France High School Summer Abroad Program Overview

On this five-week summer study abroad program adventure, students will touch down in Paris — and travel to the Loire Valley, where they will have a three-day orientation. From there the group will travel to the SYA school in Rennes where host families will welcome students.

For the next four weeks, mornings will be dedicated to level-appropriate French classes. Afternoons will be filled with local activities and trips to places like Mont Saint-Michel, Saint Malo and Normandy — home to D-Day landing sites of World War II. Other activities include kayaking, rope courses, circus school, art lessons and cooking classes. Evenings and weekends will be spent in the comfort of their host family where students will learn more about the French language and culture than they ever could in the classroom.

The final week of the program is a group trip to Paris where students will discover the Louvre, Musee d’Orsay, Montmartre, la Tour Eiffel and more.

The SYA France Summer program is open to rising 10th-, 11th- and 12th-grade high school students who have completed at least two years of high school French or have completed level two of French. Application for admission is considered complete when the following have been received:

• Online application and $50 application fee

• Language Teacher recommendation

• Transcript (with fall semester grades)

Please note, the SYA France Summer Program 2024 is now full. We are only accepting applications for waitlist spots.  

If you have questions about the Summer Program please email syasummer@sya.org.

On school days, you will be taking French language (two periods of 1 hour each), and two classes dedicated to French culture and society. We do not have a formal language pledge, but we encourage you to speak French whenever you are in school so that you can take full advantage of your time here.

SYA pays for lunch.

In the afternoons, all students participate in planned extracurricular activities and field trips that range from outdoor excursions to cultural experiences. On occasion, host siblings will be invited to participate. After classes, you are expected to be home in the late afternoon during the week and spend time with your host family. The weekends are also considered "closed," ensuring you spend time with your host family and host siblings.

Lynée Connelly - Program Coordinator

Lynée has been working for SYA France in Rennes for 5 years. During the school year, she teaches English and acts as the test center coordinator and college liaison. Lynée has a PhD in inquiry based education with a focus on intercultural learning. She has extensive experience working with high school students both abroad and in the U.S.  She has spent several summers at Phillips Andover Academy working as a lead teacher and an academic coordinator. In Rennes, Lynée enjoys spending time at a local café and taking boxing classes.

Host families are carefully chosen and selected by the Program Director. They are not “professional” families who make a living by hosting foreign students. Their decision to host a student from the SYA summer program is a strong commitment on their part and the whole family is involved in the process. They expect the same commitment from the student. The family house (or the apartment) is a place to live and to discover the culture from the inside. For most students who come for the summer, the family experience is usually the most rewarding, because they learn tremendously from it. Of course, it requires a fair amount of work, tolerance and patience on both sides, but it is worth the investment.

About two-thirds of the host families live outside of Rennes, in small cities or villages. However, because Rennes and its area have an excellent transportation system, both quick and efficient, the students are well connected to the city and they can commute with ease.

SYA France Summer is located in Rennes, the capital of Brittany, just over 200 miles west of Paris.

The school opened in 1967, housed in a converted mansion and is a short walk from the majestic Thabor Park, a green oasis of calm in this vibrant college town.

TUITION

Program fee for SYA Summer: France 2024: $9,500
The summer fee is inclusive of tuition, homestay, meals, excursions and health insurance. Not included are round-trip airfare, personal expenses such as visa fees, travel insurance and spending money.

Duration: Five weeks 

SYA Summer reserves the right to cancel a summer program if minimum enrollment is not met by March 1, 2024. In the event of cancellation, all deposits will be refunded.

DATES

Summer 2024 Dates: June 19, 2024 - July 23, 2024

Admissions is rolling with first round of acceptances going out on February 2nd and every Friday after that until the programs are full.

FINANCIAL AID

SYA Summer has very limited need-based financial aid available. Less than 5% of our summer students will receive a grant, with no grant to exceed 50% of the tuition. Financial aid funds are awarded on a  first-come, first-served basis and are for families with demonstrated need.

To apply, check the financial aid box on the Summer Application and send a copy of your most recent tax returns to syasummer@sya.org by January 22, 2024

Payment Schedule/Refund Policy:
A non-refundable deposit of $1,000 is due within two weeks of acceptance into the program, with the remainder of the balance due by May 15.  A refund of 50% will be granted to those who cancel before June 1; however, no refund will be offered for cancellations after June 1.

Departure/Return: SYA organizes a chaperoned flight  from the East Coast to Paris. This chaperoned flight is optional; students are not required, but are encouraged, to be on this flight. If students do not fly over on this chaperoned flight, but rather take a different flight, they must still arrive at the CDG airport at the group meeting time and location (date/time/location to be in included in acceptance materials).

After arriving in Paris, the group will board a chartered bus and travel to the orientation spot in the Loire valley. After a two-day orientation, the group will then travel by bus to Rennes to meet their host families.

Please note: flights depart the day before each program starts abroad.

Students who are accepted to the program will receive details about the flight and all other arrival options.

We'd love to hear from you! 

If you have questions about our SYA Summer in France program, you can email us at syasummer@sya.org.