Université de Savoie

Administration is very long winded in France and really takes time to complete, be prepared to spend alot of time in queues and then be asked to come back again with another form with money for something else! It is essential to set up a french bank account if you want to pay for rent. You are charged a minimal monthly fee for a french account which means you need to remember to close it when you leave the country.

The mobile phone companies (or at least Orange France) absolutely shaft their users by putting a time-limit on using credit - so 10€ has to be used in 2 weeks. Other than that, my family could call my landline for 2p/min (that's because they had a good deal in the UK). The university's computer service made me decide to buy a laptop (which took 2 months to arrive from Britain). I now think I could have lived without it, but the combination of inaccessible opening hours at campus (no evenings or weekends), French keyboards ("AZERTY"? WTF?) and mooching off friends meant that I decided it was the best option. Banking and stuff was OK, I was with BNP Paribas and didn't have any problems (except for with their dodgy name). I arranged my house and Responsibilité Civile insurance through them, and could use the account free throughout the Euro-zone. The Erasmus grand was a great help (about 2000€), and covered the cost of the expensive student accommodation, although the grand came a bit later than I'd have liked (November & March).

Make a plan. I didn't...and it backfired. Try to get a little job - it can help. However, if you can't - you are subsidized by the government.

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