Introduction

Hello!

I'm an American student studying in Paris at a French business school called ESCP. When I began the application process I did a good bit of Googling to see if I could find a blog or website put together by someone else who had gone through the same process. I had tons of questions, and a firsthand account would have been immensely valuable at the time. 

There are plenty of blogs by American students who are studying abroad in Paris for a semester or two and who are looking to share their experiences and observations with their friends and family back home; the Tour Eiffel lit up at night, ice cream at Berthillon, exploring the tombs at Père Lachaise, etc. However, I was applying after graduating with a Bachelor's degree from an American university. This meant I would not be studying abroad, but would be a full-time student directly admitted into a two-year program in the French school. 

What I was lacking, then, were the blogs about financial aid options, how the French education system is set up, or how to get a new life started in Paris. My plans are longer-term than a semester abroad; optimistically, I'll be here for at least the next five to ten years, perhaps permanently. This is the niche I aim to write for, in the hopes that I can help at least one other person out there who has the same questions I did. 

Before anyone gets the wrong idea, this doesn't mean I'm 100% settled in Paris and have everything in my life figured out! There's no telling how many more obstacles lay ahead. Let's start from the beginning.