Mount Holyoke College Year in Montpellier

Montpellier is an ideal location for students who wish to study in a mid-sized city, where speaking French is a must and opportunities to meet French people and experience French culture abound. In addition to taking courses alongside French students at the Université Paul Valéry (UPV), students will participate in a three-day orientation in Paris, and be able to choose from a variety of cultural activities, including French cooking classes and a weekly Cinéma Club. They will also have the benefit of individual attention and advising provided by our on-site program director, Amy Loth (MHC ’94).

The City of Montpellier
Academic Program
Program Director
Housing
Fees
Requirements and Application

The City of Montpellier
The city of Montpellier, population 230,000, is the 8th largest city in France. Montpellier is the capital of the Languedoc-Roussillon region in the south of France, and is located on the Mediterranean coast. One of France's oldest and most important university cities (there are more than 80,000 students in Montpellier, in 6 state universities), it serves as an important intellectual and technological center. Montpellier's people, like the charming and historic city center, typify the warm and friendly culture of southern France.

With winding streets that date back to the Middle Ages and ultra-modern facilities such as the indoor Olympic-size swimming pool, skating rink, planetarium, municipal library and tramway system, Montpellier has something for everyone. The Philharmonic Orchestra of Montpellier and the Opera of Montpellier offer impressive discounts for students, a unique opportunity that exists only in this city that caters to its bustling student population. Every other weekend something is happening on la Place de la Comédie, such as an artisan fair or a book expo or an initiation to swing dancing. There is an animal preserve that is free to the public and a botanical garden, le Jardin des Plantes, which is the oldest in France. If all of this is not enough, Montpellier is the center for national dance, theater, film and music festivals, and is also renowned for its outstanding university system.

The beach towns of Palavas, Carnon and La Grande Motte are just a short bus ride from the center of town (15-20 minutes). Les Cevennes, the mountainous region just north of Montpellier, offers excellent day hiking around medieval villages such as Saint Guilhem le Désert. Montpellier is a hub for both train and air travel around Europe. Spain is only 3 hours by train and the Italian border is only 4 hours away. The TGV from Montpellier to Paris takes just 3 hours, making it an easy (and inexpensive, with discounted train tickets for students) weekend getaway. There are regular flights from Montpellier to London, Dublin, and many other European cities. The airport in Montpellier is located 15 minutes from the city center and there is a shuttle bus that runs every half hour. The train station is located in the center of Montpellier, a 5-minute walk from the central plaza, la Place de la Comédie.

Academic Program
Université Paul Valéry, the liberal arts campus of the University of Montpellier, is located in a 25-acre park within walking distance of downtown Montpellier. More than 19,000 students are enrolled each year at UPV, taking a wide variety of courses in the humanities, arts, and social sciences.

Students on the Mount Holyoke Program are directly enrolled at UPV alongside French students. This unique opportunity allows MHC students to experience French university life firsthand, to sample a wide variety of courses, and to make friends with French students. MHC students are fully integrated into French classes. UPV is renowned in France for its outstanding welcome and integration of foreign students into university classes. The friendly staff of the Service des Relations Internationales assists Amy Loth with the course registration process and is available to answer your questions during your year at UPV.

Students generally arrive in France in mid-August for orientation, which is followed by the Préstage, an intensive language session conducted by faculty and staff of UPV. The Préstage is designed to bring students’ French language skills to a level that will enable them to participate confidently in classes and seminars at the university. This orientation program is an excellent way for MHC students to learn about Montpellier and its environs, to perfect French writing and speaking skills, to prepare for the academic year at UPV, and to enjoy a variety of activities organized by a very fun and dynamic group of French student advisors. MHC students are housed in the university dormitories during the Préstage. Students select their year-long courses, which begin in mid-September, upon completion of the Préstage. The academic year concludes in mid-May, upon completion of all final examinations.

Program Director
The on-site program director, Amy Loth, is a 1994 graduate of Mount Holyoke College who spent her own junior year in Montpellier and subsequently returned to live in France, where she is now a permanent resident. She has been directing the program since its inception in 1998. She has taught English at Lycée Henri IV in Béziers and at the Université de Médecine in Montpellier. Amy is available throughout the year to respond to academic and practical concerns, and to help students take full advantage of their year abroad in Montpellier. Her husband Stéphane and son Nicolas also enjoy getting to know the MHC students who come to Montpellier.

Students are welcome to contact Amy at any time with questions about the program at amy.loth@univ-montp3.fr.

Housing
The MHC Program in Montpellier offers two housing options: furnished apartments or home-stay. All apartments are located within short walking distances from each other, as well as from Amy Loth's own apartment, in the historic downtown district of Montpellier. Apartments are completely furnished with beds and bed linens, tables and chairs, televisions, kitchen supplies, refrigerators, burners and ovens (so you can practice what you learn in Madame Mousseron's cooking classes!), radios, and telephones. The apartments are mostly doubles and triples with one or two bedrooms (single bedrooms are not guaranteed), a kitchen, a living room, and a bathroom with either a shower or a bathtub. You will visit the apartments upon arrival in Montpellier and Amy will assist you in September with the selection process of your roommate(s) and apartment.

The homestay option offers students a unique perspective on French culture, and we encourage students to consider this alternative to apartment living. Students will experience first-hand the ways in which family life reflects cultural (and personal) differences, from attitudes toward food and privacy to socio-economic factors that affect one’s daily life. Students who are interested in a homestay should consult with Amy Loth upon their acceptance to the program.

Fees
Program Fee 2007-08 (fee for 2008-09 to be announced in Spring 2008): The program fee is $17,845, which includes round-trip airfare from New York to Paris, one-way transportation from Paris to Montpellier, three-day Paris stay (including bed and breakfast, excursions, day pass to museums & monuments), Préstage expenses (tuition, housing, meals, activities and excursions), Université Paul Valéry orientation, tuition and fees for the academic year, Montpellier American library membership, services of On-Site Director, transcript services, Mountain Day plus a Spring semester excursion, holiday events, French cooking classes, and weekly Cinema Club. Students will be responsible for meals on some excursions, for lunches and dinners in Paris at the end of August, and for breakfast every day during the Préstage.

Housing Fee 2007-08 (fee for 2008-09 to be announced in Spring 2008):
The cost of housing (including rent, taxes, and utilities) for the academic year is an additional $10,125 for the Apartment Option or $13,625 for the Homestay Option. The additional cost of the Homestay option takes into account the fact that most meals will be provided, with the exception of daily lunch and two dinners per week.

Not included in the program and housing fees are meals (for students living in apartments), books, personal and miscellaneous expenses, additional travel, etc. Students should budget a minimum of $4,925 to cover these costs (somewhat less for the Homestay Option), and should expect to spend more if they plan to travel extensively.

Eligible students may expect to use appropriate state and federal financial aid, as well as other outside resources, to participate in the program. Eligible Mount Holyoke students selected for the program may use their Mount Holyoke aid to do so; see the Financial Planning section of our web site for details. All students who expect to receive financial aid to participate in the program must submit the Application for Mount Holyoke Laurel Fellowships for Off-Campus Study according to the stated deadline or they will not be eligible for any financial assistance from the College.

Requirements and Application
Students must meet Mount Holyoke’s general requirements for academic leave of absence, including a minimum cumulative grade point average of 2.7, that they not be significantly behind in credits, that they present a plan of study abroad that will be suitable to our curriculum and enable them to remain on track to graduate on schedule. They must also have a minimum grade point average in French of 3.0, and meet the French Department’s requirements for study in a Francophone country: they must take at least one four-credit course in French each semester of their first and second years, and must complete at least one course in culture and literature at the 200 level (215, 219, 225, or 230) prior to their departure for France.

All students are required to have health and medical insurance that will cover them in France (the Mount Holyoke student health insurance plan is available for this purpose). Students who have particular health or medical concerns or requirements are encouraged to discuss them with us in advance so that we can determine whether appropriate resources are available in Montpellier.

Applications are generally due in early December for the following academic year; see Deadlines for details.