Semester in Paris Past Review

Academic rigor, intensity, resources, etc.

Classes were pretty easy--most required only a paper, a midterm and a final, all of which were definitely reasonably graded. My biggest complaint about the academic facility is just that the campus is really small for how many people are in the program and library is WAY too small--there were about 20 computers for 150 students and less than 10 tables for studying. Luckily, they had wireless internet so you could get online anywhere on the campus.

On-site administration of your program

Program administration was a mixed bag--sometimes they had the answers to questions and sometimes they didn't, but they were fairly efficient in getting announcements via emails, letters in our student mailboxes, postering on campus, etc.

How satisfied were you with your living arrangements?

Apartment in the 12 arrondissement <br /><br /> Loved my housing arrangement. I chose to live in an apartment with a friend and NYU found an apartment in the 12th for us, right near Gare de Lyon. While the apartment was pretty tiny and not very luxurious, our landlord was extremely nice, our location was great for nights out near the Bastille or shopping trips in the Marais, and our rent was really cheap.

Amazing food in Paris! I loved shopping in the outdoor market near my house for fresh fruits, veggies, cheeses, and meats (for cooking in my apartment), and being able to dine out at so many of the amazing restaurants around the city. Be aware thought, that many types of ethnic foods and commercial American foods can be very hard to find in the city (or if you can track them down, they tend to be very expensive).

How integrated did you feel with the local culture?

NYU provides a choice of three weekend trips to students, of which they can select one to attend. The trip I went on was to Arles and the Camargue (which are in the south of France, closer to Spain), which was okay although the weather was a bit too cold for all of the outdoor activities that we were doing.

How well were health issues addressed during the program?

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

I've been taking French for a very long time, but I never had the chance to actually practice speaking with native speakers on a regular basis. I was extremely nervous at first to speak to anyone, but after a coupe of weeks I became a lot more accustomed to it and it became much easier. I found that the French really do appreciate it when you try to speak to them in French, even if your grammar isn't perfect.

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• Apartment

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• Americans