Practicing a foreign language in a relaxing environment September 03, 2025
By A student (International Relations, Wellesley College) - abroad from 01/06/2025 to 05/30/2025 with
Wellesley College: Aix-en-Provence - Wellesley-in-Aix
I learned a whole new lifestyle! It was a lot slower and I could prioritize myself over schoolwork, which I had never really done before. It was totally worthwhile. I also think language immersion helped with my overall confidence
Personal Information
| 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. |
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* Host Country Program Administration
On-site administration of your program |
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* Housing:
How satisfied were you with your living arrangements? |
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| * Food: |
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* Social & Cultural Integration:
How integrated did you feel with the local culture? |
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* Health Care:
How well were health issues addressed during the program? |
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| * Safety: |
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| If you could do it all over again would you choose the same program? |
No
I did not feel like the academic programs were interesting and I don't really like France's school system. I also think it was especially hard to meet french university students because there is no university culture and clubs are very disorganized, you really really have to make an effort and even then I don't think they are particularly willing to get to know americans |
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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| Not including program expenses, about how much money did you spend on food and other expenses each week? | 20 euros |
Language
| * Did your program have a foreign language component? | Yes |
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How much did the program encourage you to use the language?
0 = No encouragement, 5 = frequent encouragement to use the language |
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| How would you rate your language skills at the beginning of the program? | Beginner |
| How would you rate your language skills at the end of the program? | Intermediate |
| What was the highest level language course you had completed prior to departure? | 200 level |
| How many hours per day did you use the language? |
Other Program Information
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* Where did you live?
Select all that apply |
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* Who did you live with?
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* Who did you take classes with?
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| About how many local friends did you make that you will likely keep in touch with? | 0 |
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? | I wish I knew that I should follow my heart and do the activities that interested me instead of following what my friends were doing |
