A group of students from Texas State University were at Rennes 2 for the summer-immersion program at the CIREFE. During their stay, they had the chance to visits the regional sites and the city of Rennes. Here’s what they told us at the end of their stay.
"I’ve been abroad plenty of times, mostly with the military, but this is the first time I’ve been with my school. The classes here were hard, definitely harder than my courses back in the States, but I think it’s a good thing to be challenged. You just have to learn to adapt quickly. I also found it really interesting to see people from all over the world here studying the language, which to me is great. Sometimes understanding people with different accents can be challenging, but it’s the same thing in the real world. We’re better off getting our ears used to the different variations in order to be able to communicate and understand people in the rest of the world. Outside of class, there was never a day where I would just stay in my room and think I don’t have anything to do. I was constantly out and about seeing and doing things. I love Rennes! It’s not Paris, but it’s not small village either. There are plenty of things to do here, to explore. "
Sanchez, International Studies Major, French Minor
"This is my second year studying abroad but what I like about this particular program is how you get to meet students from so many other countries at the same time. The classes were definitely a lot harder than our classes back at home which is good. Most of the French teachers here are native French speakers. At home, a lot of our French teachers have learned French as their second language. Plus, I really liked the program because the organisers put together a list of interesting activities we could choose from outside of class. They made it pretty easy for us. Rennes definitely seems like a fun college town and I would definitely think about coming back."
Katie, English Literature Major, French Minor
"I decided to learn French because, to graduate with an English degree, I needed to complete other language requirements. The obvious choice would have been Spanish because I already know it, but that would've been too easy. So I chose French. There are quite a few similarities, which helped me piece together what the professors were saying sometimes. I had taken only one semester of French before arriving. So it was a little challenging at first because the teachers just speak French to you, but then I just learned to piece it together one word at a time. I would love to continue in French and then maybe find another language to learn after that. The city of Rennes I think is beautiful all of the time but at night it looks even better, very nicely lit and calm. I even got to watch France win the World Cup and it was like a big party. It was great!"
Eduardo, Biology and English Double-Major, Chemistry Minor and focus in Creative Writing
"I was at a beginner’s level in French when I arrived here. Since I would like to do historical design and historical renovations, particularly with gothic and French designs, I decided to go to see my advisor at TSU to find a way to go to France and take French classes. It was about 2 weeks before the deadline and she told me about this study abroad program. I emailed our teacher and was accepted. It was really a simple process overall. I got the chance to explore the city as well and I’m obsessed with all of the architecture. There’s so much history - the churches are gorgeous and the parliament building, everything really. I would love to live somewhere like this. I would come back in a heartbeat and I really don’t want to leave. At first, I thought I don’t know how people can do a whole semester abroad, and now that this summer program is coming to a close, I can absolutely see myself doing a full semester program.
Chelsea, Interior Design Major
