The Paris Review Past Review
By Caitlin L (HISTORY., Barnard College) for
Columbia University: Paris - Reid Hall
I had a wonderful time and my French improved dramatically. I will definitely go back to Paris in the future, as it has become one of my favorite cities.
Personal Information
| If you took classes at multiple universities, list those universities here: | Sciences Po |
| How much international exposure did you have prior to this program? | 6 months+ |
Review Your Program
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* Overall educational experience
Academic rigor, intensity, resources, etc. |
I was kind of disappointed that French students didn't seem to be very polite or considerate of their professors--there was a lot of talking during lectures, which made it difficult to pay attention. |
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* Host Country Program Administration
On-site administration of your program |
N/A |
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* Housing:
How satisfied were you with your living arrangements? |
I feel that I spent way too much money for the quality of life and living situation I was offered. My host family treated me as a boarder; they were very friendly, engaged in cultural discourse, and were exceptionally nice to me, but it was clear that the point of my staying there was primarily financial. I would have preferred if there had been more options like Cité U available. |
| * Food: |
Paris is a gastronomic miracle, but eating at restaurants and cafés gets pricey after a while. It helps to be able to buy your food at grocery stores and cook at home; unfortunately, most of the host-family living situations that I've heard of (including my own) are not very conducive to cooking (ie, kitchens tend to be small and busy). |
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* Social & Cultural Integration:
How integrated did you feel with the local culture? |
The champagne trip to Reims was fun. |
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* Health Care:
How well were health issues addressed during the program? |
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| * Safety: |
N/A |
| If you could do it all over again would you choose the same program? |
No
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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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| Not including program expenses, about how much money did you spend on food and other expenses each week? | Too much money--I probably burned through 300 Euro a week, which is about four times what I spend in New York. |
| Do you have any general money-saving tips for future study abroad participants? | A metro pass, food. |
Language
| * Did your program have a foreign language component? | Yes |
| How would you rate your language skills at the beginning of the program? | Intermediate |
| What was the highest level language course you had completed prior to departure? | Advanced Phonetics. |
| If applicable, to what degree did your living situation aid your language acquisition? |
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| Language acquisition improvement? |
I spoke a lot of English to my American peers, but every other aspect of my experience and education was in French. Grasping French academic texts made a huge difference in my ability to understand and function in French society. |
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? | An academic, studious, wealthy student would benefit from Reid Hall's Paris program the most. I would advice someone going to this program to start saving up money way ahead of time, and get a summer job worked out before they even leave to study abroad. This makes the expenses seem a little less scary to someone who isn't receiving any financial aid or scholarship. |
