How can I get a job in France?

I get a lot of questions and emails from people who ask me how I was able to live and work in France. I got a job in France by applying for a position as an English language teaching assistant offered by the French Ministry of Education. Not only do they hire English language assistants, but Spanish, German and Arabic amongst others. To see if your country is open to the program, click here.

Unless you've got a European Union passport or have an existing job with a company who has overseas offices, getting a job in France is really difficult. This is why this program is so fantastic! It allows you to work in France for 7 months and lets you experience what life is like in France.

The teaching assistantship/TAPIF program is usually open to university students or recent graduates aged between 20-30 who have a good grasp of the French language and usually have some sort of interest in teaching in the future, but this is not absolutely essential. The role involves teaching your native language to students in primary schools or secondary schools, as well sharing your country's culture.

Criteria differs between countries, so please look below at your corresponding country for specific information. 

American assistants

Australian assistants

UK

New Zealand

Canada

Ireland

Jamaica/Bahamas

Applications are open RIGHT NOW but close pretty soon! So, if living and working in France sounds like something you would love to do.. apply now!

A week in the life of an English teaching assistant in France

I really wanted to do this post just so that future assistants or applicants can get a real feel of what day to day life is like for an English assistant in France. 

MONDAY

I'm not working in my school's today, but this is usually the day I find out what topics my teacher's would like me to prepare something on for Tuesday and Thursday's classes at my main school and what I'll do for my other school on Wednesday (I get to do whatever I like with them). I brainstorm activities I think might be interesting and know exactly what I'm going to do with them before Tuesday. I prepare worksheets and slideshow presentations or find videos I think will work well. It usually takes a while to come up with activities for all your classes, but it's not an overwhelming workload and definitely gets easier as time goes on.

TUESDAY

The walk home from the bus stop

This morning, I get picked up at 7:40am by a teacher who lives in the same town as me which saves me having to catch the bus or train to school! The car ride is always a bit awkward because my French isn't awesome yet and he knows no English, so we listen to the radio in silence together. Once I get to school and 'faire la bise' with everyone, I have just enough time to print of worksheets/photocopy and cut everything up before the bell rings. Depending on if it's Week A or B, I have 3 or 4 hours of classes in the morning leaving me the afternoon free. I always have lunch at school on Tuesdays because I get a nice warm meal and dessert for a couple of euros, which is unbeatable. The whole cafeteria lunch thing is a real novelty for me every week (as we don't have this in Australia), though always proves to be a bit embarrassing because I fail at knowing the french names for the more obscure vegetables and meats, so it's always kind of a mystery what I get. This is the time where I try to talk with the other teachers and the students shout my name from across the room to say " 'ello Cora!" I usually leave towards the end of lunch to catch my bus (which is always late.. it's France!) I get home, relax, have a small dinner and then make sure everything is packed and prepared for tomorrow's lessons.

WEDNESDAY

I teach 3-4 hours at my other school in the morning and have the rest of the afternoon off. I get picked up and dropped off today which is awesome. It's kind of nice finishing early because I get to have some free time before my mega busy day on Thursday. Wednesday is usually the day where I do my shopping for the week. The supermarket, which is aptly named "Cora" is about a 5 minute walk away, which is really handy. I usually stick to a pretty strict shopping list. It's usually frozen vegetables, baguette, nutella, cereal, tomatoes, avocado, eggs, pasta, rice and tuna. It's pretty basic but keeps me full and the bank balance healthy. I carry my bags home, popping my earphones in, and it's usually the moment where I realise that I'm alone leaving in France, doing all these ordinary, wonderful things. Be it crushing autumn leaves under my footsteps or keeping my balance on the slippery snow, or breathing out steam on cold days, my little french life in all its simplicity brings a smile to my face and makes me happy. 

THURSDAY

My biggest day of the week! I work 7-8 consecutive hours today, depending on the week. It starts at 7:20am when I get picked up and finishes at around 6:30pm when I take the train home. I leave when it's still dark and get home in darkness. It's the only day where I have to go between schools, which are a 25 minute walk away from each other. It's good exercise but a struggle on those ridiculously cold winter days in Northern France! I once walked in -13 and felt like I wasn't going to make it haha! Today is the day I treat myself to McDo as I spend most of my lunch break walking between schools and it's the only place where I can get food, fast. I've fallen in love with the Big Mac here and the Daim McFlurry (seriously having withdrawals from it after coming back to Australia). I'm so exhausted by the time I get home that I usually fall asleep quite early. The only thing that gets me through is that I know I'm going to have the next 4 days off... woo hoo!

FRIDAY

Even though it's only 12 hours of work a week, I look forward to Friday to just be able to relax and know I have the rest of the weekend to go out and do things. I usually Skype home on Fridays as getting the time difference right and it be a good time for me and my family is easier when I don't have to work. I wake up at around 10am to Skype and usually have breakfast while talking to them. Afterwards I'll just chill at home watching tv, planning trips or keeping busy as all my other assistant friends are unlucky and work on Fridays. Depending on what I have planned, sometimes I take a trip somewhere from Friday to Monday, but usually I don't take too many weekend trips as I save for the very generous 2-week school holidays we get every 5 weeks or so.

SATURDAY & SUNDAY
The weekend! I catch up with friends or other assistants who live in my town where we just chill at each other's places, go out to dinner or a bar, take a walk around town, go to the park, go out shopping or clubbing in Lille or go to a festival etc. Some weekends are more exciting than others, but life works the same here as it does back home.. so not every weekend is going to be filled with some magical adventure. The winter was long, which prevented a lot of outside activities, but when it snowed we built snowmen and when it finally got bearable outside, we took walks in the 'sun' and just enjoyed the change of the seasons and the coming spring. Weekends were also cool for going to the bakery or the markets and getting all that fresh bread, desserts and cheese!

Hope this little itinerary helped all of you out there! If you have any questions or would like to request a post for one of the many posts to come this December, please comment below!

The lowdown on OFII: paperwork & medical visit

So, before you even leave for France you're already thinking what is OFII and why do they want to examine me?

Well, 'OFII' is the French Immigration Office and they are the people who have to validate the visa you got before coming to declare you as a legal worker and resident of France. This is probably the most important (administrative) part of your time here and the whole process must be done within 3 months, otherwise you're going to start having some problems with the French police... and nobody wants that!

First thing to do is send off your paperwork. You'll need:

1. Le formulaire  de "Demande d'attestation OFII"- You'll already have this sheet half-filled out after your trip to the consulate in your home country when you applied for your visa. You need to fill in the second half with your French address, contact information, entry into France etc.
2. Photocopy of your passport page with your identity and personal information, as well as the page with your stamp of entry into France.

Once you've sent off this paperwork, you're playing the waiting game. About 2-3 weeks after I sent my documents, I received the "Attestation de reception du formulaire de demande d'attestation OFII" which reassured me that they had received my documents and what documents they had received.

A week or two later, I received what I'd been waiting for:

1. "convocation a la visite medicale"-This first letter tells you that you've been summoned for an x-ray and a general medical exam and when and where you need to go to do this. In bullet points it also says to bring this letter to the appointment, your passport, any lung x-rays taken in the last 3 months (if you have any), a vaccination card (if you have it, don't stress), a hospitalisation report if you've been hospitalised in the last year, information relating to your pregnancy if relevant and any other documents you think are relevant to your health and should be shared with the OFII doctor.
2. "convocation pour l'attestation par l'OFII de l'accomplissement des formalites"- this is the administrative part of the appointment: the validation of your visa by OFII. It will tell you when and where you need to go to do this (it's usually done directly after the medical visit), as well as all the documents you need to bring with you. You will need; your passport, a passport sized photo of yourself, proof of where you live, a medical certificate if you've already been examined by an OFII doctor abroad or in France and a 'timbre' to pay for the validation of your visa (as an assistant you're exempt and are sent a letter to that effect. Bring this letter with you to prove it) 

Now, it's time for the medical visit. You'll arrive and there'll be a whole group of other people there who are going through the same process. You'll usually meet other assistants there which is nice. You'll show the person at the desk your passport and the letter that says you have an appointment and they'll tell you to sit down and you'll wait to be called by the doctors. The first doctor will do the chest x-ray which is the most awkward part, especially for girls. I got a male doctor which was even more awkward. The second doctor will test your eyesight, weigh you and measure your height. The third will look at your x-ray and ask you questions about your health. If all goes well, they'll give you a medical certificate that says you've been cleared to reside in France and now you're on the home stretch, woo!

Now that you've done the medical side, it's time for the administrative side. Go back to reception and wait in line. When it's your turn, present ALL the documents they told you to bring. The person behind the desk will shuffle through it all and if you have everything, they'll present you with a vignette (sticker) in your passport that is your valid visa for the duration of your stay in France. 

After that, get out of there as fast as possible and feel relieved that you hopefully won't need to deal with OFII ever again. One french administrative body out of the way, only a few more to tackle! Good luck everyone!

How to get your birth certificate translated, verified and stamped.

In order to enrol into the French Healthcare system "Sécurité Sociale" (la Sécu), it has now become a requirement for assistants/foreigners to provide:

1. An original birth certificate that has an apostille on it, along with  
2. A birth certificate translated into French that has been verified and stamped.

This can be done by either having your birth certificate verified and stamped by your consulate, and having the translation done elsewhere or having your birth certificate translated, verified and stamped by a court-sworn translator. A translation and stamp provided by a court-sworn translator, is enough for your translated birth certificate to be legally recognized by the French government and does not require any consulate intervention.

The first option seems to be one of those circumstances where the consulate either does or doesn't know what you're asking for and even then you need to go an extra step and track down your own translator. I know a lot of American assistants have found it difficult to get their certificates verified and stamped through their consulates. In Australia, the Sydney Consulate does provide this service for $20. You can get it done at the same time as your visa appointment.

In my opinion, court-sworn translators are the easiest way to go. They can be found in every académie in France, so assistants should have no trouble finding one. It saves you having to track down consulates in your home country, asking them if they provide the service, how much it costs etc.

Clicking here will take you to a website that lists court-sworn translators in every region of France. Once you open the pdf. file that links to your region, look at the contents page for Section H- INTERPRETARIAT- TRADUCTION. Under this heading you should find the page numbers that list the court-sworn translators in your area. Always confirm with them first that they indeed provide this service.

If you need any help, please leave a comment below and I'll try my best to help you out!

Accepted to TAPIF... now what?!

Most of you should know by now if you've been accepted. CONGRATULATIONS to all those that have! I'm sure you've been spending most of your time daydreaming about your life in France... baguettes and cheese and wine. But, there's a few things you have to do before you get there. I've written a post already about the timeline and the administrative steps of the program, but I wanted to go into a bit more detail about the little things that didn't make it in that post. 

The end of my TAPIF journey

Last week I left my schools for the last time. After 7 months of teaching it is all over. My time in France has come to a close and trying to describe the mixed emotions I've been feeling is hard. I've had my moments in the past few weeks where I was glad to be finished teaching, happy to be moving on to what I really love doing which is travelling. But, I've really come to like teaching too and living in France.

My whole French life packed into one little suitcase

The only way I can describe my time here is that it's felt really fast and really slow at the same time, which I know will probably make no sense at all. I look back to when I first arrived in September- when I started the administrative process, found an apartment and settled into my job- and it feels like an eternity ago. I think back to when I was last at home in Australia and my memory is a little fuzzy. At the same time though, I can still picture myself in my bedroom back in Australia before I left, spending long hours reading about anything to do with TAPIF, imagining what it would be like for me. What would my French life be like? My time here has absolutely flown by.

Now, I feel like I have two places that exist in my heart but neither of them is really, perfectly 'home' anymore. The thought of going back to Australia is actually a little scary. I'm scared I'll get there and not connect to it all, but I know I'll have my family and friends. But here in France, I've put together a life. I love that I work and pay for everything myself. I have my own apartment and my friends. I love my freedom and independence. And being able to travel at the drop of a hat. I love day to day life. But, it will never be home because it's not Australia, it's not family, it's not English.

I never really thought I would feel as French as I do, but while writing this in Ireland, there's this connection with the place that I don't think will ever leave me. Like the homely feeling you get when you hear French spoken on the street, or cravings for baguette, or wearing all black and thinking nothing of it. I feel like it's changed me in ways I don't fully know yet. The hardest part has been saying good bye to my closest friends and doing all the 'lasts'...taking my last walk around town, having that last delicious daim mcflurry at McDonalds, taking that last look at my empty apartment, having that last dinner at your favourite restaurant... all the little things. I'm really going to miss it here. As much as I hated it at times, there's never been even a second where I've regretted coming. 

Au revoir, France! Thank you for letting me be part of your history for the past 7 and a half amazing months! 

A vlog of my life in France!

Hey guys! So, I did something a little different for this post. I thought it might be fun for you to see what I get up to as an assistant in France. I hope that I can do videos more often and show you what I do day to day as well as bring you along on the trips I take too!

If you like the idea of this please comment below and like the video too, so I know I'm doing something you like and want to see! This blog is as much yours as it is mine!

Bisous,

Cora

A TAPIF timeline: my journey to France!

I know before I started TAPIF, I used to spend hours scouring the internet for any piece of information I could find. Because of this, I wanted to put together a quick timeline for you all just so know what the process was like for me and the different steps there were before I got to France. Of course, this timeline varies between assistants, but you can still get a rough idea of what it's like.

Acceptance email: My acceptance email was sent to me on the 23rd May 2012 a lot later than Americans who had already found out in early to mid-April. In the email, I found out what academie I was placed in and what level I was teaching. In my case, it was the Academie de Lille and high school level. In this email they'll tell you what to do next and if you need to formally accept the position.

Sent documents to France: In order for you academie to issue your work contract (arrêté de nomination) and have it approved, you need to send them some documents. The faster you do this, the better. A few days after my acceptance email, I sent 4 pink CERFA forms and a photocopy of my passport and birth certificate. This was sent to the Rectorat de Lille, but it depends on where you're placed.

The waiting game: From the end of May up until early July, I heard absolutely nothing. I waited by the mailbox for my arrêté de nomination to come and anxiously checked my emails. I used this time to book my visa appointment far enough in advance that I would have likely received the arrêté de nomination by then. I also gathered all the documents I would need for the visa application/appointment.

Email detailing exact school placement: I received an email on July 6th 2012 that told me the schools I had been placed at. It tells you where exactly you'll be in your academie, if you have more than one school and how many hours you'll be teaching at each. It also gives an email, so you can try and get into contact with someone at your school and track down your 'responsable' (if they haven't already contacted you).

Emailed my main school: If you are placed in more than one school, you'll have a 'main' one that takes care of all the administrative stuff for you. It's usually at this school where the teacher looking after you (the 'responsable') will work. I sent them an email and received a reply shortly after telling me who my 'responsable' was and their email address. Something to be aware of is that by this point most teachers are on summer holidays, so you may hear nothing from them until late August- early September. 

Emailed my responsable: Sent an email introducing myself and asked her different questions about housing, arrival etc. Ask them anything you would like to know.

Arrêté de nomination arrived: I finally received my arrêté de nomination in the mail on August 6th 2012 along with other important information.

Attended my visa appointment: With all the documents I needed, I went to the French consulate in Sydney on August 20th 2012, where they shuffled and checked all my documents. I had everything they needed, so they took my passport and said that I should get my visa in around 10 days.

Received passport and visa: Only 5 days later I received my passport with my new visa sticker inside. This is the last administrative thing you need to take care of before you leave for France.

Left for France: On September 18 2012, I left Australia and gave myself 2 weeks before the start of the program to settle in France and go apartment hunting.

STARTED TAPIF: October 1st 2012!

Pieces of wisdom for future assistants!

I can't believe I'm saying this already but there's only 2 weeks left of my contract here in France! It's crept up out of nowhere.... where has the time gone?! Naturally, being so close to the end, I've spent some time thinking over the journey. Was it how I had imagined? Would I do anything differently if I had the chance? 

So, this post is for you guys. These are things I've learnt that I hope will help you when you come in October and start this amazing journey! So, here goes!

You will feel comfortable, free, foreign, confused and a million other things all at the same time. 

Especially in the beginning, you feel like you're on a giant emotional roller coaster, not knowing from one day to the next how you feel about being here. There were days I felt completely comfortable and others where I felt so foreign, and it would take something little to trigger both feelings. Don't worry because there are many more highs than lows, and the lows are what remind you that you're doing something out of your comfort zone.

The program is all about luck. 

It starts with where your placed and then if you’re offered housing. Then it’s what your ‘responsable’ is like. Then it's your colleagues, school and students. It’s the other assistants around you. It’s who’s looking at your papers at CAF, MGEN or OFII. Everything is up to chance, so be prepared to not always be in control.

Stop trying to fit in with the teachers at your school. 

The people you work with won’t necessarily care about you. Before I came I thought the teachers I worked with would be more welcoming and take more of an interest. For me, this only happened with a few. For a long time I tried really hard to talk to them and be friendly, but it got to the point where I realised I should just stop caring so much. I accepted that I was an outsider and would never be one of them. Be prepared to feel alone and ignored when you’re at work, but don't let it get to you.

Paperwork will be just as annoying and frustrating as you’ve heard. 

You WILL have problems and delays. Before leaving home, have a general idea of what different french bodies might ask from you and start to compile them. Make several photocopies of all your documents, bring envelopes with you and passport sized photos of yourself. Have as much of your paperwork organised before you come, so you only have to do the things you could only do in France. Follow instructions to the tee. Give them the correct papers they want, as promptly as you can. Keep every letter you've ever been sent. That's the best you can do. It's always one step at a time with French bureaucracy. 

You won't always be doing or going somewhere extraordinary.

Just because you’re in France doesn’t mean you have to be going away somewhere or doing something amazing all the time. You’re living and working here. Life goes on like usual. Don’t feel guilty for being at home watching TV instead of travelling every weekend or something. Don't imagine that life here will be wildly different to back home. It's of course different, but it's still day to day life, even in France. 

But... do take full advantage of being here.

Travel as much as you can, try and make some friends. Don't be too scared to get out there.

France will mean more to you than you thought it would.

As much as France makes it hard for you sometimes, you'll love it anyway. You'll learn how to live here and things that you found frustrating in the beginning start to become normal. And there will be some things you know you'll miss when you return home. It's gotten to a point for me when even if I'm enjoying myself somewhere else, I can’t wait to return 'home'.

Enjoy and appreciate every second.

All I can say to all those who are about to embark on this journey is to appreciate every second because it will go quicker than you ever thought possible. 

What it's like to be an English teaching assistant in France

I know a lot of you want to know what it's like to actually be an English teaching assistant in France, so here's the inside scoop!

TEACHING

First of all, you only work 12 hours a week, so for me this means going into work on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday. I was really lucky that I got a great work schedule most aren't this lucky. An average day for me is to go into school and take half the class for 30 minutes and the other half for 30 minutes into a separate classroom where I'll do a lesson or activity with them. At my first school the teachers give me a topic they would like me to prepare something on and I do that in my own free time. At my other school, the teachers give me free reign. I can do whatever I like with them as long as I get them speaking English. 

I guess one thing I'll add quickly here is that teaching is a lot of improvisation and thinking on your feet.  What might work with one half of the group might totally fail with the other half. Sometimes, you find that you've prepared too much or not enough. I know the unpredictability might sound scary, but you'll get used to it and I think it's a great skill to have.

MONEY
In my experience, the salary is definitely enough to live on (though I'm unsure about Paris). The salary is undoubtedly harder to stretch if you live in a big city where you spend more on rent and commuting (if you work in towns outside the city). I know the idea of living anywhere but the city is unappealing to some of you, but it turned out better for me than I ever could've thought. Before I left Australia, I was 100% sure I wanted to live in Lille, despite my schools being at least one and half hours away. I was willing to sacrifice time and money to live in the city because I thought that it would really suck to live in a small town. I would be bored and isolated and have no friends, but nothing is further from the truth.

I share my town with 5 other assistants who are lovely and amazing. Hanging out is easy and there's at least a few bars around that we can go to. There isn't a massive amount of choice in places to go or shop, but Lille is only an hour away. We can go and do all the shopping and clubbing we want. I know everyone has their own lifestyle but unless you know you'll be going out a lot during the week and taking full advantage of living in the city, then a small town really isn't all that bad. I know some of you won't have that option because you'll be placed in the city itself, but if you aren't don't fret! I think if I lived in Lille instead of Cambrai, I would be spending on average 100-150 euros more a month in rent and transport costs, just to give you all a rough idea.

Depending on your priorities, if you're good with your money you should be able to do at least a little traveling. Those with lower to no living expenses should be able to live more than comfortably and should find it pretty easy to travel when they want. In terms of how much money you should bring with you, I would say bring a month's worth of salary (around €793) because you won't get paid until the end of October. Depending on your housing situation going in, bring more or less.

HOUSING
Housing will probably be the trickiest thing you deal with. TAPIF does not provide housing as part of the program. Some people are lucky and get housing provided for them by their schools where they pay little to no rent. Others get some help from their contact teacher who asks around or has some experience in helping that year's assistant find somewhere to live. And others get absolutely no help. If you're option 2 or 3, you'll most likely be spending €350-400 euros a month on rent. 'APL' exists where people who don't earn much get their housing subsidised (as assistants we're in this boat). Most people refer to it as CAF because that's the name of the organisation that you apply through to get APL. The problem is that it's not easy to get and I wouldn't rely on it to get by, because you never know when it will come.

In most cities, finding a place to live in middle to late October is difficult, especially when its a got a big student population. The students get there before the assistants do and take a lot of the cheap/good housing and then you're also competing with other assistants. Landlords are also weary of renting to assistants and sometimes have strict requests like wanting a guarantor, wanting a bond etc. If you're in this camp make sure to bring more money with you before you come. It's always better to have some left over than not enough. A lot of the time it's luck and finding that landlord who's more easy going.

LIVING FAR FROM HOME
How hard is it? The first two months or so are both the easiest and the hardest. It's hard because you're finding somewhere to live, filling out mountains of paperwork and in a new country with a different language, but also easy because everything is new and exciting to you. You'll be distracted by a new job, making new friends and everything else, that thinking about and missing home isn't so bad. It starts to get hard the closer you get to the holiday season: Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Years. You've been in France long enough by this point that you've settled in. You've got a routine down, got friends that your regularly hang out with and teaching has becoming second nature. Now, all there is to think about is the fact that you're not at home. But, if you can make it through December, you've got it made. Once you pass that hurdle, it's the New Year and then you've only got a few months left before going home.

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I know there's a lot to read here, but I thought you would all find it useful and helpful. I know I would've liked to have read something like this before I came to France and started the program. If there's anything you think is missing, leave it in the comments below and I'll be sure to reply or even include it in a future post!

It's TAPIF application season!

I know a lot of you are preparing your applications for TAPIF right now and I just wanted to write a quick post to answer a few questions I've been getting and just to let you all know how it was for me this exact time last year!

First, please look at these posts if you haven't already seen them. I wrote these quite a few months ago, but I think a lot of you will find them super useful when it comes to your applications, or just to ease some of your concerns or fears.

1. How do I choose my academie/region for TAPIF?
2. Advice for those applying to TAPIF

And now a few quick words from me!

All I can really add is that you should just be yourself and write honestly why you think you would make a good assistant. I know this might sound stupid and obvious, but I know that there are quite a few of you who think you don't have a chance because you don't have lots of experience and don't have a high level of French. I really believe there's so much more to it and you have more to offer than you think!

Yes, experience is important, but what is also important is that your passion and enthusiasm for teaching and France come through. Remember that half of your time is spent teaching or preparing lessons (you do more hours at home, outside of the 12 hours at the school) so being able to show that teaching is something you take at least a bit seriously is crucial. If not that, at least be really interested in different cultures, and be happy (and prepared) to share yours.

It's important, at least in my experience and where I teach, to understand and not take for granted that you (as the assistant) will probably be the only person they will meet who speaks fluent English. I feel like we're in a position, especially in smaller, poorer towns to really get them to see the world as bigger than just their town and hopefully inspire them to want to go out and see it, even if they think there's no hope.

I hope that the posts above and this little spiel has helped you all at least a little bit!

Bonne chance tout le monde!

Questions an Australian gets in the French classroom

Some of you might not know this, but I came to France as an English Teaching Assistant. This means that I help students from ages 11-15 in two colleges with their English pronunciation and grammar while at the same time sharing the Australian culture and way of life.

From the minute I started teaching, I've felt like a celebrity. Anytime I'm in class or walking down the corridor, the students stare at me and shout 'hellos', totally mesmerised that I'm this new person who speaks English. And once they find out I come all the way from Australia, a very far distant land, their minds are blown.

Being a few weeks into teaching now, the students have asked me every question under the sun. Some of my personal favourites are:

"Do you have a kangaroo as a pet?"

"Did you bring a kangaroo with you?"

"Are there lots of kangaroos everywhere in Australia? On the street jumping around?"
"Why is your name the name of a supermarket?"
"Do you have a man?"

"Does Santa Claus in Australia wear shorts instead of pants because it's too hot?"

and one other really astute observation:

"It's summer in Australia during Christmas? Where's the Christmas magic?"

It's safe to say that in the minds of French kids, Australians can be described in three simple words: kangaroos, hot and beach.

And when they asked me what comes to mind when I think of France, I replied, "snails, frogs legs and the Eiffel Tower." They all laughed!

What questions have you faced as foreigners in another country? I'd really like to read them in the comments below!

Greetings from Cambrai!

I've finally made it to France! After months and months of countdowns and paperwork, I'm here!

I'm currently staying in a little town called Cambrai. My contact person found me a temporary house here that I can live in while I wait for housing to become available in Lille. At first I wasn't too keen on the idea but being here means I'll be tons closer to the schools I'll be teaching at in Caudry. To be honest I've grown fond of the trees and country-ish surrounds of Cambrai in the little time I've been here. 

My first impressions are that everyone is so nice! Everyone I've met has been so helpful, especially my contact person who has gone out of her way to help me and find me somewhere to live. I couldn't have wished for a better welcoming! 

Apart from the people, speaking and hearing French has been both good and bad! I've discovered that my comprehension is better than I thought it was, but my speaking is terrible. You think that you're level back home is pretty good, but when you get here... it's a whole different story! I've got to build up that confidence!

I've spent the last few days in Cambrai just walking and taking everything in. I think I still haven't come around to the fact that I'm actually going to be living here for the next 7 months and it's not a quick holiday. I find myself getting excited about actually putting down roots and putting a life together! I'm sure my tune will change once French bureaucracy starts to ruin my life but for now I am very very optimistic!

Until next time,

Cora

Received my working visa!

Only 5 days after applying for my visa in Sydney, I received my passport and visa! I don't think I've ever gotten so excited over a little sticker before in my life. To explain, the visa is a temporary working visa (travailleur temporaire) and is just a little sticker in your passport that allows you to legally enter and work in France. However, this visa needs to be validated within 3 months of your entry into France. To do this you have to send paperwork to the OFII (immigration office) and then wait to be called upon to attend a medical examination. Once these steps are done, you get another little sticker in your passport that allows you to live and work in France for the duration of your contract without anymore hassles!

Now that I have the visa in my hot little hands, it means that I've jumped through all the French bureaucratic hoops that I needed to before I left. Relief!

Departure is getting seriously close! Only 11 days left until I leave Melbourne for Lille! 

The last thing left to do is pack! Is there anything that I have to take with me, especially for a Northern Hemisphere winter novice like myself? Let me know in the comments below!

It's visa time: A quick visit to the French consulate in Sydney!

In order to get my visa to live and work in France, I had to fly to Sydney from Melbourne. My first port of call was my visa appointment at the French consulate. On my way to the appointment, I took a little detour (I really just got lost) and I happened across the Homecoming parade for the Australian Olympians who had just come back from London. It was pretty cool to see them up close, considering I had been glued to the TV for 2 weeks.

The visa appointment went really smoothly, the only problem being that I could not figure out how to use their weird fingerprint gadget. I tried several different ways of placing my fingers until I finally figured it out. Who knew you had to do that weird Spock hand salute to make the gadget work?!

Once that was out of the way, I was able to just relax in the Sydney sunshine. I walked to an area known as "The Rocks" which is the oldest part of Sydney. I also visited Circular Quay where I was able to see the Sydney Opera House and the Harbour Bridge. It was nice, though I think it's most beautiful at night, on New Year's Eve, when fireworks are shooting off it.

iPhone camera + sun + shadows = One-eyed me in front of the Sydney Opera House

Apart from sightseeing I was able to just relax in my hotel room and watch random TV shows which included a really interesting Titanic documentary. Yes, I'm a nerd! All in all it was a great trip, though it was nice to get back to Melbourne. I am so lucky to call Melbourne home...well at least for the next 3 weeks anyway!

Booked my flight to France!

I booked my flight to France! I leave Melbourne on the 18th September and will be in Paris 24 hours later! This flight must have the record for the longest flight in the world, because it is so so long. Luckily for me, I won't have to do it again for awhile!

This means that I leave in just over a month! I can't believe how quickly the time has gone. Sometimes, it feels like just yesterday when it was December and I spent all my time on the assistants in france forums waiting to know if I was accepted. Counting the months... then the days.

Knowing the exact date I'm leaving has made it a little more real. I know that this whole experience is going to be amazing, but I also know how much is about to change. I move from being really happy to sentimental. I'm finishing work soon and slowly but surely crossing off things on my to-do list. There are lots of goodbyes and endings, but I know that there are so many new beginnings to come. Like my Grandma once told me: "when one door closes, another window opens..."

I leave for Sydney on Sunday for my visa appointment so I'll be updating again very soon! Au revoir!

Arrêté de nomination has arrived!

Today, I walked outside to my mailbox like I have been obsessively for the past week, to find the big envelope I hoped would be there. After months of waiting, my arrete de nomination has finally arrived!

The arrete de nomination is the work contract that allows you to get your visa to live and work legally in France. Without your arrete you can't get your visa, which is why all assistants (including me!) have been anxiously awaiting their arrival. I've read horror stories about people not getting their's and starting their job in France late, so when it got to August, I was beginning to think the worst.

Fortunately, I was one of the lucky ones!

Getting my arrete means that I can actually start to do all the things on my massive to-do list, which is growing by the day. First on my list is to book my flights to France. I'm so excited, I can't even begin to tell you!

The next step in the process is flying up to Sydney in two weeks time to get my visa! I look forward to telling you all about it and showing you a few pics of Sydney!

Teaching placement in Caudry!

I received an email on Friday night telling me that I've been placed at two colleges in Caudry! I'm so happy to finally find out where I'll be teaching for the next 7 months!

By train, Caudry is around an hour and half away from Lille.

As Caudry is quite far away from Lille, I'm trying to figure out where I want to live and whether or not commuting from Lille is even possible. It might be bearable if I only have to teach 2-3 days a week, but if I don't get a good schedule then it might be really difficult to commute. Hmm..

I've been looking at staying at nearby towns, the closest one being Cambrai which is around 20 minutes away. That prospect is not too appealing right now and even Douai and Valenciennes (which are more appealing because others assistants are there too) are about an hour away. Unfortunately, Caudry is really in the middle of nowhere!

The positive is that I'll be able to experience another side to France. From what I've seen and read, Caudry is a village set in quite a rural area. I'm sure this will do wonders for my French if I do end up living around Caudry or Cambrai.

Knowing my placement is just one more step towards arriving in France in September! Now, to wait for my arrêté de nomination!

Advice for those applying for TAPIF

To those of you thinking of applying to TAPIF, here are a few tips I think will help!

1. Start the application as early as possible! 

Try not to leave the application to the last minute because there are so many little things you need to include that may take you awhile to put together. For example: I had approached a professor for a reference but they were unable to do it because they were out of the country, so I had to get someone else instead. Having the leeway to get a different person and allow them enough time to write the reference was a life saver! 

Another thing to keep in mind is that the application is usually due in December/January (depending on where you're from) and at least in Australia this falls after university has finished for the year. The application is also due around the holiday period (Christmas/NewYear) which means a lot of people go away and things are closed which may make the application process more lengthy.

2. Write a great personal statement

Set yourself apart by making it clear that you're there to teach, as well as live in France. I'm sure quite a few people focus too much on living in France and how much they love the culture, the language and the people, but fail to give the teaching aspect of the program enough attention. Be different and address both; make it clear that you love France but that you also want to teach/see yourself doing teaching in the future and illustrate any relevant experience!

3. Get really used to waiting!

This is a lesson I have just learned myself and it was hard, but I think I finally have! Once you apply, you're going to have to wait until April (May/June for Australians) and it's going to really suck! But, don't worry! Everyone is waiting with you and nothing has gone wrong with your application... everything is how it should be!

I waited here a lot and this fed my daydreams of being accepted into the program and living in France until the real thing came along!

4. GO FOR IT!

It seems daunting putting your application together and knowing so many other people are applying, not to mention potentially having to move to France away from your family and friends, but not applying for it is worse than applying for it and not getting it. Put yourself out there and do it. Thinking you can't do it or you won't get it, is rejecting yourself before the program has even had a chance to reject you!

Good luck everyone!

How do I choose my Académie/Region for TAPIF?

I know a lot of you out there are thinking about applying for TAPIF or are currently putting together your application and are wondering "What académies/regions should I pick?"

What you need to remember is that you're not guaranteed to be placed in the biggest city in your region or even the region itself. Having said that, you can still improve your chances of getting what you want by choosing wisely and hoping everything falls in place!

For me, choosing my regions was the hardest part of the application, but never fear! Look below for five awesome tips that I'm sure will help you to make a decision!

TAPIF académies

1. Do I want to live in the city or the country?

If you want to improve your chances of being in or around the city choose regions that are smaller in size so that your chances of being far from the city are less likely. Regions like Strasbourg, Lille and Rouen are good bets. If being in the country or being in smaller villages is more your thing choose large regions like Orléans-Tours, Clermont-Ferrand and Poitiers which carry higher chances of being placed in smaller villages away from the big city in the region.

2. Do I want to travel?

If you love to travel like I do, choosing a region that is close to other countries you would like to visit and well-connected in terms of trains, buses and airplanes is important. Big cities within France such as Paris, Lyon, Nice, Marseille and Lille are good hubs from which you can travel abroad. Some regions are close to other countries, making it possible to take little trips on weekends without too much hassle.

For example:

• Lille is only 80-90 minutes away from London, 60 minutes from Paris, Brugge and Brussels.

• Strasbourg is only a little over 2 hours from Paris, 3 hours to Munich, Germany and Bern, Switzerland.

Overall, you should be pretty well connected no matter what region you live in, but if you would like to make the most of your time in France on weekends and not just on holidays, choose regions that are close to other cities you would like to visit!

3. What type of weather do I like?

Some people are summer lovers, others are winter lovers, so depending on your preference this should probably factor into your decision. If cold weather doesn't bother you choose regions in the North. If the sun is where you want to be, choose regions further South that have a mediterranean climate with more milder/warmer temperatures.

4. Money, money money!

As I'm sure you all know the teaching assistant salary is not going to make you Bill Gates, so choosing a region that's not heavy on the wallet will be a major consideration for a lot of you. If you're low on funds stay away from big cities like Paris and those in the South (Marseille, Nice, Montpellier) where living costs are high. Choose smaller, more quaint regions like Caen, Rouen and Rennes where living costs are more affordable. Overseas French territories like Guadeloupe, Réunion, Martinique and Guyane attract higher salaries which is something some of you might like to keep in mind.

5. How good is my French?

If a major priority for you is to improve your French then stay away from big cities where English is more widely spoken. Better language acquisition will happen in smaller cities and villages. By the same token, if your French is a little weak then stick to bigger cities where you will be less challenged and might be able to get away with less French.

I hope this guide helps you to decide where in France you want to live!