Edu-Culture Immersion, Nice and Gap

Edu-Culture Immersion, Nice and Gap:
Based in Berkeley, California Edu-Culture Immersion (ECI) have successfully organized educational travel programs in France, Spain, Costa Rica & the US since 1998. We offer 4-week summer study abroad programs in France for high school students, and 2-4 week French immersion programs for individuals ages 15-21. Our programs provide unique opportunities for teens to improve their foreign language skills while earning university credit and making friends from all over the world. We are Better Business Bureau Accredited, with an A+ rating! Contact us today to learn more.

Travel with us to France for 4 weeks, take intensive French language classes, live with a French host family or in a dorm and meet teens from all over the world. We offer you the opportunity to change your life in a few short weeks! Experience local culture and make friends you'll never forget. There's also plenty of free time for students to get together with friends to explore their own interests - getting a taste of independence and college life is an important part of the experience.

Our summer program in France consists of:
- Two weeks staying in the beautiful Parc Imperial residence in Nice, the former home of a Russian Czar. Enjoy daily morning conversation and grammar classes with native speakers at one of Nice’s best language schools, with the opportunity to earn university credit. This will prepare you for your week of French speaking immersion. In the afternoon, you will enjoy hands-on and cultural activities, including beach soccer, visiting a candy factory, and day excursions to Monaco and St. Tropez.

- You will then experience the famous ECI True Immersion Week and live with a host family in the seaside town of Hyères. This part of the program is individual, and is a wonderful opportunity for you to put your French skills to the test. For one week you will be fully immersed in French family life.

- The program ends with three fantastic days in Paris, visiting the major sites (including Notre Dame, the Louvre and The Eiffel Tower) and staying in a high quality hotel in the heart of the city.

We offer a Customized Total Immersion Program for high school and college students ages between 15-21. This program will take place in July and August. You will live with a French host family and speak entirely in French for 2-4 weeks. You choose your dates of travel and length of stay. You will stay in the Alpine town of Gap which is the capital of the Hautes-Alpes department in southeastern France. Each participant must have completed two years of high school French by June 2013.

In this program, there are no classes, no group activities, no English. Simply one week of fantastic French culture, French family life and French language. This is true language immersion. No other program offers you this amazing opportunity. Your spoken French and knowledge about French culture is guaranteed to improve. Our ability to offer a total and authentic immersion experience is what sets ECI apart from other Summer Study Abroad organizations.

The ECI commitment to high standards also extends to the schools we use for our French classes. We have taken great care to ensure that these classes meet all the ECI quality requirements. The teachers we use are always native French speakers with extensive teaching experience. All instructors have degrees in teaching French as a foreign language and many have experience as well in theatre, literature and music. Students are grouped into one of several levels, based on a placement test. Classes are small, with approximately 10 students per class.

Earn University Credit:
High school students who are planning on applying to college in the near future know how important it is to have a strong application. With ECI's study abroad programs, teens can earn three semester units of credit in French through an accredited US university. These credits are transferable to any university, and are accepted by most universities in the United States.

"I felt very welcome and at meal time I was included in all conversation. Not only do you learn a lot with your host family, but you get an understanding of their culture."
- James Galbraith

"Go for it! The families are all nice and really care about you. Don't be scared of the language, because no one is judging you. In my opinion it's better than other programs because you really don't speak English."
- Elinor Lewis

Parent Testimonials:
"Our son enjoyed the classes, related activities, evening activities, and loved the region where his host family lived. I have a younger son, and I wouldn't hesitate to send him on an ECI program if he is interested in a few years."
- Kiki Scalise

"Our daughter had a great time, improved her French a lot, and made a really good friend. We all felt that it was a wonderful and very worthwhile experience for her at a very reasonable cost."
- Julia Levin