From May 17 to June 14, the Arts et Métiers campus Arts et Métiers is pleased to welcome 50 students from Texas A&M University (TAMU) and their professors Harry Hogan and Francisco Olivera as part of a Study Abroad Program (summer school).
A Study Abroad Program in Mechanics of Materials and Fluid Mechanics
Building on 20 years of collaboration, reinforced in recent years by the AM2 partnership (Arts et Métiers, Texas A&M), the two institutions have worked to implement a Study Abroad Program in Mechanics of Materials and Fluid Mechanics for second-year American Bachelor's students who come to France with their two teachers to take courses that count toward their degree.
This second cohort is benefiting from the success of this program, which was marked by a high satisfaction rate among the 25 Texas students who graduated last year.
Total immersion
They are staying in a student residence in the center of Aix-en-Provence, and two engineering students acting as teaching assistants help them with their travel arrangements and daily schedules.
In addition to their 45 hours of classes in English, they will take an introductory course in French. A partnership withthe IEP in Aix-en-Provence will allow them to attend a lecture on French political and cultural specificities: "Institutions, Politics, and Freedoms in France: Convergence and Specificities of the American and French Experiences."
They will also benefit from an introduction to French language and European culture, particularly through food tastings. A visit to the Saint Gobain research center in Cavaillon is planned, and tours of cities (Paris, Aix-en-Provence, and Marseille) and iconic sites (the Palace of Versailles, the Calanques, the Gorges du Verdon, and the village of Roussillon-en-Provence) are organized for total immersion.
Increasingly significant interactions with engineering students on campus
There are plans to develop interactions with Arts et Métiers students Arts et Métiers to promote exchanges on learning methods, their skills, and their vision of the industry of the future. Fourteen hours of project-based training are included in the program. American students will join French student groups and work together on the following topic: "Analysis of the mechanical design of a system."
There will also be opportunities for socializing and sharing: upon their arrival, the Texan students were able to attend the end-of-year ball organized by engineering students, La Nuit des 100 jours, alongside 5,000 other guests. A basketball game is also being organized in a local gym to help build relationships, as well as a 2 km race on campus. And let's not forget the giant barbecue planned for French and American students.
Prospects involving research and industry
Starting in 2020, the goal is also to establish academic exchange semesters between Arts et Métiers students Arts et Métiers American students on campus, while also offering certain French students a semester at Texas A&M University. The prospect of a dual Master of Science degree between the two institutions will make it possible to initiate research topics involving partner companies in France and the United States.
