France « OSU Abroad

Sylvie Brugerolle is a Resident Director with IE3 Global in Poitiers, France. In her entry, Sylvie shares what 25 years of experience with international students has taught her. Read on to discover more about life in France and the challenges and joys of studying abroad.

What brought you to be a Resident Director?

A fantastic opportunity! For a year, I welcomed an exchange student into my home. It was a wonderful experience and at the end of that year I learned that the program was looking for a coordinator in my city, so I applied with enthusiasm. I was selected even-though my studies and previous professional career didn’t specifically prepare me for the work; I am trained as a lawyer and worked as a financial advisor in a bank.

25 years later, I continue to be glad that I chose a different direction professionally and transitioned to a career rich in human and cultural connections.

What are some unique aspects of your city and country?

The history of the city primarily. Poitiers, one of the oldest cities in France, has an exceptional historical, cultural and artistic heritage. In addition, the long academic tradition (more than five centuries!) makes the medium-sized city one of the youngest and most dynamic in France – and one of the most international as well. Poitiers is the city in France where the ratio of students to inhabitants is the highest and one of the cities welcoming the largest number of international students. There is always something to do in Poitiers and international students, whether they come for a large city or a city of more modest size, appreciate the active cultural life.

The location of the city is another plus. Situated an hour and a half from Paris and Bordeaux (and soon less than an hour with a new high-speed train line!), the geographic location in the center of France permits one to travel easily in France and Europe.

What is one thing most of your students may not know about you?

Whenever I have a free moment, I pick up a paint brush to decorate any of the media I can find – canvases, furniture and porcelain.

What are some of your favorite aspects of being a Resident Director?

I greatly appreciate the aspect of “multi-tasking” inherent in the resident director position; academic, practical, psychological, administrative, and sometimes legal. It is not a position with the threat of routine or boredom.

My greatest joy, confirmed each year, is to observe how the students change during their stay. The maturity and independence that they gain over the course of the experiences they have, the challenges they face and overcome, to see how, cut off from their cultural and emotional supports, they find in themselves the capacity to adapt and develop a new openness.

What are some of the challenges of your job?

Multi-tasking, which I highlighted above as my favorite aspect of my work, isn’t paradoxically always the easiest to manage. My priority is to make myself immediately available to the requests of students no matter what administrative tasks I might be in the middle of doing. It is sometimes difficult to predict one’s schedule because one never knows the tasks the day will bring, what question or request the students might have that needs to be attended to: discuss a course with a student?, respond to questions about a misunderstood grade?, consult about a relationship with a professor?, manage the relations between a student and their host family?, console a student?, search for the best price for a train ticket with a student preparing to travel?, find new accommodation for a student?, assist with an administrative task a student must complete?, etc., etc. And all of this might fall into your lap at the same time!

What have you seen as the biggest challenge for incoming students?

The first is realizing that the French they practiced in their courses in the USA isn’t really what they hear in France. Young French people speak at great speed, not well-articulated and use expressions that are typically foreign. Visiting students cannot allow themselves to doubt their abilities so that they don’t get discourage. If not, the student risks seeking refuge in their comfort zone by searching out the company of other English speakers.

Then, they have to understand and adapt to the French university system which is quite different from what the students are familiar with. Professors are less accessible to students, administrative assistance less available, more autonomy in the work expected from the student and grading of homework is more strict.

What is your advice for students planning to attend your program, or to study abroad in your country?

To leave behind all expectations, to exercise patience, to understand that their host country doesn’t always work according to the system they are accustomed to in the USA and to have a deep store of good humor available.

What is one thing you think students shouldn’t forget to pack for life in your country?

Today we find in France, as a result of globalization, more or less all of the products sold in the USA. Don’t hesitate to bring a little of your world with you, however – a favorite book, photos of your friends and family to share with others, a collection of quotes to read on challenging days, your favorite candy.

Why do you think is the most important take-away for education abroad students?

Mark Twain said “Travel is fatal to prejudice, intolerance and narrow mindedness”. Leaving your comfort zone to adapt to another language, another culture, another educational system, another environment is indeed an unparalleled opportunity to exercise your thinking in the complexity of the world, to make it more open, imaginative and connected.

Go to Oregon State University’s Office of Global Opportunities for more information on international programs, scholarships and more!

Jeannie Sullivan is a Junior in Agricultural Sciences with a minor in Speech Communication. Last fall, she embarked on the journey of a lifetime with Semester at Sea. Currently an Ambassador for the OSU Office of Global Opportunities, Jeannie is fully versed on how to make the most of a study abroad experience. Read on to learn about her incredible voyage and the opportunities SAS has to offer!

Everyone asks if life on the ship was like “The Suite Life of Zach and Cody” and I always say no, not at all. When we were at sea, we had classes every day. That means we had homework, midterms, and finals to go along with that. When we were in port, we got to go explore the countries and do independent travel. For my program, I was able to see an array of countries. I boarded the ship in London and from there I spent the next three and a half months sailing and having the sea as my campus. The countries that I was able to visit on my voyage were: Russia, Poland, Germany, Belgium, the Netherlands, France, Ireland, Portugal, Spain, Morocco, Italy, Brazil, Barbados, and Cuba. We were supposed to go to Ghana and Senegal, but since that was during the height of the Ebola crisis, we were rerouted to go back to a different region in Spain and Italy. While I took classes on the ship, I had a required field lab that I went on for each class. These field labs were hands on learning experiences that brought the classroom and reality together. On my voyage, I was able to go hiking and see flamingos in Tuscany for my invasive species lab, learn about the history and architecture of Portugal for my architecture class, learn about Ireland’s health care system and how the LGBT community is treated for my public health class, and learned how history and communication correlate with each other in Russia.

Living on a ship is pretty much like living back in the resident halls. On my voyage, there were a little over 600 students and 150 professors and faculty on board. One thing that I thought was awesome was that the professors and faculty got to bring their families on the ship, so occasionally there were little kids running around, which was always fun and a nice stress reliever. I was always surrounded by people and it was really hard to get quiet time, but it was nice to always be socializing with people at the same time. For my program, I was still meeting people on the last couple days of my voyage. I was able to meet people from all around the States and the world. Being on a ship, I got to see everyone in their best attire, and their not so best attire. So it was always interesting walking around the ship (I always wore orange sparkly slippers when we were on board). With tight quarters, I got to know my professors very well. I loved having lunch or dinner with them. I got to know them on a personal level, and they did not seem as intimidating as they would have back at Oregon State. While living on the ship, I was able to be put into a “family.” This meant that I was grouped with a faculty member and other students. It was nice to be able to have a group to have dinner with, hear their travels, and meet people that I would not have met otherwise.

Being able to go on this voyage was a chance of a lifetime and full of once in a lifetime opportunities. I was able to go to Cuba two weeks before Obama eased the embargo. I learned how to salsa dance from the locals, I got to meet students from The University of Havana, and got to see the site of The Bay of Pigs. I was able to sail down the Amazon River and sip on coconuts on the beaches of Copacabana and Ipanema in Brazil. I was able to ride a camel in the Sahara Desert (and it just happened to be a Wednesday when I did that). I was able to experience real Belgium waffles, crepes, pierogis, Brazilian barbeque, and Italy’s pizza and pasta making skills firsthand. I was able to see festivals and listen to local music in Russia and Belgium. I was able to see the filming site of Michael Jackson’s song “They Don’t Care About Us.” I got to overcome my fear of heights by zip lining the boarder from Spain to Portugal. I saw the iconic symbols of Paris and the ruins of Rome. I was able to see a Champion League match between FC Barcelona and Ajax at Camp Nou. But most of all, I was able to meet lifelong friends, see beautiful sunsets and sunrises, whale watch, see pods of dolphins and fly fish, and be able to star gaze while in the middle of the Atlantic and see the end of the Milky Way Galaxy while looking at shooting stars.

I could not find a better program that fit what I wanted to get out of my experience abroad. I wanted to see as many places as possible, learn to put my preconceived notations aside, and to take advantage of once in a lifetime opportunities.

Laurie Wilson is a Resident Director through IE3 Global at the Université Lyon 2 in Lyon, France. She has a doctorate degree in Romance Languages from the University of Oregon. Using her past experience from studying abroad and extensive French culture and language study, she helps students acclimate to life in France and get the most out of their own time abroad.

What brought you to be a Resident Director?
I happened to be in the right place at the right time with the right combination of experiences under my belt. I first studied abroad in France as an undergraduate in Poitiers through the University of California EAP program. I later worked as a graduate assistant for the Lyon exchange program for one year while I was a doctoral student in Romance Languages at the University of Oregon, then returned to Lyon once I had advanced to candidacy to join my husband, whom I had met during my time as the graduate assistant. I then worked as a graduate assistant at Université Lyon 2 for two years while I was writing my doctoral dissertation. The Lyon Resident Director position became available one year after I had completed my degree, and I was fortunate to be selected based on my experience studying and teaching in both the U.S. and French university systems and my background with study abroad and the Lyon exchange program in particular.

What are some unique aspects of your city and country?
Lyon has been inhabited for an uninterrupted period of over 2000 years, and has managed to preserve structures from its past throughout its constant evolution as a dynamic European center of innovation and trade. Evidence of this is everywhere, be it the Roman ruins near Fourvière, the medieval and Renaissance structures of Vieux Lyon, vestiges of the silk industry, the factory where the Lumière Brothers invented cinema, Interpol’s world headquarters or the International Agency for Research on Cancer. Lyon is also the gastronomic capital of France!

What is one thing most of your students may not know about you?
I have also worked as a professional translator. I have translated two novels by Lebanese author Alexandre Najjar from French into English: L’Ecole de la guerre and Le Silence du tenor, both published by Telegram.

What are some of your favorite aspects of being a Resident Director?
I love the ever-changing nature of my job – it’s anything but monotonous. I enjoy accompanying students as they face and work through the challenges of adjusting to and learning to thrive in a culture very different from their own, learning what is a source of joy and what is a source of frustration for each of them and observing how they navigate their emotions and grow throughout their study-abroad experience.

What are some of the challenges of your job?
The biggest challenge is needing to be competent in so many areas without truly being able to master any of them. I am at once activities coordinator, rental agent, academic advisor, university administrator, counselor, health-care specialist, cultural mediator, international program developer, and educator. I adapt to the varying needs, interests and challenges of each new group of students.

What have you seen as the biggest challenge for incoming students?
By far the biggest challenge for students in our program is avoiding the comfortable fall-back of spending most or all of their free time with other American program participants, which can be lots of fun but is catastrophic for both language progress and cultural integration. It takes a great deal of courage for students to be more independent, to avoid contact with English as much as possible and to work through the awkward stage of initially only being able to communicate at a very basic level. But those who take the plunge end up attaining a much more enriching level of linguistic and cultural integration than do those who take the easy road.

What is your advice for students planning to attend your program, or to study abroad in your country?
Students should know that their role during a study abroad experience is not to compare and to criticize differences, but to observe and to try to understand what lies behind them. Come with an open mind, appreciate the experience for what it is without comparing it to what you thought it would be, adopt Lyon as your home while you are here rather than waiting for it to take you in and push beyond your comfort zone every day so you can make the most of your time here. Prior to arrival, students should do all that they can to improve their level of French so they have a solid base to build from once they get here.

What is one thing you think students shouldn’t forget to pack for life in your country?
Comfortable walking shoes and an appetite for adventure, both culinary and otherwise.

What do you think is the most important take-away for education abroad students?
Learning how to navigate an unexpectedly different culture, how to persevere in the face of incomprehension and frustration, learning new forms of independence, gaining an appreciation for tolerance, and rethinking “right and wrong” in terms of cultural norms.

To learn more about studying abroad in Lyon, France, click this link!

Marie de Rocca-Serra works and lives in Grenoble, France. As a Resident Director with Academic Programs International (API), Marie loves to share this beautiful city, located at the foot of the French Alps, with students.

What brought you to be a Resident Director?
I did an internship with API in Grenoble and loved it! I had found the job I wanted to do!

What are some unique aspects of your city and country?
France: Our history, art, cuisine, and French art of living!
Grenoble: Its gorgeous scenery, making it THE outdoor destination in France, its great location (3 hours from Paris and 3 hours from the Mediterranean), and its comfortable city size.

What is one thing most of your students may not know about you?
That I have 2 grandchildren (3 in August!)

What are some of your favorite aspects of being a Resident Director?
Being in touch with these young adults, seeing how they grow from their arrival to their departure, and making them love France even more!

What are some of the challenges of your job?
Always being dynamic and enthusiastic even if it’s my 50^th time at the Eiffel Tower!

What have you seen as the biggest challenge for incoming students?
Trying to be immersed in French culture when they’re so connected to home via social networks!

What is your advice for students planning to attend your program, or to study abroad in your country?
Be ready to go out of your comfort zone, and be curious and motivated to learn another language.

What is one thing you think students shouldn’t forget to pack for life in your country?
Hiking shoes and warm jackets.

What do you think is the most important take-away for education abroad students?
Developing their curiosity and interest in others and the world.

To learn more about attending Marie’s program, follow this link!

Hannah Goelzer, a third year Biochemistry and Biophysics major, spent five weeks of her summer exploring Paris, France. Upon returning to Oregon State, she decided to add on an International Degree in hopes of working abroad in the future. Here, she tells us about her study abroad experience with Academic Programs International.

Adrenaline rushed through me as I boarded my flight for Paris, France. I was so excited to cross the Atlantic Ocean for the first time that I sat at the edge of my seat for the first few hours of the flight. However, as you may know, the daunting and lengthy flight to Europe from the west coast of the United States cannot be simplified as “a flight over the big blue ocean.” After many hours of layovers and airplane food, I was just ready to lie down on any flat horizontal surface and take a nap. When the airline attendant let us know that we were preparing for descent into the Charles de Gaulle Airport, I was over-joyed with excitement until it truly hit me: I was about to live in a country whose language I had never even heard spoken before.

Many people choose to go abroad to immerse themselves into a language or culture that they have studied throughout their educational career; however, I took on the challenge of going to France completely blind. I met the other American students who would be in the program with me, they had all studied French for 3-7 years, and they commended my adventurous nature in taking on this challenge. The first thing we all did after landing in Paris and meeting our program leaders was have a huge Parisian dinner, which typically consists of up to seven courses and lasts a couple of hours. My peers thought it would help give me practice if I tried to order in French. I started to think they just wanted a good laugh, considering we had been traveling for the last 20 hours. The waiter found humor in my terrible accent, and soon just told me what I was trying to say. At this point, I could not wait to start my French intensive language course.

In my beginner French class there were many students from all over the world. This meant that the instructor could not speak any English because it was not assumed that we all have English as a common language. Learning how to speak French in a class where the instructor only speaks French may sound very difficult and, to be honest, it was intimidating on the first day. However, after the first week of class, my learning took off and improved exponentially. By never translating any word into English, I was able to learn the French words not by translation but by context. I had a different understanding of every word I learned that, in a way, my peers did not have. After the intensive language course was over, I had better listening skills than the other American students because I never had the crutch of an instructor with an American accent. It changed my perspective on both language and culture. There are many words that do not have an English translation, and that is what makes it so beautiful.

Speaking French is like singing a song. It is poetic in its nature, and the French love to remind everyone of its beauty. Sometimes in the language there will appear to be a random letter in between two words, and that is because there is. The French have worked very intentionally to create a language that flows with a beautiful rhythm. I will never lose the passion I have gained for the language. Still, to this day, I like to sit with an espresso, croissant, and orange juice for breakfast and email all of my French friends as if I were back in Paris.

Breanna Balleby is a junior in the Oregon State University Honors College majoring in English and International Studies and minoring in French. During Summer 2013, Breanna studied at the Centre international d’étude de la langue française (CIDEF) at the Université Catholique de l’Ouest in Angers, France through the summer intensive french language program offered by AHA International. She also detailed her term-long experience abroad in her own summer travel blog.

Weekend excursions, soirées with the moniteurs (teaching assistants), dinners with my famille d’accueil (host family), and of course mes cours (my courses) made my first experience abroad a flourishing success. All aspects of my French language proficiency (speaking, listening, writing, and reading comprehension) skyrocketed while studying abroad. Combine that with my continued appreciation and understanding of the surrounding culture française and it’s easy to see how my experience abroad was so fulfilling. To top it all off, I found it was the unexpected and spontaneous moments out and about in Angers that really enhanced my time abroad. It was at these seemingly unimportant times that I found myself fully experiencing la vie française (the French life) and practically blending in with the rest of the Angevins (people from Angers).

One of my favorite moments may appear rather mundane from an outside perspective, but to me it represented a realization of true immersion. I was waiting for the bus, as I often did while in Angers. By the way, I must take a side tangent to compliment Angers, along with the rest of France on its exceptional public transportation system. When I first arrived in Angers, my host family told me the bus would always be within six minutes of the time it was supposed to be there, up to three minutes before and up to three minutes later than the proposed time. I have to say, as a frequent rider of ligne 3 between my host home in Avrillé (a suburb of Angers) and centre-ville (downtown), I was very pleased to find that my host family’s tip was correct! It was quite an efficient transportation system and definitely made me recognize some ways we could improve our own public transit back home. Needless to say, I was a fan of irigo (the Angers transit system).

So anyway, I was waiting for the bus, right? It was a beautiful summer day, but there was an occasional downpour or two even in the warmest months of the year. Let’s just say, I came to France not knowing the word for “storm,” but left knowing very well that it is called an horage. This late-July day, I was almost to the bus stop when I felt a few raindrops on my arms that were soon accompanied by the sound of distant thunder. Within seconds, I had made it to the bus stop and the rain was pouring. It was amazing how quickly it was coming down, but what was more moving was the instant sense of community ignited by this deluge. People who had been walking along le Boulevard Foch quickly popped into the bus stop in order to escape the rain. In this moment, language was unnecessary to express the general shock and partial humor of the situation. A group of us were huddled together in that bus stop away from the beating rain and rushing wind, half smiling and half in awe of the scene before us. This moment only lasted a few minutes, but it is much more powerful to me than just getting stuck outside during an unexpected horage. At that time, everyone who piled into the bus stop was similar, and we transcended the normal roles of Angevin, foreigner, student, passerby, etc. As simple as it was from an outside perspective, it was one of the first times where my identity as “a student from the United States temporarily living in France” disappeared momentarily, and we all became “some people who happened to be outside during a passing horage.”

This experience marked the beginning of a grand appreciation for living in the moment. From that point on, I continued to search the beauty of simplistic or routine qualities of life in Angers. On Saturday, I went to the local marché en plein air (Farmer’s Market). I tried sushi for the first time ever with my French friend, Anne-Claire. I visited le Musée des Beaux-Arts (the local art museum) not once, but three times, after finding out that admission was free for students. During my one week off from classes, I even figured out how to get a library card at the municipal library! Lastly, I would always take up the opportunity to walk around Angers whether I was on my way home from the university, wandering downtown, or exploring the beautiful riverside park behind my host family’s house. Overall, it was these experiences that helped me fully integrate into the Angevin culture. By focusing on these serendipitous and passing moments, I transitioned from being an outsider and a tourist to becoming a participatory and understanding student of la vie angevine.

It is this quality of life, more than anything that I’ve taken away with me from studying abroad in Angers. So now, no matter where I am in the world, I have continued (and plan to continue!) to fully participate in and reflect on those seemingly unimportant moments. These preciously simple instances of day-to-day life should be appreciated for the potential of adventure, spontaneity, and/or even just a possibility of a shared human experience that lies within.

Natasha Badaa is a senior at Oregon State University. She is studying Business Management and French. During Fall 2012, Natasha studied abroad at Grenoble Ecole de Management in France through API.

During my study abroad experience in Grenoble, France, I had one goal: do something every day that scares me. Although I was a thousand miles away from what I called home, I dared myself to go outside my comfort zone in a foreign country and a foreign language. One of my favorite memories related to achieving my goal happened during a weekend trip to Marseilles, France with my friends. Marseilles is famous for the Calanques, which are a beautiful set of cliffs that extend off the coast. Tourists travel from near and far to hike the cliffs down to the Mediterranean Sea and swim in the private lagoons. My friends and I traveled by bus to the trailhead and hiked for over an hour to this unbelievable swimming spot surrounded by cliffs. There was something special about this place we found in the Calanques in the south of France. It was a place to escape from reality and immerse ourselves in the scenery of the rocks and sea. Climb one of the cliffs and perch up there for a while. Admire the humbling view. You’ll quickly see what I mean. The view extended for miles and miles above the clear, aquamarine water.

Tourists lined the rocks, jumping off one by one into the sea. Terrified of the prospect, I was determined to try it anyways. My friends and I climbed a huge cliff that was nearly 15 meters tall. I was shaking with the fear of slipping and falling. Frozen in this fear, I perched on the rock and refused to jump. It was not until my friend climbed back up and convinced me that I could do this. She reminded me about how great it would feel to accomplish something I was afraid of. Together we jumped off that cliff, together into the deep blue water.

My time abroad meant conquering fears and accomplishing goals that I never dreamed were possible. In five months, I traveled to new countries, became fluent in a language, hiked mountains in the Alps and jumped off cliffs in the Mediterranean Sea. I made friends with locals, went wine tasting in the south of France, and learned more about myself than expected. Studying abroad has changed my life in more ways than I could have predicted. I learned independence and confidence. I learned culture, American and otherwise. My biggest piece of advice to anyone who wants to study abroad is this: do not hesitate about anything. Be brave and jump off cliffs.

OSU Abroad

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Tag Archives: France

Meet a Resident Director: Sylvie Brugerolle

The Voyage of a Lifetime

Meet a Resident Director: Laurie

Meet a Resident Director: Marie

Lost in Translation in Paris

Joie de vivre: Discovering the “Joy of Life” in Angers

Conquering the Calanques

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