My academic experience is nearly the opposite in La Rochelle than in Charleston.
I was virtually shocked when I learned that I did not need to bring my laptop to class every day to complete assignments. The biggest difference for me is the amount of time that I spend in the classroom. On average, I spend about seventeen hours weekly in the classroom, between three and six hours a day.

The students in my class vary from nineteen years old to fifty, and are almost all from different countries. On the first day of class, when the professor asked why we were studying the French language it was so interesting to hear the different responses. There was a wide range from leisure, to obtaining French citizenship. Majority of students in the class do not speak any English, therefore the entire class is taught solely in French. At first, it was difficult to grasp all the details, but it has truly been one of the best tools to help me with my language improvement.

I am only in three different classes at La Rochelle Université, but spend nearly time and a half in class. This semester I am taking a French civilization class, general French, and a course in French gastronomy. I have my general French class four days a week, in three-hour periods, and the other two once a week for three hours as well. In my general French course, we spend a lot of time analyzing and discussing articles, literature, and recent news events. I have found this to be my favorite class because every day we can get into deep discussion, learning a lot about current events in the francophone world.

I love the difference in culture that I have seen in the classroom. Although I may spend more time in class, I do not have much work to complete at home. I have found this much more beneficial because it allows me to learn the language more fluidly. All the time with a professor and other students gives me a lot of opportunities to practice my speaking, reading, writing, and comprehension. Getting to know my classmates from all over the globe has been an incredible and very eye-opening and an incredible experience!