Making it to Paris is so gratifying after all the work you put in to get there, but be prepared because the work isn't over! Here are some things that will hopefully make the process a little smoother:
First off, something I didn't know was that international airlines are SOOO much better than the domestic ones. Book one if you have the choice! Also, I would highly recommend arriving in the morning or afternoon on a weekday (you will not get much done after about 4pm and definitely not on a weekend) and arranging a shuttle from the airport. The welcome guide you will get sent mentions a shuttle (Read all of it by the way), but you have to be proactive in order to actually get it. Email your exchange coordinators at RMS, and they will send you a form you must fill out and send back. If they don't respond, keep trying. Anyway, once you get to France:
-Make sure you have a lot of cash on you! Some places (including my residence) cannot process my credit card because their machine requires one with a chip, which ours do not have. At the stores it is generally not a problem though. Anyway, just bring enough cash for your shuttle ride, your security deposit, your first month's rent, and some more just in case. Keep all your copies of things handy as well since you will need them when you check in.
This bullet point also works for orientation day. Don't assume that you can pay with card here for the bureaucratic stuff. You will need a lot of money for the health insurance (mine was 220 Euros) on your orientation day. Even if you have private insurance in the US, you will still have to purchase this. You will also need housing insurance (mine was 68 Euros). Again, bring your passport, visa, and all your copies of things with you on orientation day.
DON'T GET CASH AT MONEY EXCHANGE PLACES! They rip you off! Get it from your bank for the cash you need ahead of time (you have to wait a few business days so do it in advance!) and get your cash from an ATM in France for the cash you need here. That way you get the bank's rate which is much better.
-Know some key French Phrases! I'm not saying you need to be anywhere close to fluent or be able to understand a lot, but know how to ask things like where the store is because you need toilet paper for your room. Just buy the "Idiot's Guide to French Phrases" and you should be good. Don't expect people to speak English here like they do in Paris. Before I got to RMS and met the other international students and coordinators, I was here for 5 days and only met 4 people who could slightly communicate in French. Just stay patient and friendly, and get used to hand symbols. Once you start school it is a different story though because most of the student body is international and English is their main form of communication.
-Bring outlet adapters/ converters! Buy them before you get here, because you don't want your electronics to die while you are trying to figure out if you can drink the water (which you can) and where to buy a towel/sheets for your bed (which I would recommend just bringing with you). The outlets here are 220, and in the US they are 110, so you will need a voltage converter that you can plug stuff into so they don't fry. For your computer it is a little different. I brought regular 2-prong adapters, so my 3-prong computer plug did not fit into it and I could not charge it. I was without email for 3 days before I was able to find a place that sold the kind I needed (FNAC!) It turns out I did not need a voltage converter because on the back of that little box that is on my power cord, it says "input 100-240V," so all I needed was something to convert the french plug to a 3-prong US plug. If your cord does not have that little box though, don't try to plug it in without a voltage converter!
-Get a French bank account! They will walk you through this at school, but I would highly recommend you do this as soon as you get there instead of waiting. In order to get French assistance with housing (awesome!), you need a bank account. And if you want the funding for February, you need to fill out the application (which RMS will give you directions for) before February starts. You only have a few days to get this done after school starts, so I would recommend just going to town and getting one before you even start. It takes a while to get your debit card as well, which you may need to charge your MONEO card some residences will use for laundry or their cafeteria or vending machines (because US bank cards don't have the chip I mentioned). I just got my bank card yesterday and it is 12 days after school started and 17 days after I got here...I am just glad I brought enough clothes to last me this long! You will need to bring your passport and visa (and your copy of the passport and visa), your written proof of staying at your residence (you will have to ask for this), and your proof of inscription at RMS (They give this to you on your orientation day, but I would see if you can get it sooner. Go to the RMS campus 1 to talk to the international coordinators and they should be able to help you. If you can't get that early, you will have to wait to get your bank card, so bring a lot of underwear and socks.)
I have been here two weeks and I still have pending items that need to be done for my health insurance, funding for my apartment, etc. My best advice is to be patient and make friends quickly with the other exchange students, because they will all be as lost as you! Also, ask a lot of questions from your coordinators if you are stuck. They are VERY helpful and can get you going in the right direction.
Now that the administrative junk is addressed, it is time to just enjoy RMS. There are so many things that they plan for you and things you can do to get involved. The international group plans trips, parties, and dinners for you, so I would go to as many of those as you can! My next blogs will hopefully be more interesting because I will get to talk about the fun stuff! :)
Wednesday, February 8, 2012
Paperwork, paperwork...and still in the U.S.A.
Since getting to France, I have realized that the title I chose for this blog, "Let's see if I can figure this out," is not only fitting for my start as a blogger, but also for my slightly chaotic start to life in France. People were not lying when they said France was a beautiful bbureaucratic mess! Hopefully the things I write about as I reminisce over the past two weeks, along with my posts in the future, will help anyone who is motivated enough to dig through the complications in order to receive the truly amazing prize of studying in Reims, France.
So let's start by sorting out all of the complications while you are still in the United States. Don't get discouraged when it seems like a lot of work. It is more work to go to France than the other options available, but it is worth it once you get here! Make sure you start a folder and a checklist of all the things you need to accomplish and the dates you need to accomplish them by...because believe me there are many! People should definitely start by going to this website: http://www.consulfrance-sanfrancisco.org/spip.php?article1800#Long-stay-visa-and-residence. Start looking at this as soon as you know you will study abroad, because as soon as you get your acceptance letter from RMS, you will need to get moving!! Pay VERY close attention to the list of documents you need to prepare, and bring double of everything. When it comes to your identification picture, instead of only getting one photo, get FOUR, because you will need two when you get to your residence in France. When it comes to your passport (and visa once you actually receive it!), I am not exaggerating when I say you should print of SIX copies of each. This is because you will need them for a bunch of different processes when you get to France as well.
You will notice on this website that there is a link to Campus France in step 3. You should start your process with Campus France at the beginning of the Semester BEFORE you study abroad. You must apply to Campus France before you apply for your visa, and you can't really do anything to advance your progress until you register with Campus France, pay them, and get the go-ahead from them to start your visa process. The website with the process you need to go through before even applying to your visa is: http://www.usa.campusfrance.org/en/page/study-abroad-or-exchange-students-0, and more information on Campus France can be found here: http://www.usa.campusfrance.org/en. Read, Read, Read!! Prepare yourself so you know what to expect.
After you have completed the Campus France steps and gotten all your documents in order, you will actually need to physically go to the French Consulate in San Francisco. (This is assuming you are a Hawaii, Washington, Oregon, or Northern California resident. If you are a resident of somewhere else, you will need to research where the French Consulate is that you must go to). Make sure you leave yourself plenty of time in San Francisco to get to the Consulate. You do not need to stay the night there because you have a scheduled appointment time, but leave yourself a few hours both before and after your appointment time, just in case. It is really easy to get to the Consulate...just look up the address and get off at the corresponding BART station (the tram that leaves directly from the airport...by the way every city needs one of these!) The Consulate will send you your passport 2-4 weeks after your appointment, so make sure you are not in France yet. Bring a self-addressed envelope if you do not want to be overcharged by FedEx for the shipping.
PHEW! After all this...you actually get to go to France!
So let's start by sorting out all of the complications while you are still in the United States. Don't get discouraged when it seems like a lot of work. It is more work to go to France than the other options available, but it is worth it once you get here! Make sure you start a folder and a checklist of all the things you need to accomplish and the dates you need to accomplish them by...because believe me there are many! People should definitely start by going to this website: http://www.consulfrance-sanfrancisco.org/spip.php?article1800#Long-stay-visa-and-residence. Start looking at this as soon as you know you will study abroad, because as soon as you get your acceptance letter from RMS, you will need to get moving!! Pay VERY close attention to the list of documents you need to prepare, and bring double of everything. When it comes to your identification picture, instead of only getting one photo, get FOUR, because you will need two when you get to your residence in France. When it comes to your passport (and visa once you actually receive it!), I am not exaggerating when I say you should print of SIX copies of each. This is because you will need them for a bunch of different processes when you get to France as well.
You will notice on this website that there is a link to Campus France in step 3. You should start your process with Campus France at the beginning of the Semester BEFORE you study abroad. You must apply to Campus France before you apply for your visa, and you can't really do anything to advance your progress until you register with Campus France, pay them, and get the go-ahead from them to start your visa process. The website with the process you need to go through before even applying to your visa is: http://www.usa.campusfrance.org/en/page/study-abroad-or-exchange-students-0, and more information on Campus France can be found here: http://www.usa.campusfrance.org/en. Read, Read, Read!! Prepare yourself so you know what to expect.
After you have completed the Campus France steps and gotten all your documents in order, you will actually need to physically go to the French Consulate in San Francisco. (This is assuming you are a Hawaii, Washington, Oregon, or Northern California resident. If you are a resident of somewhere else, you will need to research where the French Consulate is that you must go to). Make sure you leave yourself plenty of time in San Francisco to get to the Consulate. You do not need to stay the night there because you have a scheduled appointment time, but leave yourself a few hours both before and after your appointment time, just in case. It is really easy to get to the Consulate...just look up the address and get off at the corresponding BART station (the tram that leaves directly from the airport...by the way every city needs one of these!) The Consulate will send you your passport 2-4 weeks after your appointment, so make sure you are not in France yet. Bring a self-addressed envelope if you do not want to be overcharged by FedEx for the shipping.
PHEW! After all this...you actually get to go to France!
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