Merci Nantes! Past Review
By Brigit (Whitman College) - abroad from 01/05/2016 to 05/07/2016 with
IES Abroad: Nantes - French Language Immersion & Area Studies
This program helped me start to think about what i want to do post-college.
Personal Information
| How much international exposure did you have prior to this program? | 1 month - 6 months |
Review Your Program
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* Overall educational experience
Academic rigor, intensity, resources, etc. |
The classes at IES and at the University of Nantes were not especially rigorous and I didn't have much day-to-day work, but I felt that my French improved a lot despite the slightly disappointing quality of classes. |
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* Host Country Program Administration
On-site administration of your program |
The orientation was too long and jam-packed full of stuff. We took a placement test on our 2nd day in Nantes and then immediately left for a three day trip to the Loire Valley where we visited castles. This was exhausting due to jet lag and I think they tried to fit too much in when everyone was still adjusting. |
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* Housing:
How satisfied were you with your living arrangements? |
I loved my host family. They are experienced and have been hosting students from IES for about 8 years, as are many of the IES host families. My host mom cooked delicious traditional French food and I was invited to their beach house and to meet their family several times! |
| * Food: |
We had 7 breakfasts and 5 dinners per week included with our host family. We were responsible for buying and making our own lunch (usually at the IES center where there is a fridge and microwave) and for two dinner per week. I wish that we had the option to have more dinners or some lunch with our host family because eating dinner out got very expensive and I felt that i was useful for my French to be eating so many meals with americans and inevitably speaking english. |
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* Social & Cultural Integration:
How integrated did you feel with the local culture? |
It was difficult to meet French students my age, despite taking classes at the University. I was frustrated that most of my friends were American and that I spoke English with them most days. But I also really came to understand Nantes through using public transportation and taking classes at the university. |
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* Health Care:
How well were health issues addressed during the program? |
I personally had no health care issues abroad. There were some issues with bed bugs in some of the host families and those students were not very happy with the way the administration dealt with the situation, but I never had a problem. |
| * Safety: |
I always felt very safe in Nantes. It's a medium sized city so it's hard to get lost and I felt safe taking public transport alone even late at night. |
| If you could do it all over again would you choose the same program? |
Yes
This program helped me realize my love for France and the French language and lead to connections in France. I also ended up staying in France the summer after the program to au pair and continue to improve my french. |
Finances
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* 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) |
This was slightly difficult having to buy dinner out twice a week. Lunch food was fairly affordable because i could buy sandwich materials and bread and cheese and ham, etc are all cheap in France. |
| Not including program expenses, about how much money did you spend on food and other expenses each week? | maybe 45 euro a week. depending on where dinner was bought. |
| Do you have any general money-saving tips for future study abroad participants? | Save money ahead of time for food and for travel. You will have two week-long breaks on the program where most students travel. |
Language
| * Did your program have a foreign language component? | Yes |
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How much did the program encourage you to use the language?
0 = No encouragement, 5 = frequent encouragement to use the language |
In theory the program had a zero-tolerance policy for speaking in English (as in, we were supposed to speak in French always), however I found that this was not well enforced. |
| 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? | FR 306 at Whitman |
| How many hours per day did you use the language? | |
| Do you have any tips/advice on the best ways to practice the language for future study abroad participants? | Try to find French friends. This is hard. Be strict with yourself and your American friends and try to avoid speaking in english, although this is very hard. Try to spend a lot of time with your host family. |
Other Program Information
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* Where did you live?
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* Who did you live with?
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* Who did you take classes with?
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| 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? |
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| * What could be improved? |
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| * What do you know now that you wish you knew before going on this program? | Save money, be open minded about your host family and have fun! 4 months passes so fast. |
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 Nearly Native or Trail BlazerCraving the most authentic experience possible, perhaps you lived with a host family or really got in good with the locals. You may have felt confined by your program requirements and group excursions. Instead, you'd have preferred to plan your own trips, even skipping class to conduct your own 'field work.' |
