I studied abroad in Cannes in Spring 2013. This experience without a doubt changed my life. It was THE most life changing experience I have had to do, and the simple biggest highlight of my college career.

AIFS has set up one amazing program that guarantees you an incredible time abroad. In my program was about 40 other American students who came from all over the United States. We studied and lived in dorms at the College International de Cannes. There is also an option to live at a home stay, but it is still possible to get an authentic experience without staying with a family.

We took weekend trips, and day trips with AIFS that were included in the cost of the program to places like Paris, the Provence region, St. Tropez, and Monaco! Some weekends I would get together with my friends and we would visit another country for the weekend like Rome, Spain, or Germany. The closest airport is about 40 minutes by train in Nice and not that far.

We had French class 5 days a week, and optional seminar classes once a week. I adored my French teacher, and wanted to take her back to America with me at the end.

My absolute favorite part of the semester was the Cannes Film Festival. During the festival Cannes transformed into a bustling, and vivacious city! My AIFS resident director on campus helped me get an internship with a British film company. I loved every minute of my internship, and got to be an assistant to a celebrity while I was there. My friends and I walked the red carpet, went to premiere parties, and became entranced with all the glamor and excitement.

This experience broadened my cultural and worldly views in ways I didn't think possible. I made amazing friendships that I will cherish forever, and shared memories that I won't forget. If I could repeat my study abroad experience again I would in a heartbeat. Cannes is a magical place, that you won't want to leave!

If I could do another semester in Cannes, I would in a heartbeat.

I chose Cannes in the spring of 2013 because I did not want to be in as big of a city as Paris, but I still wanted that same cultural spark - and trust me, you get plenty of that during the film festival in May.

I studied at the Collège International de Cannes with the rest of the Americans in my AIFS group (there were about 40 of us in all) as well as a bunch of international students from all over the world. My various dorm neighbors were from Mexico, Japan, Iceland, South Africa, and so on. The school has a small campus, so it immediately feels like home. You can choose between a homestay or living at the dorm - I chose the dorm and it's pretty much the standard dorm experience (except that I could see the Mediterranean from my window, a nice touch). The style of the collège is very bright and warm. I liked the food in the cafeteria, but I'm not a picky eater and I know some people were less than fond of it. As long as you try things with an open mind, you should be able to survive. They do serve brunch on the weekends though, which is the greatest.

We had language classes every morning, 5 days a week. Students have the chance to move up in classes, so if you start out at maybe an intermediate French level, you can end up in advanced class by the end of the semester based on your language progression. Classes aren't extremely difficult, as long as you put in some effort and speak up. I was in an advanced class, and we did a little bit of grammar, but mostly we focused on listening exercises and just talking to each other. It was a lot more fun than classes back home, since usually we talked about whatever we liked - like movies, sports, food, and even the occasional explanation of Ryan Gosling's attractiveness (our French teacher didn't see it). Focusing on talking was a major help to my language skills, and I left France very proficient at the language.

You also take seminars that meet once a week. I'd recommend the Société Française class.

Actually living in Cannes is a lot of fun. The beaches are wonderful, and the town itself has a lot of character (especially the old town with its narrow, cobblestone streets). Food along Le Suquet (in the old part of town) is really good. It's only a couple of euros and a 40 minute bus ride to get to Nice, and there you have that city or the airport to go fly off to some other really cool destination.

Cannes was a great place to study in the spring because of the film festival. My AIFS resident adviser, Sandrine, helped me find an internship for the festival that went alongside my journalism major. So for the majority of it, I blogged about the festival and got to talk to, photograph, and occasionally interview some famous actors and actresses at the festival (one of my highlights was actually getting to speak French with Marion Cotillard). The film festival is a ton of fun, whether you intern at it or just go as a fan. AIFS gets you passes that get you into the movies, and you have the chance to go to the premieres and walk on the red carpet.

Overall, it was a great experience, and AIFS was a really good program to go with. Their resident director, Sandrine, was more than helpful. She set up a lot of great excursions every week, like Monaco, the Verdon Gorge, and cool, local towns we wouldn't have been able to get to on our own (as well as the fun, bigger trips like Paris, Florence, London, and Provence). She also helped us out when we were in a tight bind, like when my friend got a kidney infection and we had to rush off in an ambulance to the hospital. She took care of everything.

Anyway, I fully recommend studying abroad. You won't regret it, and the Cannes program is great.

DO NOT TRAVEL WITH AIFS they are incredibly disorganized and unhelpful in times of conflict. They are significantly more expensive and there is NO added benefit to using AIFS. Their staff watches you like preschool children and the glorified dormitory that they stick you in is terrible. Ridiculous rules like no food or drink outside of lobby and they force you to eat in their gross cafeteria. AVOID AIFS at ALL COSTS trust me!!

I had such a great experience in Grenoble, France! To start off, Grenoble is a beautiful city. It is big enough not to go stir-crazy, but small enough to be able to get around easily by either walking or public transportation. You can climb "La Bastille" and look out over the entire city or go for walks or runs along the river. There are museums, parks, coffee shops, a mall, and multiple sports arenas for rugby, soccer, and hockey. There is so much to do in Grenoble!

The program director was very helpful with anything and everything that students in this program needed. From figuring out good places to eat lunch to rearranging our flights at the end of the trip, she is outstanding! She organized some trips for us (that are included in the program) but was also helpful when we wanted to plan our own individual trips and needed some guidance. She was there if we needed to talk about anything from school to our host families to homesickness - anything.

My host family was also amazing. They had a nice apartment in the middle of the city. My host brother and sister were older - done with college and moved back home to find work/go to graduate school, so I had a little different experience living with "siblings" that were closer to my own age. My host parents were great cooks, so I had a different meal almost every night, and got to try lots of different vegetables and meals that I had never eaten before. They were very welcoming and relaxed which made it easier for me to blend in with them by watching TV with them after dinner or going for walks to the market.

At school, I learned a lot in my language class and feel that I have really increased my knowledge of the French language and culture. School was very different compared to what I'm used to here in the fact that there weren't very many tests or a lot of homework, but most of your grade counted on class participation and speaking during class. It really forced me to embrace the language and give it my all.

Overall, I had a great time in Grenoble and I cannot wait to go back to visit, hopefully soon!

The teachers all know exactly what they're doing when it comes to teaching French. They tailor to your needs and I ended up learning and retaining more French than I had in the previous four years. It's also great that other international students come to study French as well, so you get a better understanding of other cultures as well. The other courses offered are structured differently than American schools and I didn't really get out of it what I hoped to. The city is beautiful and it's wonderful walking everywhere. It's nice just to walk around and stop by cafe or gelato shop. The beach is literally right across the street which makes a fantastic reading spot when the sun is out. The atmosphere was just so relaxing that I felt I could focus more on my studies.

This program was all that I could have hoped for! It started out with three amazing days in London, England. We were given a tour of central London by a wonderful tour guide name Nicki, she showed out group all of the best places to go, the best places to eat, and many historical sites as well. After London, we were off to Cannes, France. It was just stunning, clear water, friendly staff, and excursions to Nice and Monaco. We were housed in dorms for our 2 week language orientation, which helped all of us get closer to each other as well as practice our French skills. This part of our trip was the most essential part! It was hard work getting used to the French educational system, which is a lot like the Socratic method used in Law schools, but you learn so much!

After a 5 hour TGV ride, we were finally in Paris. Breathtaking is the only word that one can use. We explored in our group, and most of us became flaneurs, and found a bunch of great spots to hang out, do homework, or just have a picque-nique.When it came to the Sorbonne's placement tests, I think all of us were scared, but it went off fabulously! The teachers were extremely nice, while their homework was sometimes difficult. They really want their students to learn, so they push them academically. Trust me, it is well worth it! I learned so much and now I am not scared to speak French. By the end of my time abroad, French just rolled off of my tongue. The best part of the experience were the ladies at the AIFS: Paris office! They are just great, they are always there for you and want you to do your best and have the best time possible. When it was time to leave, I cried my eyes out when I had to say good-bye to them. Everyone should go on this trip, it will change you forever. I am now independent and my french language skills have greatly improved. Apply, Apply, Apply!!! You will not regret it!

First of all, this program provided The Best Class I've ever taken in my entire academic life,(and i've gone to school in four countries now)Philosophy spring sem. '08... I'll risk sounding overly drammatic, and say it changed my life, in more ways than one. The teacher was brilliantly unconventional, and quite simply awesome. I credit that single class for developing the kind of critical thinking that all colleges claim to foster in our(students) minds, but they don't, not really... it was truly liberating experience, and I'll never forget it, thank you...
Now, everything else: AIFS staff was fantastic, completely supportive and helpful as much as they could with absolutely everything. Computers/internet, books, class/test schedules, etc. welcome to hang out as much as you want, and generally a positive place to be.
The program was very good, it wasn't straight french shcool, more of a cultural education program for foreign students, language, culture, history, architecture(i wasn't there, but they took tours all around paris), but they left more than enough Free time to explore on one's own.
One pleasant surprise were the weekend excursions out of town, which weren't mentioned ahead of time, completely free, busses, hotels when overnight, visited castles, old walled cities, vinyards(caves), parfume factory, Van Gogh's room, etc, etc. Don't miss those...
And Overall everyone was great, I haven't met oe rude person the whole time i was there, the whole french stereotypes we hear in u.s.- that's all they are stereotypes. I've heard some ppl had issues here and there, but my theory is that your attitude is reflected back at you from others, be nice to others and they'll(mostly) do the same.

final and i think the most important advice I could give is to be open to everything new and/or different. Say Ciao to your comfort zone, and live a litte, enjoy your time here, there, everywhere...
Cheers

The college is a wonderful environment, from the students, to the professors to the cafeteria and security personnel.
The French language classes were challenging, but the professors were tremendously helpful, and they re-evaluate your level often so you can move up or down depending on your needs. They truly care about your success as a student and are willing to help in any way they can.
The non-language classes were fairly easy, but you still have to do your share of the work. It's not a semester off, but with an average effort you can easily get an A.
The AIFS staff on campus are second to none. They are responsive and willing to bend over backwards to help. I went to them for advice on the town, the culture, travel destinations, and also for day to day needs (where can I get a hair straightener that will work? They actually had one in the office we could borrow!).
I've talked with other students who went on different study abroad programs, and none of the others came close to the level of involvement and commitment to the students that the AIFS Cannes program has.
GO!