 = very easily/minimal cost)	My living expenses weren't super expensive, but I ended up traveling a lot which cut into my funds. Luckily I was able to save up before coming and my Middlebury financial aid still applied.
Not including program expenses, about how much money did you spend on food and other expenses each week?	~100 depending on the week, usually for travel
Do you have any general money-saving tips for future study abroad participants?	If you're going to travel, get a student pass/discount pass for the French train system!

Language

* Did your program have a foreign language component?	Yes
How much did the program encourage you to use the language? 0 = No encouragement, 5 = frequent encouragement to use the language	I was required to speak the language during the entire semester.
How would you rate your language skills at the beginning of the program?	Intermediate
How would you rate your language skills at the end of the program?	Advanced
What was the highest level language course you had completed prior to departure?	300-level Middlebury French class
How many hours per day did you use the language?	10+
Do you have any tips/advice on the best ways to practice the language for future study abroad participants?	Get involved in clubs and activities with the university or city! For me, this was a great way to meet French friends and practice the language.

Other Program Information

* Where did you live? Select all that apply	Host Family
* Who did you live with? Select all that apply	Host Family
* Who did you take classes with? Select all that apply	Local Students Americans International Students
About how many local friends did you make that you will likely keep in touch with?

A Look Back

* What did you like most about the program?	Traveling Speaking French Making friends from my climbing gym
* What could be improved?	Not very fun to be the only person studying in that location with the program Hard to make friends, but that is more of a language barrier type thing
* What do you know now that you wish you knew before going on this program?	I wish I was better prepared to do a lot of stuff alone. I always thought that study abroad was where I would make some of my best friends, and while that didn't happen, I am very happy I learned to be alone! I also wish I knew more everyday French, as my prior French was very academic and less common.

Reasons For Studying Abroad

To help future students find programs attended by like-minded individuals, please choose the profile that most closely represents you.	The Avid Adventurer The wardrobe you packed was better suited for a semester of camping than club hopping. Outdoorsy, you might forgo a crazy night out for an early all-day adventure. You'd rather take in the rich culture of an old town than the metropolis of a modern city, but for you getting off the grid is ideal.

Individual Course Reviews

Course Name/Rating:	Informatique pour géosciences
Course Department:	Sciences de la terre et de l'environnement
Instructor:	Giles Porel, Jacques Bodin
Instruction Language:	French
Comments:	This class was great! It was great to have a class in French where I could use my prior knowledge while also picking up new information. The class was split into two parts of the semester: during the first part, we learned how to use Excel in geoscience, and in the second part, we learned how to use VBA (the coding part of excel) for geoscience. We were graded off of a two-part final exam at the end of the semester as well as two projects.
Credit Transfer Issues:	No

Course Name/Rating:	Hydrogéologie
Course Department:	Sciences de la terre et de l'environnement
Instructor:	Giles Porel, Amani Shorieh
Instruction Language:	French
Comments:	This class was not my favorite, but I had already taken a hydrogeology class at Middlebury and thus felt I frequently knew the subject matter. I did learn some new things and it was cool at the end of the semester to do some lab-based and field-based hydro work. The class was split into two sections with two different profs. Both sections were very lecture and note-taking heavy and sometimes were hard to pay attention to. One section of the course was more focused on freshwater-groundwater interactions (like the hydrologic cycle) and the other was more focused on groundwater and the quantification of groundwater (Darcy's law). There was a final exam at the end of the semester that included parts from both professors, as well as some assignments and a few reports to turn in (usually in groups).
Credit Transfer Issues:	No

Course Name/Rating:	Géologie de terrain
Course Department:	Sciences de la terre et de l'environnement
Instructor:	Abder El Albani, Fabien Baron
Instruction Language:	French
Comments:	This was a really cool course because it didn't meet over the entire semester, rather, it met for two consecutive weeks for field work on the French coast. I had never had a field work intensive course before, so it was great to learn the techniques of field work, especially in France! We spent one week studying sedimentary processes on the island of Noirmoutier on France's Atlantic coast. The second week was spent studying metamorphism along the Atlantic coast near the town of Les Sables d'Olonne. While I loved the work, I found the assessment particularly difficult. The final grade was based upon two field reports (~20 pages each) that were written in French. We were put into groups to work in for both excursions, and I did not have a particularly driven group. I had issues getting the group to do their part of the project, and in the end had to turn in the project late since a group member didn't do their part of the project. I've learned from friends that many of them have also had problems with group projects in France and members not doing their work! It was a great course and an awesome way to explore new parts of France, but the assessment ended up causing me a lot of stress.
Credit Transfer Issues:	No

Course Name/Rating:	Histoire de la vie
Course Department:	Sciences de la terre et de l'environnement
Instructor:	Patrick Vignaud
Instruction Language:	French
Comments:	I audited this course during the fall semester and wow am I glad I did. The class was interesting but very difficult for a Middlebury geology student who had no prior experience with paleontology or history of life. The lectures were 2 hours long and the professor was a little hard to hear and had terrible handwriting, although for someone with more paleo experience this could be cool. The final assessment for the course is a ~30 minute interview with the professor, where he asks different questions about specific parts of the subject matter. I heard from my friends that the exam was really hard. I enjoyed the TD (or lab section) as it introduced me to different cool fossils, and we also got to go on a cool field trip to the Museum of Paleontology in Paris.
Credit Transfer Issues:	No

Course Name/Rating:	Français B2 - Centre FLE
Course Department:	Centre FLE
Instructor:	Eva Unal
Instruction Language:	French
Comments:	This class was not particularly challenging to me and was not particularly well-organized. We started the course with a professor who had to drop the class about 4 weeks in, then we had a substitue professor who was terrible, and then we had our last professor (Prof Unal) for the last ~2 months. The class discussions were sometimes interesting, and I found the course assessments with prof. Unal were very well-done. For these assessments, we had to make a video or do an in-person presentation on a subject in France and compare it to our home country. For one exam, we had to chose a piece of artwork from the local museum in Poitiers and compare it to a piece of art from our home country, which I thought was great. I liked this class because it introduced me to a good friend, but overall I thought the class didn't teach me a whole lot.
Credit Transfer Issues:	No

Course Name/Rating:	Le royaume de France au 16e siècle
Course Department:	Middlebury School in France
Instructor:	Fabrice Vigier, Xavier Le Person
Instruction Language:	French
Comments:	This course was split into two parts: a weekly lecture zoom session with m. Le Person and a weekly in-person discussion section with m. Vigier. The course material was focused on the history of France during the 16th century, which I had no prior knowledge of but find super interesting. In general, I found the CM (lecture) part of the class rather boring and hard to pay attention to, and would have much preferred it not be on zoom. However, I loved the in-person part with m. Vigier. I was the only student in the class in this section, so we went at a pace I was comfortable with, and I learned a ton of cool information. In this section, we focused a lot on Poitiers during the 16th century, which was great to learn about the history of the town as well as the town today. I had 4 assessments to do for this class: a 30-minute presentation, an introduction based on an article, a research paper, and a final exam. I found the presentation the most interesting, as I did it on a famous painting from Poitiers that depicts an important siege during the 16th century.
Credit Transfer Issues:	No