Becoming a Parisienne: My Delicious Semester with ISA Past Review
By Samantha S (Computer Science, University of California - Berkeley) for
ISA Study Abroad in Paris, France
Living in Paris gave me an entirely new perspective on the world. One can read about other places, but actually living them gives new meaning to their different ways of doing things. For example, health care doesn't have to cost a fortune. Neither does school.
Personal Information
| How much international exposure did you have prior to this program? | 1 month - 6 months |
Review Your Program
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* Overall educational experience
Academic rigor, intensity, resources, etc. |
Classes were pretty standard, and not too challenging. Got a little boring, honestly. Would have liked to have been concurrently enrolled with French students instead of just with other foreigners. Still learned a lot and had a lot of passionate teachers. |
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* Host Country Program Administration
On-site administration of your program |
Very knowledgeable staff. Appreciated their helpfulness in navigating the French bureaucracy. |
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* Housing:
How satisfied were you with your living arrangements? |
Found apartment on Craigslist. it was a sublet from a student studying abroad for the same amount of time so it worked out perfectly. We bought groceries and cooked. It was in a very happening neighborhood, so socializing was easy. Had to buy a duvet cover and towels. |
| * Food: |
It's Paris. Everything was delicious. |
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* Social & Cultural Integration:
How integrated did you feel with the local culture? |
Wish I could have met more french people my age. |
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* Health Care:
How well were health issues addressed during the program? |
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| * Safety: |
I did have a healthcare experience. I fainted onto a métro platform, and was taken by ambulance to Hotel Dieu's ER. Everyone was very friendly and helpful. The wait time was less than 2 hours for stitches I needed for my chin. The bill was ridiculously affordable; less than 150€. In terms of safety, I personally had no problems, but I did have a friend in the program that got assaulted by a taxi driver trying to take financial advantage of her. Also, I must mention my friend Jasmine Jahanshahi who perished in the apartment fire in Paris last month due to a lack of smoke detectors and fire escapes in Parisian apartments. Thus, programs should make buying collapsable ladders and smoke detectors easily available to students, especially. More information is here: http://firesafetyfoundation.org/ |
| 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 |
| Language acquisition improvement? |
Teachers, shopkeepers, ISA staff. Spoke french outside of settings with foreigners |
| 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?
Select all that apply |
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A Look Back
| * What do you know now that you wish you knew before going on this program? | Students wishing for social time with other foreigners will love this programs. But if you're looking to meet a lot of Parisiens, you may want to look elsewhere. |
