A well-intentioned program that can definitely be what you make of it Past Review

Academic rigor, intensity, resources, etc.

Most people say study abroad in general is pretty easy, and people in this program tend to have a similar general opinion. Before coming, EVERYone told me the fac (university) was insanely easy and I would never have to do any work. I don't know if I just got my hopes too high or if it was because of the specific courses I was taking, but I absolutely had weekly homework and readings, and in fact I had homework almost every night. Of course it's true that it's nowhere near the amount and/or difficulty that it is at wellesley, but add in the fact that it's in another language and all the other students are already used to that and it can be a little overwhelming. I think it really depends on what classes you take. I also took the two "Wellesley" classes, aka there were no other French students in them and they're catered specifically to students in our program (not just from Wellesley). I highly recommend them; they both have much more day-to-day work than most of the actual French classes at the fac, but in the long run they're much easier. The professors respond to emails (not a usual occurrence) and are very helpful when you have questions. One of them was 5 people and we could pretty much cater the class around whatever we wanted to talk about; so long as it meant us practicing our French the professor was happy.

On-site administration of your program

There were definitely some rough patches with the administration and some of my fellow program-mates. However, I think my biggest complaint would be how little they actually did for us in general. The reason I chose this program was because I knew it would be a small number of people and hopefully the directors would be very hands-on with our abroad experience. However, they really only contacted us when they needed something from us (forms, money, they wouldn't be in the office a certain day so don't come asking for help, etc). I've heard such great stories about friends in other programs throughout Europe that were much bigger and loved how involved the program was in their lives. I feel that with 3 full time staff members and only 24 students, they could have done much more. There were occasional trips to other places in France, which I loved, but that is something that's always happened with this program and not something they necessarily come up with on their own. I would loved to have seen program-wide lunches, dinners, movies, whatever, but there was really none of that except maybe one or two at the very beginning & end. Also if you need help with pretty much anything outside their direct job descriptions (or sometimes even within them!) they are not very helpful or just seem like they are not there to help you, which is literally their job. I was disappointed coming with this attitude from Wellesley where it's hard to encounter someone that isn't bending over backwards to help you; this was almost the opposite.

How satisfied were you with your living arrangements?

I lived in an apartment and enjoyed it. The apartments are generally spacious enough for two people and pretty well-located. The only thing that was annoying was that there weren't a ton of supplies there- they claim to come "fully prepared," but you should be the one prepared to go shopping every week to get something it came without. It barely had the essentials, and my roommate and I spent much of our stipends trying to make it more livable. I would also say that the roommate selection process was, well, pretty much nonexistent. There should be some sort of questionnaire or guideline or SOME kind of help from the director for that; many of our group had problems with their roommates this semester, and in my opinion much of that could have been noticed before-hand if it wasn't just a random scramble to find someone to live with.

As a vegetarian I knew it would be hard to go to France, which is why I decided to live in an apartment and cook for myself. However I had a family whom I visited occasionally and cooked me wonderful vegetarian meals, and I know other families who are open to cooking too, and I'm a little sad I missed out on that whole experience thinking it was impossible being vegetarian. That being said, I didn't have many problems finding food to cook for myself. And of course French food (especially bread, cheese, wine, pastries, the usual) is amazing!

How integrated did you feel with the local culture?

I felt very isolated from the French in Aix. The students made no effort whatsoever to get to know foreigners, because they are a dime a dozen at the university and tend to stick together (definitely guilty of that). But even in other activities or in just daily life, I didn't feel very welcomed by the French (not that I was expecting to with their infamous coldness, but it was still disappointing). I had very little day-to-day contact with French people besides vendors in the markets or stores, so if you really want that experience you should absolutely live with a host family.

How well were health issues addressed during the program?

This may have been one of the only times that anyone I talked to was really helpful. The program took my health seriously, and helped me navigate the otherwise scary waters of seeking medical help in a foreign language. They recommended a good doctor, told me how to describe my symptoms, and immediately excluded me from an otherwise mandatory trip telling me to rest. The only bad thing was the doctor was about a 20-25 minute walk each way, and when you're feeling completely dead that wasn't the best, so it would have been nice of them to recommend taking a cab and especially telling me to do so and that I would be reimbursed from a program (somewhat of a common occurrence).

France is safe. There is very little use of guns and weaponry, and pretty much everyone says the same thing which also applies to most of Europe: just beware of petty theft. Aix is a tiny, touristy town, and I often even walked home alone at night. Being American one tends to get scared in situations where the neighborhood doesn't look so nice etc, but apparently here that doesn't necessarily mean that it's "dangerous." So yes, there are (few) parts of the surrounding town of Aix that may seem a little unsafe, but it's pretty much one of the most safe places you can study abroad in my opinion. Neighboring Marseille would be another story however, and you should actually take caution about benig there alone and/or at night.

(1 = not very easy/$200+ on food & personal expenses/week, 2.5 = $100/week, 5 = very easily/minimal cost)

If you live in an apartment you get 500 euro a month (around $650), which is plenty. Use the extra for traveling (though it will probably not cover all of it, so if you want to travel extensively you should plan on spending a chunk of your own money). If you live in a host family you get 300 euro (around $400) a month, which is absolutely ridiculous because all you need to buy foodwise is lunch, and many families will let you eat lunch with them anyway. So in my opinion the host family stipend is actually worth more than the apartment, especially because I spent a lot of my stipend on stuff I wouldnt' need to purchase in a host family (lightbulbs, dishware, pillows and blankets, soap, towels... you get the idea).

0 = No encouragement, 5 = frequent encouragement to use the language

Definitely a plus. There is never ever ever any talking in English when you are around the program's directors or advisors. It pays off, especially in the beginning when you are with them 24/7 for the first few weeks in Paris!

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• Apartment

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• Americans

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• Local Students
• Americans

• The town
• The commitment to language enforcement
• The generous stipend that made me not have to worry 24/7 about my expenses in an otherwise very expensive country

• The local direction of the program
• Other ways to encourage students not in host families to speak French more often
• Other ways to integrate abroad students with local students

The Academic or Linguist