Teaching Assistant
Program

As a couple of American Francophiles, we dreamed about participating in TAPIF for years before submitting our applications in 2018. When we learned that we would both be working in the Académie de Reims for the 2019-2020 school year, we couldn’t have been more excited for the opportunity to put our French skills to work while enjoying a life-changing adventure abroad.    Our assistantships allowed us to wear many hats – American culture specialists, lesson planners, public transport connoisseurs, French bakery enthusiasts, group tutorial providers, French administration experts, English department colleagues, public speakers, explorers, and cross-cultural communicators to name a few! Living in Troyes and working in the French school system was an experience of cultural immersion that only intensified our penchant for all things French.    We especially loved sharing the ins and outs of our participation in TAPIF across social media platforms as The Francofile. Read more about Jalen & Maria, Académie de Reims, 2019-2020

"Doing TAPIF is a great opportunity to learn more about who you are as a person. Being placed in a city that I had never heard of afforded me with the great privilege to establish myself in a completely new country outside of my comfort zone. In doing so, I learned more about myself through TAPIF than my entire time at University combined." Read more about Kevin, Académie de Grenoble, 2019-2020

"A year after TAPIF, I applied to Middlebury Language Schools to earn my MA in French. Because I had formed lasting relationships in France, I was able to get a letter of recommendation from my académie's Conseillère Pédagogique. I will complete my second summer at Middlebury this year and am happily teaching middle school French in St. Louis, Missouri. The language and cultural experiences I gained from TAPIF have brought so much to my life, and I highly recommend it to anyone interested! If you dedicate yourself, you will grow in more ways than you can imagine." Read more about Lauren, Académie d'Amiens, 2018-2019

"The teaching experience gave me a lot of transferable skills for my future jobs and soon-to-be career. After TAPIF I earned my JD/MPH and now work in education again, but as an administrator working on COVID-19 preparedness and response. I also continue my Francophone engagement by serving on the board of the Alliance Française Minneapolis-St. Paul."  Read more about Caroline, Académie de Lyon, 2016-2017

« Comment il-est? Il est là! » Pour les français de métropole, ça veut rien dire, mais pour les habitants de la Réunion (département d’outre-mer), c’est une autre manière pour dire « ça va ? » en créole. Illustré par la langue, la gastronomie et la façon de vivre, la culture réunionnaise se manifeste comme un mariage entre deux opposés qui s’attirent. Une petite île qui se situe géographiquement à côté de l’Afrique, mais qui appartient toujours à la France, ce joli refuge de paradis tropical offre une belle combinaison de ces deux cultures complémentaires. Read more about Matthew, La Réunion, 2014-2015 et La Guyane, 2015-2016

Before TAPIF, I'd never been to France and had no idea what to expect (aside from what I'd seen in Bienvenue Chez les Ch'tis...), but it turned out to be the best seven months of my life. I was placed in two colleges in the Academie de Lille and lived in Bethune. Read more about Bhavya, Lille, 2014-2015

Bonjour ! Je m’appelle Dana et je viens de Milwaukee, Wisconsin. En ce moment, je m'identifie comme toulonnaise. J'habite à Toulon, juste à côté de la Méditerranée. Read more about Dana, Nice, 2013-2014

Bonjour ! Je m’appelle Elizabeth, j’ai 23 ans, et je viens du Michigan. Depuis le début d’octobre, je travaille comme assistante d’anglais à Louviers en Haute-Normandie. Read more about Elizabeth, Rouen, 2013-2014

Bonjour ! Je m’appelle MaryFrances et je viens de Californie du Sud. Aujourd’hui, je me trouve en plein centre-ville d’Angers dans la région de la Loire. Read more about MaryFrances, Nantes, 2013-2014

I loved my year as a teaching assistant with TAPIF. I was looking for an opportunity to go back to France to polish my French before becoming a French teacher in the US; TAPIF gave me that and more. I taught at the secondary level so I had students from 6ème to BTS. I still have the really beautiful gift my 4èmes made me at the end of the year! I had total freedom over what I wanted to teach which was great, and my colleagues in the English department were really helpful whenever I asked for suggestions about lesson planning. I even made pumpkin pie at one of their houses for Thanksgiving dinner! Read more about Alexandra, Poitiers, 2011-2012

As a life-long Francophile, I'd always dreamed of living and working in France, as well as becoming fluent in French.  When I first learned about the TAPIF program, I realized that the program would allow me to accomplish all of my goals!  Read more about Kendra, Limoges, 2009-2010

When I participated in the program, the teachers at my school in Tonnerre appreciated the effort and preparation that I put into my lessons, and the students liked them because I tried to make them both practical and fun. I have fond memories of lively conversations with teachers in the "salle des profs" and of students introducing me to their families when I ran into them at the market. I felt like a member of the community, and it was hard to leave when it was time for me to come back to the U.S. Read more about Anne, Dijon, 2002-2003