“For a foreigner, the French language is like music!”

The classes put on by UBE were very interesting. Certain classes were very easy compared to the classes which I took in my country. My favorite class was the linguistics module. I was especially drawn to getting to know typical expressions and the language’s origins but also the problems the French language faces.

The only difficulty was taking notes during class. The professors spoke quickly sometimes and I did not have time to take down all the details. But a French classmate helped me a lot by giving me her notes. The professors made no distinction between me, an international student, and the other French students, which I found positive and highly stimulating. They were very understanding each time I made a grammatical error or each time I did not understand what we had to do for homework. I was the only international student in my Information-communication department of IUT and the professors were always attentive and welcoming.

The exams were the same for French and international students. I had written and oral exams but also coursework to hand in. Some exams were easy and some were very hard sometimes. The key to success is always to revise your notes diligently, know the subject well and above all be motivated! At times I received 18 or 16 out of 20 but also 8 or 9 – it happens! But most of the time I always had more than the average and I passed the year.

Classes also allowed me to learn a specialised and technical vocabulary. Listening to the radio, music and reading in French are also good ways of perfecting the language.

I lived in a student residence hall where I paid 153 euros a month. On average I spent around 500 euros per month. The room was small but satisfactory for a student. During my free time I practiced sports, travelled and took part in plays at the International Centre for French Studies (CIEF).

Dijon is a typical French town, small but very welcoming. Maybe the people in Dijon do not smile a lot, do not realise the beauty of the architecture in Dijon and do not have the time to stop to watch the small performances in the street but nevertheless I think they live a beautiful French life and maybe, from my point of view, the sound and beauty of their language is enough for them and they do not need to stop to listen to the man who sings on the corner of the street. The French language is like music – at least for a foreigner.

Thanks to this stay abroad I feel like I have grown on a personal level – finding myself in new situations, in a foreign country, I discovered aspects to my personality which I was not aware of before. When you decide to go abroad you throw yourself into an unknown adventure and I think that the main idea that we should take from this experience is not to perfectly pronounce the word drôle (this word causes me problems) but to discover yourself, observe and analyse your behavior, your reactions in another environment which is completely unknown.

If I could do it again, I would do the same things, I would take the same decisions. Small matter where you go, you will always get an experience which will develop and enrich your personality.

I spent the summer of 2014 in Germany, after which I returned to Romania to finish my studies at the faculty of journalism.