• Designed for intermediate and advanced students (FF 203 or equivalent minimum)
• Enrollment in regular university classes available
• Internship opportunities
• Housing with French families
• Superior on-site support at the Skidmore Center
• Exposure to one of the world's most important cities

The Program

Founded in 1980, the Skidmore in Paris program is designed for upper-intermediate or advanced French language students and strives to integrate them as fully as possible into the academic, cultural, and social life of Paris. Those with upper-intermediate language skills take selected courses at the Skidmore Center. Through enrollment in Paris universities, including the Sorbonne and Nanterre, advanced students take challenging courses in the humanities, fine arts, and social sciences. A family stay and an emphasis on the cultural and social life of Paris ensure your full participation in French life. The program aims to provide a thoroughly French environment by only using French in the program center. This further maximizes the linguistic benefit of the program and aids integration into French culture. It’s an intense but unforgettable experience that will stay with you forever.

In addition, internships are available in a variety of fields for students with appropriate qualifications and experience. Skidmore interns have been placed in areas such as anthropology, banking, education, psychology, theater, television, and studio art. Year long students will find a wider range of internship possibilities than those joining us for only one semester.

The Skidmore Center

Staffed by our Resident Director and staff, the program center is located in the heart of Paris, close to la Madeleine and the historic Opéra. The program center serves as a home base for our students while they are in Paris. It houses Skidmore’s administrative offices, classrooms for program courses, study rooms for student use, computer and video facilities, and a small library. The director and staff are available throughout the semester/year to provide whatever support and assistance our students might need. Skidmore aims to use only French in the program center, maximizing the linguistic benefit of the program and integration into French culture.

"My experience in Paris this year is unbelievable. After only going home for one week at Christmas, I now plan on living here through the summer. Enrolling in the program for both semesters is a rare opportunity to really familiarize oneself with every inch of Paris, and create a life here. I truly feel like I've made Paris my own, and that my life has already been changed by this experience. While the first semester was a tough transition at times, those difficulties have only made the spring semester more incredible. My host family is one of the most positive aspects of this experience, and thanks to them I've been integrated into French culture and am well on my way to fluency. Coming from a small coastal Maine town, Paris is the first city I've fallen in love with."    
-- Julia Sortwell

• Paris - the City
• The Program
• Courses and Credits
• Orientation and Activities
• Housing
• Program Requirements and Application
• Costs
• Photo Albums
• Lifeline!
• Welcome to Paris

last updated May 17, 2006