Plan of Actions

Hello I am Chloe and will be going to do an ERASMUS exchange in Chambery, France for 1 semester from January to the end of May.

I have been talking to friends who have been to Chambery and other universities in France and they have given me some good advice. The french universities seem to not be as organised as over here because in France everything takes double the time to complete.

I have a friend at the moment who is in Chambery and doing 2 semesters so I have been keeping up to date with her as much as i can. When i get to Chambery, I need to set up a bank account as soon as possible and need to get my accommodation sorted out. I will probably stay in student accommodation as it is cheaper and on campus.

As i already have lived in Switzerland, Geneva for 9 months I am quite ready to go to Chambery as it will be quite similar. I hope to go skiing while I am there and make new friends as well as study hard and improve my French.

My application to go abroad has not yet been completed but I will be doing that in a few weeks and gathering my documents once the university is ready for me.

I am feeling nervous but excited at the same time, living in another country is always a new experience and I hope to make the most of my time. However, moving to France for me is not a great big challenge as I am already living abroad in Edinburgh from my home which is Spain. I also am quite an independent person as I have lived in Australia for 2 years without my parents.

Before I go:

I will ensure I have carried out my research for this new University I will be attending. I have been on the Savoie University website but unfortunately did not find as much information as I would have liked. There is no list of modules to choose from therefore I have to wait until I have enrolled into the university.

I also looked up the website for accommodation available in Chambery which is called CLOUS and is run by the University itself. It is cheaper to stay in student accommodation so I plan to hopefully stay on campus at Jacob-Bellecombette if there spaces available.

I need to organise what kind of clothes I will be packing to take because i know it is going to be very cold and there will be plenty of snow. I will ensure I pack my ski suit and snow boots to be well prepared for the winter semester. I am looking forward to being able to go on skiing trips on the weekends with the friends I make.

Once I'm there:

I will be open to socialising in French as much as I can even if I struggle to communicate with some locals. Being shy or not going out to different places or events will not fulfill my experience abroad. Being able to balance my study work load with socialising is important to me.

In terms of studying I need to work extra hard because most of my classes will not be taught in English so I need to be extra carefull. Once I organise my timetable at University I will feel a bit more relaxed so I know what I am doing and where I am going all the time.

Getting to know the town Chambery is important, even though it is a small town I should be well aquainted with where the local supermarket is and the bank etc so i can try to feel a bit more settled.