Nantes: Learning about Living Abroad Past Review
By Laura L (French and Psychology, Grinnell College) for
IES Abroad: Nantes - French Language Immersion & Area Studies
I learned a lot about myself and what makes me happy; i also learned to adapt quickly and well and not be intimidated by daunting tasks like moving to a new city where you don't know a soul!
Personal Information
| If you took classes at multiple universities, list those universities here: | Universite de Nantes |
| How much international exposure did you have prior to this program? | 2 weeks - 1 month |
Review Your Program
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* Overall educational experience
Academic rigor, intensity, resources, etc. |
Classes were more ambiguous. Much less homework required, but a lot more emphasis on final exams and one or two big projects. |
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* Host Country Program Administration
On-site administration of your program |
Program was very well-organized and easy to get acquainted with. Relations with the local university could be improved insofar as communicating with professors, etc. but it's a huge university and with all the riots and protests that were going on during the semester was in Nantes, it was difficult to keep up with the goings-on of classes, etc. |
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* Housing:
How satisfied were you with your living arrangements? |
I sometimes felt like a financial asset in that my host mom was not the most welcoming or warm individual. it was challenging to live with four young kids but also so fun at time. Despite challenges I encountered, I improved vastly in my comprehension and speaking ability in French. |
| * Food: |
I don't have any dietary restrictions but my family was very accommodating with preferences that I didn't even need them to be accommodating about! |
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* Social & Cultural Integration:
How integrated did you feel with the local culture? |
There were a fair amount of social events and conversation nights that were hosted for the program students. I didn't make it to all of them, but it's very cool that there was so much effort put into creating a community in the program. |
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* Health Care:
How well were health issues addressed during the program? |
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| * Safety: |
I don't know how well health issues were addressed, but they were careful to inform us about the precautions we should take living in a city and traveling through Europe as far as being safe and sound during our semester abroad. |
| 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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Language
| * Did your program have a foreign language component? | Yes |
| If applicable, to what degree did your living situation aid your language acquisition? |
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| Language acquisition improvement? |
Lived with a host family that didn't know English, we were only allowed to speak French in the program center and my American peers only spoke English when we were planning trips or other important conversations. When we traveled, we often spoke English so as to avoid being obvious American tourists. |
Other Program Information
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* Where did you live?
Select all that apply |
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* Who did you live with?
Select all that apply |
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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? | Keep an open mind and remember that this is a once-in-a-lifetime experience! Don't focus on drawbacks; be positive and optimistic, but don't be carefree and clueless. Have your wits about you and be smart, but allow yourself to have fun and keep things in perspective. A year later you'll only remember the good things. |
Comments
*when traveling, we spoke FRENCH to avoid being obvious American tourists.
Laura_8407 December 06, 2011
