Studying Abroad
A minimum stay of two months in a French-speaking country is required over the duration of your course. Many students opt to spend their second or third year at a university in France within the framework of an Erasmus exchange programme. There are exchange agreements between Trinity and universities in Orléans and Paris.
Residence Abroad Requirement
Students taking one or two modern languages other than English must spend not less than two months in the country of each language in order to fulfill the requirements of their course; students of Irish must spend at least the same length of time in the Gaeltacht.
The residence required for each language must be completed before the moderatorship examination in the language. Therefore if you are taking your final exams in French, either as a Junior Sophister student (Moderatorship Part I) or as a Senior Sophister (Moderatorship Part II) in the annual examination session, your residence abroad requirement must be completed before this date.
This requirement can be waived only in exceptional circumstances and with the prior approval of the schools or departments concerned. Please note that if you have not satisfied this requirement, College will withhold your exam results until you have completed your residence abroad.
Useful Information for Studying Abroad:
Accommodation in France:
Preparation : how to find accommodation on your own
Preparation is the key, particularly if you've no base in France to begin with. If you leave it too late, travelling out to Paris, Orléans or any other city in France, expecting to find somewhere, sign the various forms etc., within a week you will be in for a shock. This is decidedly not the case; you may well spend a fruitless, depressing ten days trudging around a city to no avail and the cost may be considerable.
A little preliminary research makes life much simpler.
The first point is money. Depending upon where you're going to live, rents in France vary considerably. The size of accommodation is important too. Generally, you'll get more space for your money if you opt for a larger flat, 2 or more people sharing. Studios and one-room flats are harder to come by and often very small, particularly in larger cities, especially Paris. The average will be 20m2, often less, for a studio; this is not very spacious. Facilities will vary, but generally there'll be a cuisine equipée (fridge, hob, cupboards, sink, occasionally oven) and a bathroom and toilet. Beware of the expression toilettes de palier; this will be outside your flat, possibly on a different floor, probably shared. Also, furnished flats are like gold dust. They will cost more but are clearly more attractive to foreigners as it means transporting or buying less. Unfurnished means precisely that. While there may be some furniture left, its condition may be dubious, and it is more likely to be totally bare - not even a mattress. On the plus side, cheap furniture is available from hypermarkets, second-hand shops, DIY stores, IKEA, etc. This can then either be sold on privately, or maybe to the landlord, when you leave.
There are more and more internet resources all the time in France, accommodation being no exception. The most comprehensive is De Particulier à Particulier, the internet version of the weekly magazine providing advertisements from private landlords. It covers the whole of France and is fully searchable by price and location. It is still quite rare for private individuals to have an email address; access to a fax is useful; if not, then many phone calls are needed.
Other listings: seloger.com locat.com
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Getting accommodation through agencies
The other way to go is via an agency. This has the advantage of being professional and you have greater comeback against an agency if things go wrong, but inevitably there is a price to pay. Agency fees will be calculated as a percentage of the total annual rent and can vary considerably in percentage according to area and the agency itself. It follows that the high-profile multi-office chain agencies charge more, but it is necessary to balance this with the cheap-and-nasty agency who may charge less but may also provide less. It is vital to find out what is included. Who pays for emergency repairs, eg plumbers etc? What bills are included? This is likely to be none, although ordinarily you won't pay any water rates. Rents are usually advertised toutes charges comprises or TCC to cover sundry taxes; if not, be sure to find out what these amount to. It is worth noting that an agency fee is payable once only, so if you do wish to move to another flat through the same agency later, you won't have to pay the fee again; this is of limited benefit unless you plan to stay a long time or wish to upgrade to a larger place.
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Costs and administrative details
Preliminary costs are high. Even without an agency fee, it is standard to have to pay the first month's rent immediately, and a caution or deposit equivalent to two months' rent. This caution is a damage deposit which usually you will get back provided you've not destroyed the place and do some cleaning every now and again. Damage is assessed by the état des lieux inspection. This will take place when you take possession of the apartment and you must insist that it takes place; it is vital to ensure that you point out any visible damage, however slight, at this point, and that it is noted on the état des lieux form. When you leave, a second inspection is made and any damage extra to that listed is payable, unless minor. Cost is negotiable, depending on the damage and the sympathy of the landlord or agent.
As well as the caution and rent you may well have to provide evidence you're a student (to satisfy the landlord you are responsible) as well as copies of your passport. It's possible a guarantee will be sought to show rent will be paid; this is usually a form to be signed by a parent or guardian, or your college, or whoever else may be funding you. If independent, a letter from a bank or sponsor will suffice. These aren't always asked for, and even if they are, won't be an obstacle to signing the forms. Simply explain it takes time to send the form back to Ireland and receive it, and there should be no problem.
Lastly, it is important to get contents and dégats d'eaux insurance. This will often be a condition of the contract but it is inexpensive and worthwhile should the worst happen. Often it can be arranged through your French bank, although this may be pricey. A better deal is offered by the many mutuelles which specialise in students. Often they will be represented at the universities. If not check the Yellow Pages for the nearest office.
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Bureaucracy - A final word of warning!
If you spend long enough in the country, you will soon come up against French bureaucracy; it manages to complicate every conceivable aspect of life. It is important to realise that l'administration is a law unto itself. Even the French themselves are resigned to its vagaries, and even if sympathetic to your complaints they will most likely be powerless to assist you in any practical way.
The golden rule when dealing with French officialdom is to remember that the word 'no' is not the end of the conversation; very often, it's the start of negotiations. Flattery and self-demeaning boot-licking will get you a long way. Showing you know you are inferior to even the lowest-level civil servant will go some way towards speeding things along. Complaining loudly and losing your temper will do little more than result in delays of months.
The first brush with bureaucracy is likely to occur when registering at your college or university. Myriad forms, photographs, certificates and signatures are essential.
Opening a bank account is a must if you're staying for any length of time. It is possible to live with only an Irish account, but charges are significant each time you draw money; you'll typically pay not only a commission fee for the currency exchange, but also a vague 'handling charge' for the privilege of using another country's bank's cash machines.
Opening the account is one of the less difficult administrative procedures; so long as you have the documents you need, it should take only a few minutes. Delays can be minimised by phoning in advance for an appointment, although this is not always necessary. The bank can also tell you over the phone exactly what forms etc you'll need.
Officially, in order to stay resident in France for over three months you require a Carte de Séjour. Whilst you won't be imprisoned without one, it will make life easier. As well as being a multi-purpose ID card, the main advantage is that it is essential in order to claim housing benefit, which effectively cuts your rent by up to a third. As a student you are perfectly entitled to this benefit, but actually receiving it can be a trial. An exhaustive list of forms and documentation is needed, but this will not be the end of the story. To keep delays to a minimum, the best thing to do is telephone the local Préfecture to ask what you need to present to apply for a Carte de Séjour. This is likely to include a fiche d'état civil. This form is received from your local Mairie on presentation of your birth certificate, ideally translated into French. Some may accept the English version, others not. The best thing to do is get a copy translated before leaving Ireland at the Alliance Française in Kildare Street, Dublin 2. This has to be paid for.
Once you've persuaded the Mairie to part with your fiche d'état civil you're on the way. This piece of paper shows you are legally recognised as a person by the French government. It is ESSENTIAL that the fiche is stamped 'non décédé'; otherwise it won't be accepted, as the form will be seen as a record of a dead person.
Another essential item for the Carte de Séjour is the timbre fiscal obtainable from any tabac. Again, the préfecture will tell you the amount needed. Needless to say, don't stick it on a postcard by mistake.
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