Adam studied in France

Adam studied International Business and French at Aston University, and spent a year studying at a business school in France

‘I had to spend part of my studies abroad in a French-speaking country and it was one of the reasons that I chose the course. I highly recommend studying abroad: you learn a lot when exposed to a foreign culture. Having to find accommodation, set up bank accounts, find a part time job and so on in a foreign country is not easy but you gain a lot.

‘I studied at EDHEC business school in Nice, and I got an Erasmus grant. It was a great place to study and I enjoyed improving my language skills, immersing myself in the culture (and the sun of course)! Skiing at weekends was a bonus.

‘While in Nice I made loads of French friends who I still keep in touch with, and I also made lots of friends that were doing the same thing as me from other universities. I suppose I studied a little bit! The whole year only counted 10% towards my degree. I realised as soon as I got to Nice that academic French you learn in the classroom does not really prepare you for living in the country. I quickly picked up the slang language and got used to how fast they speak.’

A great year

‘I didn’t do a lot of research before going abroad but I’m really glad that I ended up going to Nice because I had a great year. I was just one of four people from my course sent to Nice, so there was far less opportunity for me to speak English. I came back speaking far better French than a lot of my classmates who had been to Paris.

‘I arranged my accommodation before going, through my home university as I asked for recommendations. I paid €560 per month for a double room with a sink, a microwave and a small en-suite bathroom. It was a lot of money for a skint student but I was in central Nice! Just 10 minutes’ walk from the beach, a 30 minute bus ride from the university and the airport, and the tramway that runs right through Nice was on my doorstep.

‘The one thing that I would recommend is to just make the most of your time there. I spent loads of time at the beach, and I took advantage of being an hour away from the nearest ski resort. I made the most of being in central Europe and travelled to Monaco regularly and to Italy.’