IES Abroad Paris

Paris est magnifique. Studying abroad is an experience I recommend to everyone, especially with the IES program who made sure that I was safe and at home in a country so far away. As a student with only a basic knowledge of the French language, I spent four months learning about the French culture, language, and marketing (my major). I came back to the US wanting to go back Paris immediately. I had incredibly intelligent professors, a caring staff to ensure everything went smoothly, and a host family that made Paris home. I also made friends from all over the world! I hope to study abroad again next spring because of the amazing time I had studying with IES in Paris. If you need any advice or incentive, check out some of my experiences abroad in my blog - https://www.iesabroad.org/gwendolynlee

I'll admit that Paris was never one of my top dream destinations, but I fell in love with not only Paris but also French politics and society. I learned so much about not only European and French politics, but also Parisian culture and how it shapes politics and society. The professors encouraged dialogue and gave us the opportunity to read primary sources which seemed overwhelming but has greatly assisted me in making connections and helped in my later classes at my home school. Paris is a beautiful city to learn French and explore history. There is never a dull moment – there is always another cobblestone street to wander, another festival to attend, another museum to explore, another pastry to try. This international city has so much beauty and history that is enchanting! I'm so happy that I was able to spend a semester in Paris and be able to immerse myself in the tradition of the Parisian lifestyle!

I spent my last semester studying abroad in Paris. I had an amazing time and so I'm extremely grateful with the IES Paris BIA program coordinators and staff for making this such an unforgettable experience! From day 1 of orientation to the last day of classes, the IES Paris BIA staff was always very friendly and welcoming, they would always go out of their way to make sure were happy and never passed an opportunity to share with us special events occurring around the city so that we could go and explore them.

To that point, the IES Paris program had a variety of different field trips within the city, but also to other regions in France. These were one of my favorite things about the program as they allowed us to get to know our peers, but also to get immersed in our host country's culture.

The classes were also an opportunity for us to learn more about France as they were all tailored to provide us with unique insights about the Parisian lifestyle. I was a little worried about the course credits not transferring properly, but the IES staff was very helpful in explaining how this worked in order to avoid such issues.

As for my housing situation, I can only speak for staying with a homestay as that was the option I went for. I had a wonderful experience, and truly recommend doing this when studying abroad. IES did such a great job matching students to host families that everyone felt very comfortable with their living situation.

Overall a very well organized program, offering a unique way of experiencing Paris, and something I will never forget!

What I loved most about going abroad was the independence. I had the opportunity to explore a new city entirely on my own. Well, not entirely on my own because I made a lot of friends along the way. I learned the language, ate the food, and soaked up the culture.
One of my favorite things about this program was the academics. I took classes that I never would have taken at my home school. All of my professors were engaging and clearly experts on their topics. Many of my professors took our classes outside the classroom so that we could learn about our topic first hand. My art history class, for example, took place in a variety of museums so that we were looking at the real art as we learned about it.
I also loved that the program offered a lot of field trips. I went to Normandy and Champagne with IES which are two places I certainly would not have gone to on my own. In Champagne we learned how the champagne is made and the way in which it is marketed to consumers. (The Champagne trip was for my Intro to Marketing Class). The program also had events on weekends where a faculty member would take students to different neighborhoods in Paris.
I recommend studying abroad in Paris even if you don’t speak French that well. I was very nervous my first few days in the city because my French is very poor, but I found that I had no problem at all! Living in Paris allowed me to practice my French. I found people to still be very nice to me even if I didn’t understand what they were saying or messed up my French. Don’t believe in the stereotypes!! The French are very nice!
I loved studying abroad in Paris and truly believe that I am a better person for having done it. The friendly faculty of IES were always there for me when I had questions or needed any assistance. I highly recommend going to Paris and having an experience like no other.

IES Abroad Fall 2015 was the best semester of my life. I highly recommend that everyone go abroad for a semester at some point during their time at college. I was lucky enough to spend a semester abroad in Paris through IES and it is a program that I would highly recommend to other students. I would recommend it for so many reasons but the top three would be their academics, trips and housing.

IES BIA offers many very interesting coursing ranging from Economics, to Art History, to Green Growth. I was unfortunate in that I would not receive credit for any business classes I took while abroad. I therefore took many liberal arts classes such as Art History, Society Today, French History, Green Growth and French. Everyone in the program is required to take a French class in order to improve your skills but there are many levels to these classes and everyone will get placed in a class that suits their French speaking skills and needs. I was a mediocre French speaker going in and got placed in the 301 level class. I had an amazing teacher and had so much fun while also learning a lot of French. The IES classes are not difficult which is nice because I know a lot of people are planning on traveling and do not want to be bogged down by schoolwork. I can say that I never really did any homework and was still very successful in school. However, even though the out of classroom work is not terribly difficult or cumbersome the learning is still present. Many of my classes we would take field trips throughout the city and were able to see the art or culture that we were learning about. I had about 3 or 4 trips to the Louvre for my art history class. I also was able to go and make my own crepes for my French class when we were learning about ingredients and cooking. These kind of experiences will stay with me and I can honestly say that I will remember a lot of what I learned because when you can see or touch the learning it comes to life.

IES runs a couple of school trips which are all well organized and educational. I participated in the trips to Normandy, Vaux le Vicomte and Fontainebleau, and Versailles. These trips are great opportunities to see your fellow classmates as well as teachers in a non-classroom setting while also experiencing French culture. During the trips you also get to eat traditional French meals provided by the program. These were some of the best meals that I ate while abroad and are way better than they sound. IES does a great job organizing these trips so that you have plenty of time to see the history or culture as a group but then you are also given time to explore on your own or with other students. These trips are not mandatory but something that I would highly suggest that every student try to participate in.

The final part of my trip that I would like to share is my homestay. I was incredibly lucky with my host family and my homestay living situation. I feel that I had the best situation imaginable but every student that decided to do a homestay was incredibly pleased with their situation and would argue that theirs was better. My family would allow me to eat dinner with them any night I was home and wanted to eat. I was also able to talk to them and ask them questions about any part of their culture that interested me. As I mentioned before my speaking skills weren't superb but they never made fun of me or laughed and I can say that by the end I could easily communicate in French. My homestay really improved my experience in Paris and is a large part of the reason that I want to go back. I highly recommend a homestay to everyone studying abroad with IES and encourage anyone worried about language barrier or cultural conflicts to give it a try because IES is very accommodating. For those who believe that apartments better suit their needs the apartments provided by IES are also great but their occupants just miss out on the cultural experience.

Overall IES BIA is an amazing program and I hope that many people chose it and have an amazing experience similar to the one I had.

I went abroad to Paris with IES Abroad and really enjoyed my experience. The program provided a lot of opportunities to learn about France through fieldtrips, the classes and the option to live with a host family. I was very happy with my family placement and the program constantly checked into make sure everything was smooth. The staff and the professors were friendly and truly interested in the students which, I think, improved my experience significantly. I was there for the attacks of November 2015 and everyone’s response and support was beyond what I was expecting.

Overall, IES was an amazing experience. The cliche saying 'study abroad changed my life,' is true.

While I found the classes to be rather dull at times, the other aspects of the program compensated greatly. The planned program excursions and dinners were educational, fun, and a great way to meet the other students. I found the freedom to control our own schedules forced me to become more independent and rely on myself. I loved my outside university classes. Furthermore, my homestay was perfect. I loved living in a residential area with a real french family.

I would strongly recommend this program to future students!

It is unbelievable how quickly I fell in love with the city, the culture and the overall atmosphere. Paris is a unique, beautiful city that I encourage all to experience with an open mind. The program enhanced my experience immensely. Whether it was the generous, loving staff or the intelligent and personable professors, I always felt safe and at home. I lived in an apartment and I will be honest, it was not the nicest, but if you need the privacy and independence that I personally needed, then it is the way to go. It is "far" from the center of Paris, but "far" only means a metro ride away. The metro, their public rail system, is easy to figure out. Overall, I would definitely recommend this program.