I ADORED Rennes, FR but I Used This Survey To Highlight Some Negatives Because Gushing Is Too Easy Past Review
By Rachel P (Secondary Education, Hope College) for
CIEE: Rennes - Liberal Arts
Absolutely. I gained skills, I made friends, I had experiences that will never be equaled by anything ever again. The educational aspect of the program was pretty sucky- I did not glean much of an education from CIEE- but the cultural aspect and everything else, the people, the place, EVERYTHING ELSE, was brilliant beyond brilliant. It brings tears to my eyes that I had to leave Rennes. In fact, I loved the city so much, I stayed on an extra 2 months after study abroad had ended. Rennes, France is a beautiful place filled with beautiful people. I may not have gotten the education I desired in the classroom, but I learned so much more than I ever thought I would everywhere else. I wish I could go back tomorrow. The only reason I am not checking the boxes below about "Go abroad again, check your interests!" is because I don't need the junk mail, but I will be making extreme efforts to do my own research to see what I can do to get back overseas. And I would really like to speak to Hope students about study abroad.
Personal Information
| How much international exposure did you have prior to this program? | 0-2 weeks |
Review Your Program
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* Overall educational experience
Academic rigor, intensity, resources, etc. |
Some classes were way too easy, another highly demanding. Not a great balance, overall. Lots of teachers didn't seem very professional, some didn't even seem to have a planned curriculum laid out for the semester. It was astonishing. Others did not manage to stick to their given course description. There were a few well-balanced courses in my experience, very few, but these good ones were highly beneficial. |
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* Host Country Program Administration
On-site administration of your program |
I loved the program directors, great personalities and so nice. I mention below they didn't really help much with my health issue but you'll see that later. |
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* Housing:
How satisfied were you with your living arrangements? |
My host family treated me normally. They were cool. They supplied me with lots of good stuff like wifi and meals and whatever else they were required to do, and I was invited to some of their personal dinner parties, etc. I got to meet an aunt and some grandparents. I have fond memories. |
| * Food: |
It's France. It's French food. You can't possibly be disappointed. But with Brittany (the region where Rennes is located), just remember they are by the sea- therefore, you can expect seafood to be a regular part of many family's diets! I love seafood so this couldn't have worked out better for me. |
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* Social & Cultural Integration:
How integrated did you feel with the local culture? |
Everything was great. Traveling, local festivals, parties, time spent with the host family or other host families, going to the beautiful parks and pools in Rennes, making friends all over the place..... there is nothing like it. |
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* Health Care:
How well were health issues addressed during the program? |
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| * Safety: |
I got really really sick after a trip to Morocco and even though I had no idea how to handle the insurance or whatever, which I made clear, I didn't get any help from my host family or the program directors. They were upset to see I was ill, and my host mom was great with taking me to the doctor and all, but the complicated aspects got blown to the wayside. So, nobody really addressed my health issues. I was bedridden for over a week and people were like "oh, I hope you got some medicine..." Sure I did. And it never got taken care of through the program insurance I'd already paid for, because I didn't have the slightest idea how to approach that. It was way over my head. Also, another boy in the program broke his knee playing soccer, and I know he didn't feel very supported by the program either. |
| If you could do it all over again would you choose the same program? |
Yes
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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) |
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| Do you have any general money-saving tips for future study abroad participants? | Go crazy, but within reason. It sounds nuts but once you're abroad, you'll know, haha. This is what you saved up for all your life, and who knows when you'll be back, so you have to spend money! The exchange rate sucks but you'll get used to it! Be conscious overall but if you see unique opportunities that cost a few euros, take them. Just make sure to BUDGET. I think it's fine if you run out of money completely after abroad, just make sure you give yourself a cushion of a couple hundred bucks in your checking account for the plane ride back, in case of hidden or sudden fees that spring out at you just before you need to reenter your home country. |
Language
| * Did your program have a foreign language component? | Yes |
| How would you rate your language skills at the beginning of the program? | None |
| Language acquisition improvement? |
Every course was in French. We had to sign a contract saying we'd speak French at all times. We were placed in French families who were told to only speak in French with us. Any English-speaking most often occurred between Americans outside of the campus, although most of us tried to limit that. The weaker French speakers were the first to fall back on English. You could practice French with anybody and everybody. French was needed on a daily basis, absolutely. There is no better place to practice your French than Rennes, France!!! |
| If applicable, to what degree did your living situation aid your language acquisition? |
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Other Program Information
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* Where did you live?
Select all that apply |
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* Who did you live with?
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* Who did you take classes with?
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A Look Back
| * What do you know now that you wish you knew before going on this program? | Anybody can study abroad if they choose the right place. Some simply can't go far from home without losing their mind, while others can profit from jumping to the other corner of the world. Be practical in your decisions both pre-trip and during. The stress of planning and packing and all that is well worth it and you won't even remember it once you've arrived to "l'etranger" because you'll be too busy gaping in awe at a beautiful new place. You'll learn more in a few months abroad than you will in 5 years of university. People who have a negative experience abroad, I find, let themselves get sucked into conditions they should have avoided to begin with, or they stay too strongly rooted to their home culture to appreciate the new opportunity. One girl from Kentucky almost perished of homesickness while she was in Rennes- I think she should have picked Quebec or some French-speaking Canadian area, and she would have done much better. |
