Nantes: Not the best academic experience, but a personal highlight nonetheless Past Review

Academic rigor, intensity, resources, etc.

The academic experience at IES Abroad in Nantes is very average. Besides the standout challenge that is the poetry class, all of my other classes had a minimal workload. Easy grades were given that weren't always fairly-earned, and the teaching system had all of the drawbacks of the European system highlighted, such as tha lax attitude toward expectations. Regardless, this does not mean that the courses were never interesting, because, in fact, they mostly stimulated my interest in the respective fields of study.

On-site administration of your program

I don't have any complaints for IES Abroad's team in Nantes. They managed to do their jobs well and without having to resort to anything drastic. The only complaint I would pose involves how they addressed certain issues with excessive drinking and harm caused by being out at night and being on substances: they would e-mail us and mention how this happened, trying to chastise us. Because the program is pretty small, with 68 students, this only encouraged our gossiping about whom the e-mails were about, and this could've been addressed in a better manner.

How satisfied were you with your living arrangements?

The arrangement for my house in its neighborhood was fine, and the cooking and safety and proximity presented no issues or problems for me. However, while the father and two children were nice enough, I had an undoubtedly negative experience with the host mother. She's stern, overbearing, and rather cold, and while I'd be happy to chalk all of that up to her being French and to my being American, some things supersede culture within the Western world: she discouraged me from sharing my personal experiences with her and from being open with her, which really is a shame, because I know that I could have grown and experienced the feeling of being more at home than I did with this family. This host mother is not somebody whom I'd ever recommend someone else to live with, unless a student wants to be a border and would like to try to change her perceptions on Americans (in short, good luck!)

French food is amazing! To be brief, I enjoyed the culinary experience here as much as I felt I needed to, and I have no complaints with this. For future students: the Bouffay area of Nantes offers dozens of great restaurants and bars to look for, so, don't be shy to check this area out!

How integrated did you feel with the local culture?

All of my personal trips and IES-based trips (to Marseille, to Bordeaux, and to locations all around Bretagne and Pays de la Loire) were great.

How well were health issues addressed during the program?

Just be careful in the city at night, and you'll be okay. Common sense prevails, but, as this was my first experience living in a city away from my small hometown in New Hampshire, students with similar experiences and backgrounds may not be familiar or comfortable with homeless people and addicts on the street.

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

Fortunately, the opportunity to speak French here in Nantes is omnipresent. I did speak in French every single day that I was here in Nantes, and while I admit to speaking lots in English with my friends, many of the IES Abroad students were beginner French speakers. That's the only negative thing to comment on here: so many students who clearly cannot get by in French were able to enroll, which bothered me and held me back academically in classes.

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• Host Family

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• Host Family

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• Americans

• Location and nightlife
• The opportunity to progress in French
• The center staff

• The expectations of the students