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!
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