{"id":376,"date":"2025-07-15T15:34:56","date_gmt":"2025-07-15T19:34:56","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.clarku.edu\/studyabroad\/?p=376"},"modified":"2025-07-22T15:44:20","modified_gmt":"2025-07-22T19:44:20","slug":"jake-bernstein-26-finds-connection-and-confidence-in-rennes-france","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.clarku.edu\/study-abroad\/jake-bernstein-26-finds-connection-and-confidence-in-rennes-france\/","title":{"rendered":"Jake Bernstein \u201926 finds connection in Rennes, France"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Jake Bernstein \u201926 didn\u2019t grow up speaking French. He didn\u2019t have family in France. But he had a deep curiosity\u2014and a love of food that led him down an unexpected and life altering path.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n
\"Jake<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI\u2019m a huge foodie,\u201d Jake says. \u201cIt was my love of French cuisine that got me started learning the language. But it\u2019s everything I\u2019ve discovered since\u2014about culture, identity, and history\u2014that\u2019s kept me going.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A double major in French and data science, Jake chose a semester-long program in Rennes for its emphasis on full immersion\u2014linguistically, academically, and personally. He wanted to be somewhere that would really push him to use French every day, and Rennes offered that. He also loved that the city has a distinct culture and history all its own\u2014not just a smaller Paris.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Jake<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

To prepare, Jake dove into courses on French popular culture, Francophone literature, and the interdisciplinary National Imagination<\/em> course  that explores how national languages have been used to promote the sense of cultural continuity and identity for various national communities. These classes explored everything from immigration and identity to cartoons, slang, youth culture, and global Francophone literature\u2014giving him the historical and cultural fluency to engage meaningfully abroad.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But nothing prepared him quite like his host family.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe highlight of my experience was definitely living with my host family,\u201d Jake says. \u201cI saw tremendous improvements in my French and I truly felt like I was a real part of the family..\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n

\u201cFrance has so much to offer, and you will make the most of it by putting yourself into all of it.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

Like many students who take the leap to study abroad, Jake wrestled with uncertainty. \u201cIt can be scary,\u201d he admits. \u201cBut don\u2019t let the fear of making mistakes in the language limit your experience.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That immersive mindset carried him through\u2014and helped him thrive. Between his classes, his host family, and his willingness to engage fully, Jake didn\u2019t just study<\/em> abroad. He lived it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

His advice to other Clark students considering Rennes or any study abroad program?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cFrance has so much to offer, and you will make the most of it by putting yourself into all of it.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

With no personal ties to France and a double major in French and Data Science, Jake Bernstein \u201926 chose to spend semester in Rennes\u2014a decision that transformed his language skills, deepened his cultural understanding, and changed the way he sees the world.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":14,"featured_media":377,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":true,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[15],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-376","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news"],"yoast_head":"\nJake Bernstein \u201926 finds connection in Rennes, France | Study Abroad | Clark University<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" 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