CEA CAPA Paris Fashion Studies Program

Hey! My name is Lillian Smith and I did the CEA CAPA Paris Fashion Studies Program spring of 2024 my sophomore year of college. Overall, it was an amazing experience and I would definitely do it again if given the time and the funding. The negatives were definitely the adapting phase. The first couple weeks were rough with getting used to the culture and living in a very large city, especially because I didn't know the language prior. Meeting new people is a joy, but trying to establish a friend group in a foreign country by yourself can be a major stressor, so all of these things considered, it was a rough first couple of weeks, but once I was adjusted I had the time of my life. I will say that when selecting housing, the shared studio apartment is not the best quality, and I would go for an apartment if you are able to, but it was fine in the end and I did enjoy it. The view wasn't nice and we were on the outskirts of the city, however, this meant that we had smaller, less crowded restaurants and stores with cheaper prices because it wasn't touristy, and that was a huge help in the long run. We even became regulars at a couple places and befriended some of the staff. The biggest positives are definitely the staff. They plan so many things for the students and are so insanely helpful; I really loved my professors and the content of my classes. I learned so much. Really enjoyed this program!