Paris Summer Institute
Paris Summer Institute
The Paris Summer Institute provides an excellent opportunity for students with no French to live and study in Paris, the vibrant capital of France. Students will visit important historical and cultural monuments of the “city of light” and study the history and culture of France.
The program begins with a five-day tour of Brittany and Normandy where students will visit the beautiful port town of Honfleur, the stunning cliffs and beach of Étretat, the Bayeux Tapetry, the D-Day landing beaches, Mont St. Michel, and Monet’s house surrounded by beautiful water-lily ponds and gardens. The program will then travel to Paris, where students will spend four weeks studying French culture and the absorbing history and story of Paris, a place that has profoundly shaped the modern world we live in.
Normandy and Brittany
From the stunning, rugged coastline from which William the Conqueror’s ships sailed in the 11th century and to which Allied soldiers landed during WWII’s Operation Overlord, students will experience historical sites including castles and abbeys and the world-famous Bayeux Tapestry.
Paris
From the Opéra boulevards to the historic area of the Marais with its early modern architecture and designer stores, from the Cluny medieval museum to the futuristic Centre Beaubourg, planned activities provide a comprehensive introduction to Parisian life, art, and architecture. In recent years, participants have enjoyed museum tours, concerts, plays and films; walking tours of Montmartre, the île St. Louis, and the Left Bank; coffee-tasting at a specialist roastery; as well as other cultural outings and activities.
You will attend classes in English on Paris’s history and story at the l’Étoile: Centre de Langue et Vie Françaises, located in the heart of Paris.
All students enroll in the following three classes for 7 credit hours. The first class is an asynchronous, online class to be completed before the start of the program.
FREN 104 Elementary French, Overseas (1 credits) - required: Online, asynchronous basic language instruction in French to be completed at the end of the spring semester.
FREN 440 Studies in French Culture: The Story and History of Paris (3 credits) - required: An exploration of the French capital from its beginnings to the present, including its role on the world stage, in fashion, urban planning, the arts, cinema, and as a colonized and colonizing city.
FREN 381 France and the French. (3 credits): This encompasses the cultural activities of the program, including the travel portion in Normandy and Brittany, walking tours and museum visits in Paris and pays particular attention to literature, the arts, thought, politics, society, food, and customs. Meets KU’s Core 34 Global Culture.
Instead of FREN 440, Honors students will enroll in:
HNRS 492 The History and Story of Paris (3 credits): An exploration of the history of Paris throughout the centuries to the present and its role as a capital city and a center of culture, music, literature, cinema, and fashion. Topics include major figures, events, works, movements, urban planning, and ecological development.
Participants stay in hotels during the tour portion of the program and then with host families in and around Paris for the remainder of the program. The director and graduate assistant provide individual support and organized activities which are designed to ensure that each student makes the most of his/her exposure to French culture.
SAGE is dedicated to creating international engagement opportunities that meet the needs of all our students and providing resources to support you through the process of studying abroad. Study abroad is achievable for students of all identities including our BIPOC and LGBTQIA+ students, students with disabilities, and students with religious/non-religious viewpoints. Before selecting a program, consider how your identities may impact your experience abroad in unique ways and talk with your Program Coordinator about any program-specific concerns. Students with documented disabilities should discuss any accommodation needs with their Program Coordinator early in the planning process.
Check our Identity Abroad page and resources listed below for information specific to you and other students who may be on your program.
Open to students from any accredited U.S. college or university. Minimum 2.5 GPA required (exceptions considered after submission of a petition).
While there are several scholarship/funding opportunities students should explore, applicant's to this program may be eligible to apply for the Department of French, Francophone, and Italian Studies - Study Abroad Scholarship.
Bruce Hayes is a professor of French and specializes in Renaissance literature and humor studies. In addition to having spent a few years living in France, he has co-directed a dozen study-abroad programs to France. He has taken KU students on tours of Normandy many times. One of the highlights of these tours is the day when students visit both the American and German Cemeteries in Normandy, a sobering, moving experience.
Prof. Bruce Hayes
2067 Wescoe 785-864-9028
Paul Scott is a professor of French and specializes in early modern literature in addition to science fiction in French, English, and Korean. As well as having spent several years in France, including 4 years in Paris, he has led 15 study-abroad programs to Paris and Strasbourg. One highlight of this program is having coffee at Le Procope in Paris, the world's oldest coffee shops and where Benjamin Franklin and Thomas Jefferson would frequent.
Prof. Paul Scott
2054 Wescoe 785-864-9042
Patrick Herring is a PhD student and GTA in French at KU. He has dual British-French nationality and is a frequent visitor to Paris. When he was a high school teacher in the UK he led numerous study trips there. He is looking forward to accompanying the group to one of his favorite spots: the wonderfully evocative Jardin du Luxembourg, and to taking them on a historical walking tour of the nearby Quartier Latin, home of the Sorbonne and the Panthéon.
The Department of French, Francophone & Italian Studies awards multiple scholarships for this program. To learn more, check out the Department of French and Italian Scholarships.