It was kind of by chance that Fanny ended up at an American university. What started as a failed plan, quickly turned into a new opportunity. Two years after signing up to the Go Campus programme and a year after landing in Utah, Fanny is now convinced that she made the right decision by choosing to study in the US rather than in France. The financial sacrifices that her parents had to make are certainly paying off, in terms of her well-being and her future.
How did this idea of studying in the US come about?
Fanny – I had seen quite a few posts on social media from students who had spent a year at a high school in the US. Studying at an American high school interested me straight away…a slice of the American dream. So, I started to do some research online where I soon discovered PIE (which looked super reputable) and so I decided to just go with your organisation. Yet I soon realised that I was just a few days too old for the programme since I was born on 4th march, and you needed a birthday after the 15th march. Seeing as I had already stuck my hand in the cookie jar so to speak, I didn’t want to stop the process there. I therefore toyed between the two other options: Au-pair and University. PIE/Go Campus was the only organisation that was offering a university programme…and the reviews were great!
So, you saw university as kind of like a last resort, a replacement for a high school?
Yeah, I guess. Let’s just say that one thing led to another, and I decided to make the most of the opportunity at hand. If I hadn’t been so interested in the high school programme, I wouldn’t have even considered going to university in America – it just seemed way too expensive for me.
So that’s why you toyed with the idea of doing the Au-Pair program?
Exactly. The Au-Pair programme cost close to nothing. And although I was surprised by the cost of university (it was a lot cheaper than I initially thought), it was still a big investment –it was a lot of money compared to Au-pairing. It really weighed on me that I would have to put this kind of financial burden on my parents. I was ready to just take care of kids, but since my mom could see that I was really keen to pursue university studies, she encouraged me to make my own interests a priority.
Two years later, do you regret not going to an American high school?
No. I wouldn’t say that. I think my first year at university has been relatively easy so I think on an academic level, studying at a high school wouldn’t have been challenging enough for me. I ultimately discovered that a year at university also offered me a lot more opportunities and continuity. If I did the high school programme after already getting my diploma, my studies would have been interrupted.
There seems to be a little bit of regret, nonetheless?
No. It’s more just like a lingering thought at the back of my head. I love being here in the US, but I do often think that I could have just carried on with my studies in France which would have been more affordable for my parents, and I wouldn’t have needed to take out a student loan.
You do however come from Martinque, coming to France would have also been expensive?
Yeah, you’re right but I do have family that I could have probably stayed with. And given that I study literature, the university fees wouldn’t have been that much. This isn’t the same for other subjects (Editor’s note: especially for business)
Take us back to the application and registration process. Registration is quite complicated and can be even more challenging for an American student in comparison to a French student. The process is particularly time consuming and uncertain: it’s very stressful for seniors. Once you made the decision to study in the US, how did you find the registration process? Was it that stressful?
Not at all honestly. It was really easy. Since my parents don’t speak any English, I had to do it all alone: research, application, follow-ups etc. But Go Campus was a great help: Meghan (the programme manager) really supported me. It was all crystal clear from the documents I needed to complete to the costs (Editor’s note: Go Campus really simplifies the application process by providing individual support to each candidate and by letting them – unlike for American students – submit just one application to all universities). In terms of application, it was honestly 5/5!
You are now a student at Southern Utah University, Utah. Why did you choose this university?
SUU was on my final list. The university fees and the scholarship were very important criteria…as well as the buildings. I really liked the colours, the ambiance! I looked at everything I could find online and on the Go Campus website. I tried to overlook SUU’s location (next to the Rocky Mountains). I was afraid of the winter, the snow and the cold. Cedar City is also quite a small city, and you can feel a bit isolated if you don’t have a car.
Can you leave the university and travel?
I have visited the national parks and did a road trip with several other students where we visited Boston, New York and Toronto. You need to find other people that have similar interests to travel, and after that everything is good!
What would you rate the university’s welcome and the quality of their services (administrative help, support etc.) upon your arrival?
That is without a doubt, a 5/5. They are super attentive. They really adapt to everyone’s individual needs. The freshman orientation days are so well thought out and massively help you…honestly if you have a problem (with housing, registration, transport, lessons…whatever it may be) they are super attentive.
What about housing?
It’s good. For my sophomore year, I’m in a big apartment with 10 flat mates. There are two of us in each room and we have 5 bathrooms! I primarily live with Americans as well as a girl from Honduras and one from Turkmenistan. We all get along quite well. The buildings and the rooms aren’t always super clean, especially the kitchens in Cedar Hall, but you can only really blame the students for that.
Circling back to your studies, what is your major?
English. I began with quite basic lessons: one for learning how to write an essay, another for grammar which focused on different writing styles (scientific, literary, technical etc.). I then decided to focus more specifically on literature. But when I saw what this entailed, I leaned more towards ‘Emphasis Creative Writing’, which suited me better and offered me more opportunities.
So changing your major is quite simple then?
Yes, especially since we have to take some general studies alongside our major. In the first semester, I took history, geography as well as an integration class into American culture. While in my second semester, I studied anthropology, nutrition, and cinema. It was the cinema class that particularly interested me and encouraged me to turn towards creative writing. By having to take these general modules, some people discover a new subject (or skills) and go on to totally change their major.
Did you already have the idea in your head of changing to screenwriting or not at all?
Let’s just say that I liked cinema and photography, and I had already created and directed my own short films. However, by taking a cinema class, I realised that it could be its own stand-alone subject – one that I could combine with my more traditional literature studies and that could really lead to something.
Lead to what?
Two potential career paths are starting to take shape the further along I get into my studies: one of an assistant editor, and the other being more to do with adaptation (literature into cinema). The advantage here is that I can certainly pursue both. Cinema and creative writing complement each other, and you can combine the two.
Do you think this would have been possible in France?
No, it’s completely different compared to that. In France, your academic career is not as tailored to your individual needs, there are fewer links between different subjects and less opportunities to change the direction of your studies. In the US, there is less rigidity, and therefore greater interaction, links and accessibility between different subject areas. It’s one of the biggest advantages of American universities.
What are some other advantages?
I’ve noticed that American universities offer their students a lot more opportunities than they do in France, which is especially obvious in my case (literature and cinema studies). Circling back to what we spoke about earlier, the financial investment is an important thing to note. American campuses really give you access to their great networks and support. When it comes to that, there’s no real comparison to France and it’s definitely something to consider when looking at the cost of education.
Give us some examples of where you really experience this?
For instance, I just got an offer to join the NFLS program. It’s an honours program that would give me ongoing support for the entirety of my studies with close guidance and additional scholarship opportunities. I have to attend some meetings about it today and I am hopeful that I’ll be accepted. The more interdisciplinary side of the university system – with all these different links between classes– like we just spoke about –makes it easy to progress in our studies, to build up our networks and ensures that we don’t just stick to one narrow subject area. In France, I would have had a tough time stepping out of purely literary studies and combining literature and cinema like I have done here.
What are some other significant differences between the two systems?
The American universities also try to include a more practical aspect. At the end of semester, for my cinema class, we were asked to make a short film on a subject of our choice. I wrote and directed my own fictional story (the story of a young girl who seemingly has everything going for her, but who is actually hiding her true suffering). In terms of settling into campus life, I was able to also create a short video about my first semester at SUU.
What sets the American system apart in terms of teaching?
Their aim is to do the most they possibly can to guarantee student success. The teachers are there to help us, very attentive and caring. They don’t want to make us feel uncomfortable. I must admit that I have only experienced this in the US. They are always nearby; but not in a weird way, they just want to make sure that we are getting on well and aren’t left struggling. I said previously that the classes were relatively simple, but the teachers still give us a fair amount of work. We have around 15 hours of lessons per week, but each class requires 2 to 3 hours of work outside of the classroom (especially if you’re writing essays). You generally do this work before the class, and not after!
What sorts of things do students have access to?
At SUU, you have access to a super practical app that coordinates your work with the teachers; Canva Base. But what is most striking to me, is certainly the buildings, the campus’s infrastructure and everything that is available to students to study, have fun, socialise, play sports and be creative.
Are you involved in any sort of extracurriculars?
I’m a member of Color Guards. We perform with the university’s marching band and do dances and choreography while using the flag to help take the musical performance to another level. We’re an essential part of the marching band. It requires precision and a real physical effort. It’s very athletic – trust me: we do lots of training. But it is also very sociable. We get to move around and travel… the team is super nice.
It’s been just over a year since you came to SUU, have you met some nice people?
I get along really well with the girls from Color Guard – it’s super nice and we have stuff in common – and with my roommates as well. And when I first got to Las Vegas, I met an international councillor who really made me feel welcome, so I’ve stayed in contact with her. I’ve gotten to know her family and we see each other regularly.
What do you still find difficult?
Being away from my family of course…as well as the winter. The cold, the winter – it’s tough. But as long as I’ve got a support network around me, everything is fine!
Tell us about your future plans: what are you going to do next year?
I think I’ll still be at SUU. I see myself staying here until my graduation.
And in 2 years? 10 years?
I’m hoping that the university will offer me some job opportunities at a publishing company somewhere in the US…I hope that I will be able to take advantage of the right opportunity. In ten years, I still don’t know. I would really like to live somewhere else. Neither in France nor the US… I see myself living in not your average country… to do screen adaptation, in English or French…especially in English since there is more ‘material’ and more opportunities in the language.
