Education: Paris, LT

Studying with BU in Paris has been a very interesting and eye opening experience. Although it was explained to us during orientation week that our professors who are all french were encouraged to adopt teaching styles that considered more ‘American’. But even with this information there are still quite a few very noticeable differences between the classes that I am taking here and the ones I have taken at Allegheny.

First off a normal day for me would start with a 30-40 minute metro ride to school, which is typical for University students living in Paris because on campus housing is not really a thing here. Preparing for my 2 and a half hour long class I usually make myself an espresso from the espresso machine that is in the student kitchen in the BU building. The difference in the length of time of a class period is one of the major differences that I have to be eye opening. At Allegheny the longest class period that I have had has been an hour and a half long but most of my classes have only been 50 mins long. However in the Boston University program each class period is 2 and a half hours long, with a 10 to 15 min break at the 1 and a half hour mark. I have also learned that in French Universities it isn’t uncommon for classes to be up to 3 to 4 hours long. Although sitting in a classroom for that long isn’t my cup of tea, I have found that for language classes it is very useful because in that time the Professor can thoroughly cover a lot of information. However personally I have found that at a certain point my brain has a hard time keeping up with all the information being through at it.

Another difference I have noticed between Allegheny and BU Paris, is that there is a very different connection between professor and student. In the french system, what I have observed is that the professors are more critical of students. Whereas in America there is very much of a nurturing and guidance structure to schooling. Both methods have their merits but as an American learning under french professors who even though are ‘Americanizing’ their teaching methods, do come off as a little more strict and pointing more towards the flaws. Although I do find this helpful in the way that it shows me what exactly I need to work on.

In many of my assignments for class, I have been encouraged to interview my french friends to ask them about their education and plans after graduation and have learned that with the high percentage of unemployment job prospects aren’t guaranteed. So instead of going straight into the job market it is expected of students to participate in several internships before hand, which in itself is not uncommon from the way it works in the States. However there are laws making it illegal for interns to work for free, which can be a common occurrence in America. Another problem with the internship hunt as was explained to me by my friend, that I find is also a universal struggle, is that many internships require previous experience the whole point of doing an internship is to get experience to in the end finding a place to work or intern right after school is always hard. 

I feel that when I return to Allegheny I will be grateful to return to the shorter class periods. But I will miss the intercultural experience with the new teaching methods.