Studying in France
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How are French academic programs organized ?
French university courses are of two basic types:
Lecture courses are given in halls seating from 100 to 1,000 students. The professor presents the subject; students take notes. Many professors prepare and distribute course outlines or lecture notes that help students prepare for exams.
Study sections (known as travaux dirigés and travaux pratiques) consist of small groups of students. In the seminar-style sections, students apply and deepen what the professor has presented in the lecture hall. Attendance is mandatory, as opposed to lecture courses, where attendance is not checked.
Tests and grading
Student performance is assessed in two ways:
. Short quizzes given throughout the semester allow instructors to check what their students have learned in each unit.
. Examinations covering all of the material presented during the semester are given at the end of each semester, generally just before the February break and again in June, before the summer break.
In the university system, courses are usually organized into modules, some of which are mandatory and some elective (optional). To earn a degree, students must complete a certain number of modules. Once a module has been completed, it counts toward a degree. Failure in one module does not in any way reduce the value of a completed module.
The academic year
In France the academic year begins in September or October and ends in May or June. The exact starting and ending dates vary from institution to institution and from program to program.
There are several breaks during the year:
2 weeks in December-January for Christmas and the New Year
2 weeks in February for winter break
2 weeks in late March–early April for the Easter break
Quite a few holidays fall in May: May 1 (Labor Day), May 8 (Victory Day, marking the end of the Second World War in Europe), Ascension Thursday, and Pentecost Monday.
Summer vacation stretches over the entire months of July and August, and sometimes includes parts of June and September as well.
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