Grenoble is a city in south-east France situated at the foot of the Alps. Although our department only participates in a summer study abroad in at the Universite Stendhal in Grenoble, students could also participate in a semester or year abroad. Jackie Mitchell is the Director of the program. She takes a group of students over every other year on even years. Students may also study in Grenoble on odd years, but Madame Mitchell will not be available for those summers. Courses taken during the summer study will transfer back as electives in French toward the French minor or non-teaching major. French teacher education majors are strongly recommended to go to Angers, France, or some other semester or year-long study abroad.
For more information about Grenoble and how much it will cost go to the ISU International Studies link.

Announcements

In memory of Dr. George Petrossian

Study Abroad Scholarship in French

Click here for scholarship guidelines.

Contact Us

Jackie Mitchell
Languages, Literatures and Cultures
Campus Box 4300
Normal, IL
61790-4300

Post Study in Grenoble Testimonial

My experience in Grenoble was truly amazing. Before going I was so excited to not only go to France for the first time, but go to Europe for the first time. I had all these visions of grandeur in my head about Paris and to tell you the truth when we first got there, we were so exhausted from the plane rides, not to mention the 7 hour layover in London that it was hard to take anything in. Then, the following day it poured all day. We were all so jet lagged and tired that the first days in Paris are just memories from my camera. It was interesting in Paris, because all of us would speak with the vendors and shop owners in French and they would respond to us in English. It was a little amusing, but frustrating at the same time because we were all eager to speak French.
We certainly got our chance though because when we arrived in Grenoble the people not only expected that you spoke French, but didn't care too much that you were an American. It was the first time in my life that I was not only the minority but also was not able to fully express myself! I think this was one of the hardest challenges to overcome, but when all was said and done, I couldn't ask for a greater challenge.
The classes that we took were probably one of my favorite memories. The teaching style was so different from ours in the US but it also seemed to make so much sense. We would split the class time between discussions in class to a speech laboratory where we would work on oral and listening comprehension. I made the greatest progress here as I was able to get a better understanding of sounding out French words, knowing when certain letters were silent and comprehending the French accent. Not only that, but being the only American in my class allowed me to learn so much about other cultures and teach them about ours. I wasn't able to just default to English to get my point across or to understand what the teacher was talking about. It was such a humbling experience and left me with such a great appreciation for America (something I definitely lacked before the trip :)) Being in Grenoble gave me such great insight into how the French live on a day to day basis as well. Something that one could never get from just a trip to Paris. We had to go to the grocery store, take the trams, go to classes and venture out on the weekends. The grocery store in itself was always interesting and never ceased to bore us.
Even going out to some of the local bars and pubs was great practice in speaking French and so much fun too.
The excursions themselves were incredible and the school put together great programs. Who could ask for a better weekend than laying on the beaches in Nice, even if they were pebble beaches (something else that was a quite a culture shock).
Paris the second time around, I believe was so much better than the first. We had a better grip on not only the culture, but the language as well and communication and transportation came so much easier. It was such a great reflection on how much we had taken in being in Grenoble.
At times I felt like I had been gone for so long but when I got back I felt like it was a dream. Life there was so different and I was able to bring back aspects of it that I will never lose. I love the way they treat their environment, how the people walk everywhere they go, how everything closes on a Sunday except the open air markets, how the buildings aren't blasting with air conditioning and how the sun didn't set until 9:30 or 10:00. They are memories that will last me a lifetime, and lessons I could have never learned in my summer job at an office.

Katherine M. Wirkes