IPSL: France - French Language & Culture and Euro-Mediterranean Studies

The IPSL Global Institute at the National University of Natural Medicine (NUNM.edu) has designed and delivered international programs focusing on experiential learning, ethical service & engaged research for close to 40 years. IPSL programs combine credit-bearing coursework, ethical volunteer service and advocacy research opportunities abroad to provide a meaningful and impactful study abroad experience. Like IPSL, NUNM has been focused on educating, serving and supporting the development of healthy communities for many decades!

The IPSL program in Montpellier, France is ideal for anyone interested in French and Arabic language and culture, contemporary European studies, art history, Euro-Mediterranean history and cultures, outdoor recreation and French cooking. Montpellier, a 1,000 year-old city located on the Mediterranean, in the legendary south of France, has long been a crossroads for European, Mediterranean and North African cultures and civilizations. With a medieval core, it is a cultural center that plays an important role as an industrial and technological hub within Europe. 

Students spend a semester studying French language, culture, civilization, and social issues. Courses in French language are taught at five different levels, from beginning to advanced. Beginning Arabic Language and Culture with a Euro-Mediterranean Focus is also offered along with fun elective workshops on French wine and Cuisine and the IPSL service learning courses.​ 

In addition, students serve 15 hours per week in a local agency, and explore the region through excursions. The volunteer service immerses you in the culture and deepens your understanding of French society in a way that goes beyond that experienced in traditional study abroad programs. It also facilitates your mastery of the French language.

Volunteer opportunities may include:
·      Assistance with disabled persons
·      Assisting in education or recreation at a rehab center for children
·      Tutoring English to high school students
·      Assisting at a pharmacy
·      Helping at a food bank
·      Working with specialists in psychiatry and social care at a social rehab center
·      Working with an occupational therapist at a retirement home​

Students live with a French family in Montpellier. Partial board is included. An integral part of the program, the homestay offers you the opportunity to make life-long friends, gain higher proficiency in the language, and experience the culture from "the inside." All IPSL host families are carefully selected and experienced with hosting students. 

Excursions MAY include some of the following:
·       Roman cities of Nîmes and Arles
·       Medieval walled city of Avignon, home of the Palace of the Popes and Pont d'Avignon
·       St Guilhem-Le- Désert et l'Ermitage, a jewel of Romanesque architecture 
·       Carcassonne, one of the most extravagant fortresses in all of Europe
·       Sommières market and le Pont du Gard, a magnificent aqueduct
·       The beautiful village Les Baux de Provence and Cathédrale d'images, a unique art center in a limestone quarry
·       Aigues-Mortes, the 13th-century city in the heart of the Camargue
·       Château de Flaugergues, built in the 17th century and surrounded by magnificent gardens​

IPSL engages students, educators, and grassroots organizations around the world in hands-on service to promote equitable relationships, social justice, sustainable change, and a commitment to our shared humanity. 

IPSL, the founder of Service-Learning, is a global education institute within the National University of Natural Medicine (NUNM.edu). They invest over 83% of our revenues directly back into the communities where they serve.