Hello (or should I say, bonjour), and welcome to my blog page! My name is Cristelle, and I’m a Junior who’s proud to say I hail from Fairfield University. I have two extremely practical majors of Music and French, but I’d prefer you don’t ask what I want to be when I grow up. I’m in the honors program back at Fairfield, and while I’m not busy practicing French with everyone I meet, I love to sing and stalk the turkeys who live all over campus.
Now that I got that basic introduction out of the way, I would just like to say that I am thrilled to be able to share my experience on a more public platform. Yes, keeping a journal for myself would be fun, but keeping a journal that anyone with internet access can see and learn from? That’s genius! I hope that my few successes and abundant mishaps help you and anyone interested in going to Aix get the most out of what I know in my heart will be an incredible journey. So let’s begin!
If you’re anything like me, you can get insanely and completely nervous when you have to do something extremely official. Like...going to the consulate for your visa! My experience with the French consulate was far less than graceful, so I’ve made up my own checklist to surviving the consulate with poise.
#1 - USE the real checklist.
It’s available on every consulate’s website for a reason! Don’t try to do everything the day before you go; there’s documents (ie. your bank statement, see #6) that need to be requested ahead of time. The night before your appointment, make sure every item on that list is checked off, ready to go, and securely in a folder or a binder so that nothing gets lost. Also, I know it’s been said one million times, but the consulate does NOT make copies. And they need copies. Of everything. Except for you; don’t bring your twin.
#2 - The front door is locked for a reason.
Do not try to pull at it multiple times even when it will not open. The security guard is a very wonderful human being, but if you get hyped up and try to take the door off the hinges, he may have to search you a little more thoroughly. Trust me, they know you’re there if you just stand outside and patiently wait.
#3 - Don’t bring your cell phone...
The consulate doesn’t allow electronics in their office, and if they see you start to play Candy Crush, they’ll ask you to leave, and then you have to come back again (and chances are, the next available appointment is four months after you’re supposed to get back from France).
#4 - ...but be sure to bring a book!
Just because you get there on time doesn’t mean you’ll be seen on time. The whole process takes about an hour and a half with everyone else there. For the socially awkward I recommend reading Les Miserables just to get yourself in the French mindset. For the daring, try to make friends with the other people in the waiting room. I sat next to a student my age who has been to 20 countries so far, and had a hilarious story about the time he tried to sell his hat for a camel in Morocco. It passes the time and makes the waiting room less awkward!
#5 - Smile for the camera!
When they say they need a “photograph”, they mean one on actual photo paper. Don’t be frugal like me and try to print it out on printer paper; it’s not legit enough for the official documents they need to process. Your best bet is going to your local pharmacy and getting a picture taken specifically for the visa. It costs around $18 for two pictures, and they’re perfectly sized for the consulate. If you do happen to forget this rule, the consulate officials usually feel generous enough to let you leave for 15 minutes and get the picture taken.
HINT - If you go to the New York consulate, the closest pharmacy is called Cyprus with a blue awning, right on the corner of 74th and Madison Ave, and the photographer is a happy guy who makes sure your hair looks good before he takes your picture. You’ll thank me later.
#6 - Be accurate with your documents.
Your “acceptance letter” isn’t the letter that says you got into IAU College. It’s actually another letter that comes with your admittance to IAU. It’s written entirely in French, and there’s a bolded address on the middle of the page. It’s confusing, but that’s the letter they need. Just to be safe, make copies of both letters and bring them with you, because you never know what they may ask for.
Regardless of how you’re proving your financial status (whether it be from your parents or your own account), you need a letter from the bank stating: 1. Your account number and 2. Your balance at the time the letter is written. All you need is to go to the bank and request it from the people in suits working at the desks. Bring your driver’s license and the card you have from that bank, and they’ll type up a letter for you. It takes less than five minutes, but this is something you can’t do the morning of the appointment.
One last (kind of) important document: your flight itinerary. I tried to bring in the confirmation email of my flight and it was not accepted. You need the receipt from the airline of your flight information, which I got by calling the airline and asking about it; the process varies with each airline. Again, try to do this at least a week before your appointment.
#7 - Dress for success
It's important to look your best going to the consulate.; it's so important they actually put some guidelines on their website. Now when I say look your best, I don't mean prom dresses, tuxes and hairstyles that probably cost more than your shoes, but business casual will suffice. Ladies, make sure you're dressed modestly, like you were going to your grandma's house for lunch. And guys, I know it's hard, but try to at least take a brush to your hair. Or at least shower, if not for the consulate at least do it for everyone who has to sit next to you in that waiting room. You're going to a government building, so just try to look like an abiding citizen.
#8 - And lastly - don’t be nervous.
Yes, it’s nerve-racking to do something like this all by yourself. All you have to do is be prepared, stay calm, and try to think of the bigger picture, you’re going to France! Getting your visa is the first step in all the adventures and stories you’ll tell everyone when you get back. None of that can happen without a visa, so be grateful to it! Being approved for a student visa is France’s way of saying, “Bienvenue [your name here]! We can’t wait to see you!”
And if for some reason you don't trust me after all of this, here's a link to the consulate's website: http://www.ambafrance-us.org/spip.php?article330
I can’t wait to share the rest of my adventures with you. Now onto my next adventure: packing! So how do I fit 20 pairs of shoes into my carry on....?
À bientôt, Cristelle
If you’re anything like me, you can get insanely and completely nervous when you have to do something extremely official. Like...going to the consulate for your visa! My experience with the French consulate was far less than graceful, so I’ve made up my own checklist to surviving the consulate with poise.
#1 - USE the real checklist.
It’s available on every consulate’s website for a reason! Don’t try to do everything the day before you go; there’s documents (ie. your bank statement, see #6) that need to be requested ahead of time. The night before your appointment, make sure every item on that list is checked off, ready to go, and securely in a folder or a binder so that nothing gets lost. Also, I know it’s been said one million times, but the consulate does NOT make copies. And they need copies. Of everything. Except for you; don’t bring your twin.
#2 - The front door is locked for a reason.
Do not try to pull at it multiple times even when it will not open. The security guard is a very wonderful human being, but if you get hyped up and try to take the door off the hinges, he may have to search you a little more thoroughly. Trust me, they know you’re there if you just stand outside and patiently wait.
#3 - Don’t bring your cell phone...
The consulate doesn’t allow electronics in their office, and if they see you start to play Candy Crush, they’ll ask you to leave, and then you have to come back again (and chances are, the next available appointment is four months after you’re supposed to get back from France).
#4 - ...but be sure to bring a book!
Just because you get there on time doesn’t mean you’ll be seen on time. The whole process takes about an hour and a half with everyone else there. For the socially awkward I recommend reading Les Miserables just to get yourself in the French mindset. For the daring, try to make friends with the other people in the waiting room. I sat next to a student my age who has been to 20 countries so far, and had a hilarious story about the time he tried to sell his hat for a camel in Morocco. It passes the time and makes the waiting room less awkward!
#5 - Smile for the camera!
When they say they need a “photograph”, they mean one on actual photo paper. Don’t be frugal like me and try to print it out on printer paper; it’s not legit enough for the official documents they need to process. Your best bet is going to your local pharmacy and getting a picture taken specifically for the visa. It costs around $18 for two pictures, and they’re perfectly sized for the consulate. If you do happen to forget this rule, the consulate officials usually feel generous enough to let you leave for 15 minutes and get the picture taken.
HINT - If you go to the New York consulate, the closest pharmacy is called Cyprus with a blue awning, right on the corner of 74th and Madison Ave, and the photographer is a happy guy who makes sure your hair looks good before he takes your picture. You’ll thank me later.
#6 - Be accurate with your documents.
Your “acceptance letter” isn’t the letter that says you got into IAU College. It’s actually another letter that comes with your admittance to IAU. It’s written entirely in French, and there’s a bolded address on the middle of the page. It’s confusing, but that’s the letter they need. Just to be safe, make copies of both letters and bring them with you, because you never know what they may ask for.
Regardless of how you’re proving your financial status (whether it be from your parents or your own account), you need a letter from the bank stating: 1. Your account number and 2. Your balance at the time the letter is written. All you need is to go to the bank and request it from the people in suits working at the desks. Bring your driver’s license and the card you have from that bank, and they’ll type up a letter for you. It takes less than five minutes, but this is something you can’t do the morning of the appointment.
One last (kind of) important document: your flight itinerary. I tried to bring in the confirmation email of my flight and it was not accepted. You need the receipt from the airline of your flight information, which I got by calling the airline and asking about it; the process varies with each airline. Again, try to do this at least a week before your appointment.
#7 - Dress for success
It's important to look your best going to the consulate.; it's so important they actually put some guidelines on their website. Now when I say look your best, I don't mean prom dresses, tuxes and hairstyles that probably cost more than your shoes, but business casual will suffice. Ladies, make sure you're dressed modestly, like you were going to your grandma's house for lunch. And guys, I know it's hard, but try to at least take a brush to your hair. Or at least shower, if not for the consulate at least do it for everyone who has to sit next to you in that waiting room. You're going to a government building, so just try to look like an abiding citizen.
#8 - And lastly - don’t be nervous.
Yes, it’s nerve-racking to do something like this all by yourself. All you have to do is be prepared, stay calm, and try to think of the bigger picture, you’re going to France! Getting your visa is the first step in all the adventures and stories you’ll tell everyone when you get back. None of that can happen without a visa, so be grateful to it! Being approved for a student visa is France’s way of saying, “Bienvenue [your name here]! We can’t wait to see you!”
And if for some reason you don't trust me after all of this, here's a link to the consulate's website: http://www.ambafrance-us.org/spip.php?article330
I can’t wait to share the rest of my adventures with you. Now onto my next adventure: packing! So how do I fit 20 pairs of shoes into my carry on....?
À bientôt, Cristelle