American Graduate School in Paris

French Government Housing Subsidy

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The government of France may provide financial assistance to students by refunding a portion of their rent each month.

Students of all nationalities may be eligible. Eligibility as well as, if applicable, the amount of the subsidy (which typically ranges between 100 and 200 Euros per month) depend on the resources of each student.

This service is provided through the Caisse d'Allocations Familiales. Instructions on how to apply can be found on this document.

The AGS staff is happy to advise and assist you in the application and follow up procedures with the French administration.

Housing Options

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All AGS courses are held in Paris. Therefore, it is necessary to reside in or near Paris during the course of your program.

While you are responsible for finding your own accommodation, we are available to provide options and guidance during your search.

The typical AGS students' housing experience consists of a small individual studio within Paris, allowing you to live like a real Parisian and enjoy all that the city has to offer. Depending on your budget and the type of experience that you are looking for, you may also consider other options such as shared residence with other students, homestay with a French family, or a less expensive studio in one of the close suburbs.

Unless you opt for homestay or student residences, we recommend securing a temporary solution prior to your arrival and looking for a permanent place once you are on site.

These various options are detailed below. If you have any questions, please don't hesitate to contact us at admissions@ags.edu.

Securing housing prior to your arrival in Paris

You may contact our student accommodation partner to book a temporary place to stay, or opt for permanent housing through their services:

Atome �鶹ӳ��stay is a homestay accommodation provider, allowing you to rent a room within a house or apartment in a Parisian home and stay with a French resident family. This enhances the immersion in French language and culture and creates opportunities for exchanges. Breakfast and dinner may or may not be included. Prices vary depending on the conditions.

Finding a permanent place to stay throughout your program

Individual studio or apartment

There is a wide choice of furnished (or unfurnished) rentals in Paris. We have indicated below some reliable resources; there are many others, and we are available to help you to make sure that you are looking at valid ads.

Depending on standing, size, and location, you should expect to pay between 600 Euros and 1,000 Euros per month for a furnished studio apartment within the city of Paris. Prices are less expensive if you are willing to stay in a suburb. We then recommend choosing a suburb that is accessible by metro, which makes the commute to school easy.

Contracts are typically for one year. However, you only have to pay by the month and are free to leave anytime with a one-month notice delay (however, the landlord cannot ask you to leave until the end of your lease).

Upon signing your contract, you will have to pay for one month' rent and a refundable security deposit equivalent to the same amount, which should be returned to you upon departure if no damages were done in the appartments. If you rent through an agency, you will also have to pay for an agency fee, which (by law) should be no higher than 15 Euros per square meter (as an exemple, for a 20 sq.m studio appartment, you will have to pay 300 Euros).

Some useful resources:

Lodgis (website in English): short-term and long-term rentals

New York Habitat (website in English): short-term and long-term rentals

Spotahome.com (website in English): Mid- to long-term housing. AGS students get a discount on booking fees; please let us know before proceeding with them so that we can provide you with a discount code.

www.seloger.com (website in French): long-term rentals. Centralized listing of ads from many real estate agencies, allowing you to do a global search rather than contacting each agency individually.

www.locservice.fr (website in French) Long-term rentals. You pay a one-time flat of approximately 15 Euros to have access to their listings and counseling services.

www.pap.fr (website in French): lists of classified ads placed directly by landlords. No finder's fee.

Shared Accommodation

Renting an apartment with a roommate may be less expensive and enhance your social experience in Paris. If you opt for this solution, several options are available.

Option 1: Our study abroad accommodations provider Comforts of �鶹ӳ�� offers long-term shared rentals.

Option 2: AGS can connect you with other AGS students who would like to share an appartment. The appartment search process is then the same as for individual accommodation as detailed above. Expect an overall monthly rent of 1,000 Euros to 1,500 Euros for a one- or two-bedroom apartment, to be split with your co-tenant.

Option 3: You may look for a potential co-tenant through one of the following specialized platforms that connect students in similar situations.

www.appartager.com (website in English)

www.recherche-colocation.com (website in French)

www.easycoloc.com (website in French)

Student Residence Halls:

There are a number of student residence halls around Paris.

Cité Internationale Universitaire de Paris) provides inexpensive, long-term accommodation. It is located in the South of Paris and comprises 37 residential halls housing 5,000 international students. Students usually stay in a room or apartment in their own national house, if available. For example, priority would be given at the Maison des États-Unis (American House) to American nationals. Accommodation options include:

Individual room with en-suite shower, sink and toilet, and shared kitchen
Individual room with shared bathroom and shared kitchen
Individual studio with en-suite shower, sink, toilet and kitchen

All options come with monthly cleaning service, regular changing of sheets, wifi, and access to the Cité Universitaire's cafeteria, sports facilities (including a swimming pool) and park.

Note that applications are reviewed in May and June, so it is important to apply before the end of April.

Click here to access the Cité Universitaire Internationale de Paris website

�鶹ӳ��stay

You may rent a room within a house or apartment and stay with a French resident family. This enhances the immersion in French language and culture and creates opportunities for exchanges. Breakfast and dinner may or may not be included. Prices vary depending on the conditions.

We work with a homestay partner: Atome �鶹ӳ��stay

For more information on housing, please contact us at admissions@ags.edu

Note: The third-party websites indicated on this page are for your information. The American Graduate School is not responsible for the content of those websites.

Immigration Formalities

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Who needs a visa to study in France?

European Union and Swiss nationals do not need a visa or a residence permit to enter and live in France. American citizens who will studying in France for less than 90 days do not need a visa.

All other students planning to stay in France formore than 90 days should have a long-stay student visa in their possession. You will obtain this visa from the appropriate French Consulate in your own country.

In many countries, an online application procedure has been set up through CampusFrance; this procedure must be followed in order to obtain a student visa.

The list of these countries can be found here.

U.S. Citizens can only obtain student visas through this online procedure:
http://www.usa.campusfrance.org/en/page/applying-a-student-visa-%E2%80%93-step-step-0

Please click here for further instructions on the CampusFrance procedures

The student visa will allow you to enter France as a student and to reside in France for 12 months.

Important notes:

- Although it usually takes 2 to 3 weeks to get a student visa, we strongly advise you to send in your application at least 4 to 5 weeks prior to your scheduled departure to ensure that you receive your visa on time.

- Do not enter France with a tourist visa, for you would have to return to your home country to have your status changed; this cannot be done from France.

Visa application procedure - Required documents

You must provide the original AND a copy of each of the following documents. The visa section of the Consulate will not make copies of your documents for you; incomplete files will not be accepted. Note that no visa is granted automatically based on these documents; the French Consulate may ask you for additional documents.

Your passport, which has to be valid until at least three months after the scheduled last day of your stay in France; a photocopy of the pages of your passport with your photo, identity details and the validity of the passport. Please make sure there are two blank pages in your passport for the visa stamp.
A long stay application form
An OFII application form
A recent passport-size photograph with a white background, attached to each application form (please do not glue)
Your identification number given by CampusFrance
Your letter of admission from the American Graduate School in Paris
Proof of sufficient funds: If your parents are paying your expenses in France they must provide a financial guarantee, such as a notarized statement certifying that you will receive a minimum monthly allowance of USD 820 (approximately 615 Euros) for the duration of your stay; OR if you are staying with a friend or family, you must submit a letter from your host certifying that you will be lodged free of charge, along with a copy of his/her identity papers, in which case a monthly allowance of € 215 will be accepted; OR if you have personal income then you must submit your last three bank statements, along with a letter from AGS stating that room, board, and tuition are fully prepaid.
A self-addressed prepaid envelope (priority mail) to return your passport stamped with the visa - if granted. Your passport will be kept during the processing time. If you require your passport during this time, you will be required to make a second visit to the visa section with your passport so your visa may be issued.
Processing fees: by credit card (Visa, Mastercard) cash or money-order only. Personal checks or American Express are not accepted.

You must take these document to the French Consulate of your country; make an appointment online; no appointment will be given by phone.

Once you have arrived in France

Step 1:

You must register at a French Office of Immigration and Integration (OFII) within the first three months of your stay in France. If you don't do this within this time period, the French authorities will consider that you are in an irregular situation and may ask you to leave the country. We strongly recommend that you do this in the first two weeks after your arrival as the registration procedure takes some time.

If you arrive in France between September 8 and December 11, AND if your residence is in Paris, you must go to the Cité Universitaire Internationale of Paris www.ciup.fr 17 boulevard Jourdan, 75014 Paris, with the documentation detailed below.

If you arrive after December 11 AND reside in Paris (75), then you must send the documentation detailed below by registered mail (lettre recommandée) to: Direction Territoriale de l'OFII, 48 rue de la Roquette, 75011 Paris.

If you reside outside Paris: Seine-et-Marne (77), Yvelines (78), Essone (91), Hauts-de-Seine (92), Val-de-Marne (94) you must send the documentation detailed below by registered mail to: Direction Territoriale de l'OFII, 221 avenue Pierre Brossolette, 92120 Montrouge.

The documentation to be submitted to OFII is the following:

Your residence form stamped by a French consulate and duly completed with:

Your visa number
Your date of entry into France or the Schengen area
Your address in France
A copy of the ID pages of your passport and of the immigration stamp received as you entered France.

Step 2:

You will receive a letter acknowledging receipt of your documents and giving you an appointment to go for an interview and a medical examination; there will also be a page onto which you must stick a 58-Euro stamp (timbre). This is how the visa processing fee is paid.

Step 3:

To buy a €58 stamp (OMI or ANAEM) you must go to one of the following Tax Offices:

- 29 rue Moulin Vert, 75014 Paris (Metro Alésia)
- 18/20 rue Geofroy Saint Hilaire, 75005 Paris (Metro Censier Daubenton)
- 5/7 avenue Bouvines, 75011 Paris (Metro Nation)

Step 4:

Go for your interview and medical. Bring with you:

Your passport with your visa.
Proof of accommodation in France: this could be a rent receipt, or a letter from your host attesting that you are staying with him/her.
An ID picture
The page with the stamp on it.

When the file is complete and the medical passed, a registration stamp will be added to your passport, which validates your long-stay student visa.

You must keep the appointment you have been given for the interview and medical examination . If you cannot go - and this would have to be an emergency situation - you must request a second appointment in writing, to be sent to: OFII Direction Territoriale de Paris, 48, rue de la Roquette, 75011 Paris. NB: OFII will not grant more than one change of appointment.

After the medical you will be given a medical certificate. You must keep this safe as you will be asked for it when you ask for the residence perm

it required if you are studying in France for a second year.

Your long-stay student visa

A long-stay student visa, is a multiple entry visa and is valid for 3 to 12 months, depending on the length of the study program in which you are enrolled.

There is no need to apply for a resident permit (carte de séjour), during your first year in France. This visa allows you to travel in the Schengen zone.

Residence permit (Carte de Séjour)

Non-EU students need a Residence Permit for their second year of study.
Before your second year of study, at least two months before the expiration of your visa, you must make an appointment with the Préfecture, to request a Residence Permit ("Carte de Séjour"). This residence permit allows you to legally reside and work in France.

students living in Paris can do this at the Centre des étudiants étrangers, 92 boulevard Ney, 75018 Paris (Metro Porte de Clignancourt).
students living outside Paris must go to their local sous-préfecture.

You will need to take the following documents:

your passport with a valid student visa
a letter provided by AGS certifying your enrollment
an attestation d'hébergement (proof of residence): statement from your landlord with copy of landlord's identity papers and a copy of an electricity bill
all documents confirming your financial resources
three recent ID photos (3.5 x 4.5 cm)
an official translation of your birth certificate (this can be obtained from your consulate)

After submission of all requested documents it will take at least one month before you are sent a notification to pick up your Carte de Séjour, at the Préfecture de Police de Paris, 9 boulevard du Palais (métro Cité) for Parisian students. You will then have to pay €31.
Before obtaining a carte de séjour non-EU or non-US students may be asked to pass a physical exam.
Prices above are subject to change.

Note : Residence permit are only granted to students enrolled in full-time programs (M.A. or Ph.D.). Non-EU students wishing to enroll in shorter programs must get an authorization to reside in France by other means. Students in the summer program just need a tourist visa.

Campus France Instructions

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In many countries, including the US, the consulates will also ask students to register with the Campus France agency in order to apply for their visa. The place to go for visas is here.

US students can go directly here, then:

Click on "Registration" and register
Once you are registered and have a password, log in
Under "Welcome", click on "Where can I find help filling out the online application" and download the CampusGuide
Follow the instructions for "Study abroad students". This simply means that you are already enrolled in a program and allows you to bypass a number of steps
Under "my file" click on "Campus France form" and fill in the application form
The form is in 3 parts: "Education", "Linguistic skills", and "Goals" (most of the information required under these sections may seem redundant for students who have already completed their application process and enrolled at AGS but please understand that this website was created by the French administration in order to help students who are looking for a program in a French university)
Under "Goals", do not feel obliged to answer in great detail as long as you make sure to fill in each of the required fields (we suggest that you mention that you are already enrolled in the American Graduate School in Paris)
Validate the form
You can then ignore the "My procedure" steps, also called "Manage your steps". Your form is now complete
Go straight to the next step which is send a money order (please note that Campus France does not accept any other methods of payment) for USD 140, written out to Maison française CampusFrance, with your Campus France ID, and join a copy of your AGS acceptance letter, to the French Embassy (see address on CampusGuide)
You will receive a confirmation email through your CampusFrance page within two weeks
After which you can contact the French Consulate to get your visa appointment. The CampusFrance confirmation will be required for this appointment as well as other documents listed on the website of the French Consulate.

Useful tips

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Housing Insurance

Note that it is required by French law to get insurance for your apartment, even if you rent.
These are a couple of organizations offering student housing insurance :

Assistance Etudiants
Most major banks also offer housing insurance. Please ask your bank for more information.

Gas/Electricity

While some landlords will include electricity and/or gas in their rent, other will ask you to subscribe directly with the provider.

The main electricity providers in France are EDF and GDF Suez.
The main natural gas provider in France is GDF Suez.

Alternatively, you may inquire about other electricity and natural gas providers on this website.

Internet Access, Television, Telephone

Most Internet providers will charge a monthly flat rate typically ranging between 30 and 40 Euros approximately, including unlimited Internet access, unlimited phone calls to a large number of countries (generally including the US), and access to a broad range of television networks.

The main Internet and telephone providers in France are:

Mobile Phones

While mobile phone plans are separate from fixed phone/Internet plans, you may subscribe for both with all main providers. Most providers will offer a discount for a coupled plan.

See above for provider list.

Paris/Suburbs transportation

Metro/suburban train

The Paris metro is very convenient to travel within the Paris metropolitan area, while the RER is convenient for the Paris suburbs.

Unless you plan to use the metro/RER only occasionally, we recommend buying a monthly or yearly pass, named "Navigo", giving you unlimited travel within Paris, as well as to the suburbs on weekends. If you are under 26 years old, you are eligible for a discounted rate yearly pass named "Carte Imagine'R".

The rate will depend on the area of travel covered (Paris only vs. Paris+suburbs.)

All information is to be found on the RATP website.

Link to interactive metro/RER map

Bicycle Rental

Velib' is the largest public bike-sharing system in the world. It includes 1,800 bike stations located throughout the city 300 meters apart from each other for easy and quick access from anywhere.

Unlimited use monthly subscriptions go from 30 to 40 Euros approximately depending on your age. Daily subscriptions are under 2 Euros, weekly subscriptions are 10 Euros.

More information on the Velib' website.

Car rental

The Autolib' car-sharing system is convenient and relatively inexpensive for travelling within Paris. More information here.

Taxis

More information here

Travelling Outside of Paris

Train

The railway is very convenient and rather inexpensive alternative to airplanes for travelling across France and to some nearby European capitals (London, Brussels, Amsterdam, Geneva, Rome, Madrid, etc.).

All information is to be found, and reservations are to be made, on the website of the national train company SNCF.

Make sure to inquire about the various special rate cards available depending on your age ("Carte 12-25", "Carte 25-30", "Carte Jeune", "Carte Escapade", etc.)

Car Rentals

France car rental price-comparator website: www.locationdevoiture.fr

Student Health Insurance

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EU students

EU nationals should obtain a European Health Insurance Card (EHIC) prior to coming to France (more information here).

Non-EU students

All other students, regardless of their nationality, may benefit from the French public health insurance. Different conditions apply depending on whether you are under or over 28 years old.

Non-EU students under 28

If you are under 28 years old and do not already have social security coverage, you are required to take out the French student medical insurance (Sécurité Sociale étudiante). This entitles you to a reimbursement of up to 70 % of the standard price of medical expenses incurred (or 100% in some exceptional cases such as some chronic diseases or injuries from an accident caused by another person).

Coverage is for one year from October 1 to September 30, regardless of when the student enrolls, and can be renewed. The rate for the academic year 2015-2016 is 215 Euros (this is indicated for reference only).

The subscription and payment are made through AGS: the school administration collects the necessary information (such as your date and place of birth) as well as your payment, and sends it to the French social security services. Note that AGS cannot be held responsible for any delays incurred by the French state.

In addition, you may also subscribe to a top-up (complementary) health insurance policy in order to ensure optimal reimbursement of healthcare expenses. These policies may cover up to 100% of the difference between the social security coverage and the actual medical expenses.

Non-EU students over 28

If you are over 28, you are eligible to the Couverture Maladie Universelle (CMU), a free state-provided health insurance. Subscription to the CMU is not done through the school; it has to be done by each student individually. Instructions and sign up forms can be found under this link.

Note that the subscription takes two to three months to process. Therefore, in the meantime, we recommend that you sign up for private insurance on a monthly basis. Once processed, the CMU coverage is valid for one year, and can be renewed.

Working in France

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AGS being eligible for the French Student Social Security plan, AGS students are allowed to work in France with their Student visa or Residence Permit (carte de séjour) up to 964 hours a year. This may translate into approximately a half-time job during the school year and a full-time job during the summer or other breaks.

Students may work as short-term employees ("CDD" type of contract) or interns.

AGS may provide students with the legal framework to facilitate the internship process ("convention de stage" agreement), whether it is an internship taken for credit (see information here) or not. Please note that the school may not provide this "Convention de Stage" agreement to students once they have graduated. Additionally, please note that students may not pursue an internship for more than six months in total per school year (September to August).

Living in Paris

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