Office of Study Abroad

Profile: Neeti Kulkarni '21

Major/minor: Economics and Music with a minor in French 

Study abroad program: Sarah Lawrence/Paris (Fall 2019)

Reason you chose this program: Sarah Lawrence offered me the chance to take classes that improved upon my French grammar and knowledge of culture, while also studying at a music conservatory, giving me a chance to really focus on music for a semester.

Favorite class: Viola lessons under renowned violist Bruno Pasquier, and a class focusing on French immigration and the experience of minorities.

Housing situation: I lived at the Cité Universitaire at the Fondation des États-Unis. I lived specifically on a floor for artists-in-residence, so it gave me a great taste of the music culture in France.

How your identity played into your time abroad: My parents come from India, but I do not look Indian (more ethnically ambiguous). People in France are much more open to asking you on the street where you are from and it is not done in a malicious manner. A Moroccan man once asked me because he thought I was also Moroccan. I am also vegetarian, which could be a challenge with traditional French cuisine, but Paris is very much a cosmopolitan city, so I spent a lot of time at Italian and Thai restaurants, where there are more options for me. I also cooked a lot, which showed me the best parts of France were the fresh produce and bread that I could easily make a meal out of every day.

How you incorporated your Brandeis major into your abroad experience: I am a music major at Brandeis with a concentration in viola performance, but since Brandeis is not a conservatory, I looked to this program as a new way to challenge and push myself further in my music education.

Favorite memory: I was lucky enough to live with artists putting on a show in a gallery. I attended the opening in a gallery, a very swanky soirée with wine and live performances. After the event was over, I decided to walk to meet my friend for dinner. The holiday lights had just come up and I was walking by the most wonderful boutiques with nobody on the streets. My friend and I ended up at a warm crêpe café and we spent hours there just talking. It was one of the most delightfully French experiences that I was lucky enough to have.

Greatest challenge: I was living very independently for the first time, and with people much older than me (since the Cité primarily houses Masters students) and I had to put myself out there to make friends. It was hard and uncomfortable A LOT, but I did come out knowing some amazing people.

What you know now that you didn't know before: I can live on my own successfully and speaking another language constantly is not so hard.

Fact about France that you think people would be surprised to learn: France is a big place, so while cities for Paris are known for their snobbery, I found the south of France to be extremely friendly, and the Alsace region to be very open as well.