Location

Nice, France

Program Description

This 6-credit, 4-week program is open to all students who wish to experience the French Riviera while taking language, cultural, and artistic classes. Based in the beautiful city of Nice, the hub of the French Riviera by the Mediterranean Sea, the program offers on-site classes complemented by homestays with host families, providing a safe environment for our students.

The food of Provence is an integral part of this experience with weekly thematic food tastings using only local products (including wine, chocolate, fruits and confectionaries, olive oil, and cheese…) and led by experts! Students interested in gastronomy, nutrition, and hospitality will also appreciate our weekly lunch at an authentic local restaurant where we gather in smaller groups to connect and relax. We also participate in a cooking class, preparing and tasting the local specialties of Nice, and learn about table etiquette, so the art of gastronomy is explored in all its forms.

Our weekly cultural visits include participating in the traditional game of pétanque and wine tasting in a 14th-century old cellar in the picturesque village of Saint Paul de Vence, visiting the unique site of Fondation Maeght for modern art, discovering the city of Grasse, home of the French perfume industry, exploring the Picasso museum in Antibes and learning about the Belle-Epoque at the Villa Rothschild with its nine different themed gardens and decorated with olive trees, roses, waterfalls, ponds and musical fountains.

Classes for this June session take place at the Alliance Française, a world-renowned institution specializing in programs for foreigners. The Alliance offers a safe and comfortable learning environment in a private, new facility with air-conditioned smart classrooms and an exclusive café and lounge for our students to meet learners from all over the world! French language and cultural classes are offered at all levels (from beginners to advanced) with unique, on-site assignments and lectures on location, using authentic material and the expertise of our native speaker instructors. 

Students interested in completing their GenEd credits can also take a HUM 251 class, taught in English and specially crafted around the rich cultural and artistic heritage of the region (Provence-Côte d'Azur), wherein the 20th-Century many artists found inspiration: international painters (Cézanne, Chagall, Van Gogh, Matisse, Picasso), writers (Fitzgerald, Hemingway), as well as American jazz performers and dancers (Baker, Füller, Duncan).

JMU in France Program Video

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Location Description

Sports and outdoors enthusiasts will appreciate the area's legendary beaches, and the Mediterranean waterfront with paths on which to walk, run, or ride a bike by the sea. Other possible activities include hiking, snorkeling, canyoning, hand-gliding, or rafting. The Alliance Française, where classes are held, is only 10 minutes away from either the train station or the Promenade des Anglais (seafront boardwalk).

During their free time (students will enjoy all their weekends off) students will be able to enjoy the many free museums of the city, discover the outdoor food and flower markets, and other cultural activities such as the National Fête de la Musique (June 21st), film festivals and many other artistic and sport festivities in Nice, Cannes, Saint Tropez, and in the glamorous city of Monaco, just 10ms away from Nice. The city offers great transportation services such as trains, buses, tramways, bikes, and Uber service.

Director

Doe Polanz | polanzdx@jmu.edu | World Languages and Cultures

Accommodations

Students stay with host families in furnished apartments and houses with internet access and laundry facilities. Each student can be placed individually in a family (private room) or placed with another student from the program in the same room. All host families are carefully selected by the Alliance française de Nice, and reside in the vicinity of the school. We do our very best to accommodate student's lifestyle or health-related requests such as nonsmoking environments or special dietary needs. Students will fill out a questionnaire to ensure that they are matched with the best family for them. Upon arrival, students will be staying for 2 days in a three star hotel to relax and discover the city on their first weekend.

Students will be given breakfast and dinner every day of the program in their host family accommodations. Students are invited to a lunch group in a friendly and authentic local restaurant once a week and should plan to spend their own money the rest of the week to cover the cost of lunch. The program also covers the cooking class and all weekly food tastings with food gift bags for students. Depending on the number of students, we invite every student to a “repas gastronomique”, a 6 courses dinner in a Michelin star restaurant situated in a historical palace hotel by the sea and prepared by one of the few French female head chefs in the country. This once-in-a lifetime glamorous experience will be explained beforehand during a table etiquette class for our students to learn everything about manners and savoir vivre!

Additional Items to Consider

No visa required.

Students should plan to arrive on Friday the 30th (May) in the afternoon. Program ends on Friday the 27th (June) and students may leave the next day.

Only 4 miles away from the town center and accessible by a very convenient and short tramway ride, Nice’s international airport provides direct flights from/to the US and numerous major airports worldwide and is the second largest airport in France, with direct flights to many European cities.
On the following websites, you will find useful information about coming to Nice:
- Nice area visitors bureau: en.nicetourisme.com
- French Ministry of Foreign Affairs: diplomatie.gouv.fr
- Campus France Agency for foreign students: campusfrance.org

Further detailed, practical information will be provided to enrolled students at the mandatory orientation sessions in the spring.

The mandatory orientation sessions held in the spring are crucial to be better prepared to a program in immersion and cannot be missed. They are also very important for choosing a roommate and group cohesion. Since food is such an integral part of the experience, it is best to let the director know in the interview process of any allergies/restrictions/preferences.

Applicant Criteria

Applicants must have a GPA minimum of 2.0

Some French is recommended. Talk with the director directly for questions.

All undergraduate levels welcomed

Open to all majors

No prerequisites:
FR 101 and HUM 251

Prerequisites:
FR 102 | Must have successfully completed FR 101 or have taken the placement test.
FR 109 | Placement test
FR 231 | Must have successfully completed FR 102 OR FR 109 or have taken the placement test.
FR 232 | Must have successfully completed FR 231 or have taken the placement test.
FR 300 | Must have successfully completed FR 232 or have taken the placement test.
FR 308 | Must have successfully completed FR 300
FR 420A | Must have successfully completed FR 320

Open to non-JMU students.