SAI Study Abroad at the American University of Paris (Paris)

I loved my time in France and SAI made it so much easier and comfortable for me to study abroad! I had a lovely host family who were very kind and helped me improve my French. SAI and AUP also worked together to make my class a successful and meaningful experience. The professor I had at AUP was fantastic and very knowledgeable about her subject. I would highly recommend studying abroad with SAI to anyone because they made the process so smooth!

Studying abroad can be a very intimidating experience - especially in a country where you are not fluent in the language - but SAI was always there to help me. Right when I arrived, they were here to welcome me and help me take care of things like getting my metro card and figure out orientation details for the American University of Paris. Jennifer from SAI has helped me with so much, from negotiating a double-charge on my credit card, to helping me find a missing package. I didn't know anyone in Paris before studying abroad, so having a place that I could turn to when I needed help was so important. The American University of Paris is a small university with a small international (mostly American) community, so it's hard to actually immerse yourself in France's culture. The academic offerings are also limited, especially for STEM majors. However, AUP hosts a lot of community events, and of course there's so much to do in Paris that you'll never be bored. This program was truly incredible because while there is someone here who has your back, you also get to learn and experience so much for yourself. I would recommend SAI to absolutely everyone. AUP has some issues but overall is a great study abroad experience for Americans looking to go out of their comfort zone while still interacting with other Americans. I have loved every minute of my semester here and am so glad I chose to come here.

When I first arrived in Paris, I was so timid, nervous, and unsure about what I had gotten myself into. However, with the help of the SAI office, and the magnetism of the city, I soon realized that these were going to be some of the best months of my life. Studying abroad can be scary, especially in such a large city surrounded by French speakers, but I have learned so much about the world and about myself. SAI does an amazing job of balancing planned activities so that you can have those group experiences and a sort of comfort zone, but so that you also have to explore on your own and figure some things out for yourself. A lot of business students at my home university typically do not go abroad, but studying business in an international environment has been such a learning experience as well. Today, any business that you do will be international to some degree, and there is no better way to learn to navigate that landscape than going abroad. At the beginning of this experience, I was the student wanting to immediately go home, but I can tell you now after sticking it out that I recommend this experience to anyone and everyone! 10/10 would recommend SAI!!!!

I had the most amazing time in Paris thanks to SAI. They made everything so easy when it came to signing up for classes, finding an apartment, providing a cellphone and other such things. I got to have a 11 person class with some great kids both from the US and Europe and we all went to Vienna together for 4 days. SAI offers great excursions and the week long orientation before classes started was really welcome and a good way to adjust to the time difference.