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Studies > France > Angers > ESSCA > Review by sydneysider 
416 reviews
4.29 / 5 based on 416 reviews
Useful  |  5
sydneysider
Australian National University, Canberra, Australia
European Studies, Undergraduate, University Agreement
Academic
Course recommendations
From my perspective, an Australian 4th year student who is used to a high level of intensity and independent research, the ESSCA courses seemed quite easy and very informal. Many of the lecturers are guest lecturers, or professionals from certain industries. The course structure therefore tends to be quite random, not the same week to week. Courses dealing with the EU were quite informative. Courses such as Info Systems were let down by lack of resources and (in my opinion) a somewhat unusual teaching style from one teacher. The assessment was generally okay: the exams were mostly a fair test of ability. There seemed to be a big emphasis on group project work and Powerpoint presentations for assessment: good in that it forced students of different backgrounds to interact and work together, but poor in that too often one or two students carried the group, making the group mark an fair assessment of some individuals. Some courses were good in concept, but thin on content, some of them completely finished in only 2 or 3 days, sometimes not living up to their original potential. Again, from a 4th year student point of view, many courses were a revision of 1st, 2nd and 3rd year in Australia, surprisinigly not challenging me in the way I expected an elite French school of the calibre of ESSCA would. Nonetheless, many times I appreciated the lighter workload given that I was in a new country, surrounded by the constant culture shock of French society. The experience of simply living in France (during an election year) was the biggest education on Europe anyone could ask for.
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My academic experiences
Quality of courses
Variety of courses
Access to resources
Interaction with teachers
Interaction with international students
Interaction with local students
Personal comments
Less emphasis on group work, more emphasis on individual ability. Maybe the essence of a business school is supposed to be about "managing" and working as "a team player" blah blah, but those who expect to maintain a GPA (such as those in North America) here could be frustrated by the group projects. Generally things were okay for me (I didn't have to worry about GPA).
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My opinion of the university assessment
Exams at end of course
Exams throughout the course
Essays and/or projects at the end of course
Essays and/or projects throughout the course
Overall
Useful  |  3
sydneysider
Australian National University, Canberra, Australia
European Studies, Undergraduate, University Agreement
Expenses
Main source of funding:
Personal savings
Other sources of funding:
none
Work opportunities:
I didn't explore any work options
Personal spending habits
Perhaps my home country is generally cheaper overall, but the prices for some things in Angers, and France in general, can be ridiculous. Telephone costs were one example, France Telecom became my 'bête noir'. A pint at the James Joyce pub cost 5.50 euros (3.50 at happy hour) and this was typical. A pint in the Pub Voltaire (near Angers GPO) cost 6.50 euros. Accommodation is competitive, and as internationals going through ESSCA for an apartment the 350 euros per month was a premium for a guaranteed apartment. Compared to life in my home country (Australia) France can be quite expensive. A VAT rate of 19.6% did not help at all.
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Housing, Travel, Overall, Food, Nightlife, Telephone:
was more expensive than at home.
Accessibility of student needs
Second-hand text books
Second-hand household items
Computers / Internet
Administrative
Money from home
Personal comments
ESSCA set every international student up with a bank account at Société Générale, in rue d'Alsace. Unfortunately there was only two SocGén auto-teller machines in all Angers that would accept the bank card for cash withdrawals. French banks such as SocGen are fraught with niggly fees which are over the top, be prepared. Save by withdrawing large lumps of cash from your home bank (through Cirrus/Maestro) at the ATMs. Definitely apply for a visa longer than 6 months and apply for the 'Carte de Sejour'. This is essentially residency status, and entitles you to receive rent subsidy from the government through the Société Sociale (the "CAF"). But expect bureaucratic bungling and maybe even an unexplained rejection of your application. Again, ESSCA will help you do this. You should definitely go to the city hall of Angers and apply in person for a 'Carte Partinaire' which will entitle you to half-price bus tickets, cinema tickets, etc; a good saving. Anf get the SNCF '12-25' railcard for cut-price train tickets.
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Useful  |  2
sydneysider
Australian National University, Canberra, Australia
European Studies, Undergraduate, University Agreement
Languages
Language of instruction: English
Local language was: Different than language of instruction
Was learning English a key decision factor?
No, it wasn't.
Was learning French a key decision factor?
Yes, I wanted to improve my French
How much did you improve your French?
My level before: Everyday knowledge (shopping, directions, etc.)
My level after: At ease in most situations
Language difficulties
Social
Educational
Administrative / Institutional
Overall
Personal comments
ESSCA have a very good optional French course. The teaching was outstanding. For those who wish to intensify their language learning, there is free French classes conducted by the Angers city hall, plus more French classes to do at the Université d'Angers. I found that the French class at ESSCA was quite sufficient. As a town to live in and practice the language Angers is quite okay.
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Useful  |  10
sydneysider
Australian National University, Canberra, Australia
European Studies, Undergraduate, University Agreement
Overall
I wish I had known...
Wish I'd known that accommodation was so randomly assigned. Also wish I'd taken a railpass with me so that I could travel a little cheaper (I was over 25 so the transport situation for me was very expensive). Considered buying a vehicle but not worth it for only 6 months. And wish I'd not worried so much about French consular formalities; turned out that the French dept of immigration were very lax and not terribly worried about my immigrant status (my visa expired while they fluffed around processing my Carte de Sejour!). In fact not one French authority ever examined the inside of my passport when entering/leaving France. Just a cursory glance at the cover to check my nationality! All that after going through hell with the embassy in my own country. Residency status enabled me to get cheaper prices here and there; in hindsight I don't know if it justified the expense though (since I didn't stay longer than 6 months as it turned out).
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In my opinion:
Most people loved it.
Important factors in my choice
(1) Unimportant – (4) Very important
Academic reasons
3
Culture
3
Costs
2
Activities
2
Campus life
2
Party / people
2
Weather / location
2
Personal recommendation
Go to ESSCA if you are a business, commerce or economics student interested in European politics, and in furthering your interest in the French language (maybe even to begin learning it from scratch).
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During my experience abroad, I ...
(1) Never – (4) A lot
Became familiar with another culture
3
Traveled
2
Improved language skills
3
Met people from other countries
4
Became more independent
4
Partied a lot
4
Experienced a change in life
4
Advanced my studies & career
3
Final comments
The international office staff at ESSCA will be forever in your debt. They work quite hard so expect them to maybe take a little while to get back to you in some cases!
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Useful  |  4
sydneysider
Australian National University, Canberra, Australia
European Studies, Undergraduate, University Agreement
Student life
Describe host city:
Students equally interact with the local and student community
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Activities, Nightlife: Takes place mostly outside the university/student environment
Travel: Takes place both within and outside of the university/student environment
Personal social experience
Activities
Nightlife
Travel
Overall
Personal comments
Angers is not really a town with an amazing nightlife. Angers does have many pubs and cafes, but they are often small and pokey establishments which each feed off a very tiny number of regular customers. Most internationals during Jan-May 2002 hung out at either the James Joyce pub, the Dupon bar, or sometimes at the Sunset bar or L'Okapi. But I hardly had time for study because all the international students bonded together so well. All of us had turns in hosting house parties which were definitely the highlight of ESSCA's social life. It made for a very unique experience. Us internationals arranged a pub crawl though Angers, the concept of which seemed to be either incomprehensible or not good for business by the proprietors of some of the various small pubs (those familiar with students were more accommodating). A few reasonable dance clubs and band venues exist, but they are mostly out of town, without a car they can be hard to get to. One dance club, Le Metro, provides a free bus service from downtown Angers. During afternoons of good weather the cafes in Place du Railliement were quite relaxing to sit in for a chat and a chill out (Au Bureau or Le Theatre cafe). Beware Sundays in Angers, it can be very boring since everything is pretty much closed. The cinema "Les 400 Coups" screens many English language and foreign films in original version (with French subtitles). ESSCA's own BDE (student body) and AIESEC organise many nights out, in particular a few trips to Paris to go nightclubbing, and a few big bar nights in La Kaz (ESSCA's student bar), all of which the internationals were a big presence. I rate the social experience so high only because the internationals during my semester made such a good group and more than made up for any lack of interesting nightlife.
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Useful  |  8
sydneysider
Australian National University, Canberra, Australia
European Studies, Undergraduate, University Agreement
Housing
Type of housing: Apartment/House
Arranged by: Host university
If returning, I would choose: Apartment/House
Why?
There is no on-campus accommodation at ESSCA. The best you can opt for is the apartment in the centre of town. If you can afford it then the apartment in town is a much better option than the student residences in rue Léon Pavot (even though they are much cheaper) since the residences are a fair walk away from the town centre and are not close enough to shops and nightlife, and also have too many rules and restrictions about what you can and can't do. If possible get ESSCA to arrange an apartment as close to Place du Railliement as possible (the 'heart' of Angers). Anywhere within the centre of town is fine: this is an area bounded by the river, Bde Charles de Gaulle, Bde Foch and Bde Mitterand. You could alternatively take an apartment just across the river from the centre of town, in the quarter known as La Doutre. The international student life revolves around the centre of town and, to a lesser extent, around ESSCA's campus which is 6km west of the town centre (in the peripheral suburbs of Angers). It is almost mandatory to live around the centre of town, or face isolation from the student life.
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Personal assessment
Cost
Facilities
Location
Cleanliness
Space
Personal comments
The accommodation through ESSCA was still going through teething issues in 2002, still learning how best to manage it. They had never before accepted so many international exchange students into ESSCA in one go. ESSCA manages apartments and liaises with all the landlords on the students' behalf. The cost of 305 euros (plus 45 for utilities) seemed okay value for some apartments, but poor value for others. Possibly this was because the apartments were very different, and the different rents 'averaged' by ESSCA for ease of admin. The type of apartment you get is pretty much down to luck. Some people were extremely lucky (those in the pedestrian zones of the centre of town). Others found themselves on dark streets on the edge of the main part of town, or in dirty and/or poorly maintained buildings. ESSCA will help in cases of problems with the apartment (plumbing, heating, electrical, etc) but the response times could be slow (depending on what's wrong). Getting accommodation in Angers without the help of the school can be fraught with hassles, it's hard work if your French isn't good. The local students have a hard time finding decent accomodation so, as an exchange student, it's best to let ESSCA help you.
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