Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne welcomes its new international students
From 11th to 15th September, a series of events called the Welcome Days were held to inform and facilitate the orientation of international students arriving in France to join Université Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne.
One week to prepare for university life in Paris
For this new academic year, nearly 450 exchange students from over 30 countries have joined the university for a semester or a full year of study. "You're about to embark on an international adventure. I wish you all a fruitful and enlightening experience", introduced Christine Neau-Leduc, president of Université Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne, during a welcome meeting held on Monday 11th September at the Lourcine campus. "Studying abroad also means exploring a new city, a new country. I hope you will make exciting discoveries, and that you will grow and blossom in this new phase of your studies", she continued, addressing the attending students. Participants were then given the opportunity to get to know the university, its services and associations, with contributions from the International Relations Department, the Sports Services, the Student Life Unit, the International Students' Association of Paris 1 (ISAP1) and the Choir of Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne. Throughout the week, some 250 students were also enrolled in French as a Foreign Language (FLE) courses run by the Language Department, to help them prepare for the beginning of classes.
Welcoming students from all over the world
250 exchange students attended the informal welcome cocktail reception held on 14th September at the Fondation Deutsch de la Meurthe of the Cité internationale universitaire de Paris (CiuP), to get to know each other and meet their international relations academic advisors. Among them was Hanna, a philosophy student from Germany: "It is my final year at university and I have always wanted to study at Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne, which is highly renowned in the fields of philosophy and sociology". Hanna, who is already planning to extend her mobility from one semester to a full year, has been fortunate enough to secure accommodation at the CiuP, where Université Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne has around 50 rooms available for foreign exchange students at master's and doctoral levels, as part of a partnership. Tancredi, who came from Università degli Studi di Milano in Italy, shares Hanna's views, adding: "I also chose to study in Paris to experience the Parisian atmosphere and enjoy the many cultural events".
While Italy, Germany and Spain form the top three countries of origin of this semester's exchange students, non-EU countries are also well represented, with many students from the USA and Canada, but also from China, South Korea and Brazil. In addition to exchange students, 170 full degree students from all over the world enrolled at Université Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne via the "Études en France" procedure were also welcomed on 12th September. Among them were Turkish, Algerian, Lebanese, Ukrainian and Senegalese students. The information meeting gave the International Relations team the opportunity to present the institution, provide guidance and answer administrative and academic questions from these students, who have come to pursue their studies in one of our departments with a view to graduating from Université Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne.
