American University in Paris

My experience at the American University of Paris has been nothing short of a complete waste of my time, and an egregious, regrettable expenditure of my money. In coming to this school, I was excited. It was a university that offered a unique living and  traveling experience, while also allowing me space to get a degree that I liked. What could go wrong?
So, so many things.
First, let me preface this by saying I’m a transfer student, so I’ve had college experience. I’m not fresh out of high school and taken off guard by the new aspects of higher education. I know what university procedures look like, and how to manage them efficiently. 
This school is 100% a scam. (Most of the students call it as much under their breath within only a few months of attending it.) I’m not saying that the education itself will be invalid in any way after a degree is secured. Rather, I mean to say that the amount of money the American University of Paris demands as tuition is absolutely absurd, especially for the poor experiences being given. The school has weirdly strict rules that are not accommodating for students with health issues of any kind, has different features that are meant to help students scattered all around Paris (which makes it hard for them to be impactful/reassuring at all), and generally seems curated only for the type of person who is very financially, mentally, and physically sound, and stable (ie: privileged and without a care of their own in the world).
Not to mention the difficulties the school brings about when it comes to living in Paris. They set you up with housing and banking services that make the school come across as helpful. Then, a couple months later, everything comes tumbling down. The housing service is wrought with issues. They’re so bad they had to change their name to “BlueStripe” this past year because the organization’s original name “Comforts of Home” had so much bad press they just ditched the name all together. The bank — Societe Generale — is a joke.  They randomly cap how much money you can spend/withdraw, the bank card rarely works for online purchases (including things such as — surprise! — paying rent!), and their technology system is wholly and entirely inefficient. The banking agents are rude (and I’ve spoken to many of them, not just one, and in many different locations) and unhelpful, and ultimately leave you feeling beaten down and dejected.
Most of the students at this school complain about the tuition and how it’s a scam, or are using AUP as a stepping stone to transfer to a different French establishment, because they hate AUP too much to want to stay. I think I’ve met only one student so far who has said they actually like the place.

Plus, AUP itself has awful policies. You’re only allowed to miss four classes per semester (which, for someone like me who battles severe mental illness, can be incredibly debilitating in the face of a degree), you MUST use their recommended housing services when you first arrive (which, again, is an insane amount of money for terrible service and a lot of heartache), and weather/social conditions don’t allow any leniency. (One time there was a strike and NONE of the public transport was working. I live fifty minutes away from school by the metro and couldn’t make it to class and was still marked absent and, therefore, lost one of my four possible absences due to something ENTIRELY out of my control.) There’s staff drama all the time, the professor’s are mediocre (there’s a healthy mix of good and bad professor’s, I’d say— Which is mediocre at BEST when considering the price of tuition), and ultimately the entirety of the student experience here is lined by impossible monetary demands, and oversight.

Look— I know what AUP looks like. A school of dreams. So many different nationalities, and options. The school comes across as a team of people who seem helpful, and eager to help students create stories of beauty! But save your money. There are educational institutions abroad that are far more worth your time and money, I promise. AUP leaves its students feeling dejected, drained, and unseen, for a lump of money that doesn’t feel worth spending after the whole experience is said and done.