Université Paris X - Nanterre (UPX)

The Irish College doesn't give you enough freedom, and you won't integrate as well.

Try the international based subjects, the lecturers are more used to having foreign students and seem to mark easier in oral exams.

Be aware that the majority of Erasmus students in Nanterre are German, and come under a special course where they have had instruction in French law. This means that the concept of Erasmus doesn't really exist, and you're marked much harder. Also, the support system is non-existant when things go wrong.

If something goes wrong, there is no support system in place. I got seriously ill and had to come home for a month, and neither my home nor host university helped me in any way, or offered me advice. I got no compensation in my exams, which I failed, then had to work extra hard in the second semester to make up the marks. Also, photocopy every official document you have at least 10 times, and bring a lot of passport photos, you need them for everything!

The university itself isn't in a good area, but it's very accessible from Paris. There's a big international community, and there is a good sports centre on campus, with a swimming pool.

Accommodation in Paris is very expensive, but food and drink in the supermarkets is much cheaper than in Ireland. Nightclubs and drinking in bars also costs more.