I wish I was still there!

This was literally the best four months of my life!

Academics:
I loved all of my classes! The teachers were super patient and always spoke to us at our level of French without being condescending. They made classes interesting. Because this is France, your classes will be a lot longer. I had a two-hour grammar/language classes every morning (it was 4 hours on Thursdays) and 2 hours of electives in the afternoon. I did have Friday off though which was great! Your schedule will depend on your level of French. There were also good options for electives. My favorite was Mythology.

Host Family:
I absolutely loved my host family. My host mom was the sweetest. They took me up into the mountains to see where the Olympics were, to visit the grandparents, to eat fondue, and more. I have a lot of really great memories because of my host family. It's also a great way to practice your language. My French was horrible when I got there but my host mom was super patient with me and by the time I left I could actually hold a conversation. They also had the fluffiest cat I have ever seen!

Grenoble:
I love Grenoble!! It will take some time to grow on you, but you will end up loving it! There are mountains all around you and a river that runs through the city. There are lots of pretty parks where you can have a picnic or just hang out with friends. They also have lots of student-friendly deals at restaurants, museums, and other places since there are some big universities there. There are also lot's of places to go out at night and it's always fun since the city is packed with students. It's a little bit of an edgy personality, like a leather jacket and red lipstick kind of way, but I never felt unsafe there, even walking home at 3 am. It's also not touristy at all (but don't worry, there is plenty to do!!) which made it nice because we were seen more as international students than annoying tourists.

API:
API was super helpful pre-departure, while abroad, and even after coming home. I had lots of questions about paperwork and visas and they answered everything they could. They also gave us a big online pre-departure packet with everything we could ever want to know about studying abroad. They made sure we were as prepared as possible for studying abroad. While we were there, Anna and Marie were super helpful! Marie took us around Paris during our orientation and even though I barely understood French she was super patient with it. They also took us on other fun excursions like snowshoeing, a weekend in Dijon, and a weekend in Nice. They also had cultural things in their office like a crepe party and a cheese tasting. I never had any problems, but they were always there to help us out! After coming home, API offers a program called the Global Leadership Academy so that alumni can continue (in a way) their study abroad experience, learn about leadership, and encourage others to study abroad.

Overall, this was the best four months of my life and I wish I was still there!!