Fun, adventurous, busy, eye-opening, culturally enriching 4 months! June 16, 2023

By Mara L (Psychology, French, French Studies, Brandeis University) - abroad from 01/08/2023 to 04/29/2023 with

Boston University: Paris - Internship Program

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

I learned and gained a lot, including: -Confidence in traveling/going on adventures with just friends and not my family. -Happiness/feeling content in being independent and doing my own thing when I didn't have social plans. -Strong skills in the French language and a better understanding of the French culture. -The ability to take public transportation often and feel confident doing so. -Improved my money management skills -Improved my planning skills (for weekend trips to other countries by booking airbnbs/hostels, trains, planes, and more)

Personal Information

How much international exposure did you have prior to this program?	2 weeks - 1 month

Review Your Program

* Overall educational experience Academic rigor, intensity, resources, etc.	It was a rigorous course load but more in the sense that the content was interesting and eye-opening, not in the sense that I had a lot of homework/was ever too stressed about academic work.
* Host Country Program Administration On-site administration of your program
* Housing: How satisfied were you with your living arrangements?	Amazing! My own room and own bathroom, big bed, a balcony, and a TV. It was also monthly free-of-charge which was great.
* Food:	No meal plan so it was an adjustment but you could easily use French public university dining halls/cook meals at home, so financially, nothing was very different from being on a meal plan at my home university.
* Social & Cultural Integration: How integrated did you feel with the local culture?	Pretty integrated due to how much French is spoken in Paris/how it hasn't been as "Americanized" as other European countries. I did mainly hang out with BU Paris program students though, so sometimes it was easier to resort to speaking in English and discussing topics in relation to America.
* Health Care: How well were health issues addressed during the program?	It was okay. I was always able to get the medications I needed and stuff like that. However, my program wouldn't excuse a sick absence unless you had a doctor's note. I found this challenging to deal with because I had a cold twice and didn't feel the need to go to a doctor just for the purpose of getting a doctor's note.
* Safety:	Pretty safe. Never felt too scared to be alone/out at night. Pickpocketing was a big problem though.
If you could do it all over again would you choose the same program?	Yes I loved this program so much! It was great because it gave me an overall great academic experience with a variety of fun, culturally-engaging courses, a life-changing internship experience, and a lot of free time to explore Paris, France, and other surrounding European countries! It was balanced so well and it allowed me to take advantage of Paris so well too. I made great friends, learned a lot, grew a lot individually, and made such great memories!

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)	Not too difficult because my main expenses were food and transportation. However, in Paris, grabbing drinks with friends or grabbing nice dinners definitely adds up. So how expensive it is beyond groceries and transportation is kind of a matter of how much you want to go out/go out on the town in Paris.
Not including program expenses, about how much money did you spend on food and other expenses each week?	$150/week roughly
Do you have any general money-saving tips for future study abroad participants?	While it is so fun to go out with friends, especially in a place like Paris where the food and wine is divine, when you have busy nights or afternoons with homework, laundry, etc., I would recommend cooking because it saves a lot of money and you won't feel as much FOMO about going out if you have to stay in anyways. Also, utilize your student ID to get into museums for free and get student discounts!

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
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?	106
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 speak to your friends in the language for fun, always try to order at restaurants/in stores in the language, and listen to podcasts/music in the language. These all helped me keep the language constantly on my mind and it made it hard for me to resort to English 24/7.

Other Program Information

* Where did you live? Select all that apply	Dorm Apartment Hotel
* Who did you live with? Select all that apply	Local Students Americans International Students Other
* Who did you take classes with? Select all that apply	Americans Other
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?	Immersion in Parisian culture/freedom to explore often My internship with autistic students The variety of cultural/fun courses offered
* What could be improved?	Doctor's note policy for classes Language-immersion (they could have had more language-immersion activities and more opportunities to solely practice using the French language) More social gatherings/events (it was sometimes hard to meet people since I lived in a single room on a hall with minimal BU students)
* What do you know now that you wish you knew before going on this program?	That this program requires you to be independent a lot and put effort in to making plans and meeting people.

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 Outright Urbanite A social butterfly, you're happiest in bustling cities with hip people, and took advantage of all it had to offer. You enjoyed the nightlife, and had fun going out dancing, and socializing with friends. Fun-loving and dressed to the nines, you enjoyed discovering new restaurants, shops, cafes, and bars in your host country.

Individual Course Reviews

Course Name/Rating:	AH 356 - Modern & Contemporary Art In Paris
Course Department:	Art History
Instructor:
Instruction Language:	French
Comments:	This class was incredible! I had never taken an art class before and I am not fluent in French, so it was definitely challenging in many ways, but it was also so eye-opening and it taught me the basics of art history all over the world while also being a rigorous class that Art History students themselves could benefit from. The teacher was incredibly knowledgeable and always had great slide decks prepared and provocative questions for us to think through and answer in regard to the art. I was equally as engaged in this class as I am in my home university courses but this class definitely kept me engaged due to the fact that we took so many unbelievable field trips. Some of the museums we went to (for class) were the Musee d'Orsay, the Pompidou, the Bourse de Commerce, and the Louis Vuitton Museum. It was such an incredible, fun, and eye-opening class and it helped immerse me greatly into French culture. It was challenging but not overwhelmingly stressful. I'd recommend to everyone!
Credit Transfer Issues: