The KSU Fashion Experience: Paris

 

Let’s begin our adventure with the lovely Megan McDonald, 20, a junior fashion merchandising major with a double minor in marketing and international business.

 

Her Campus: When did you go to the Paris American Academy?

Megan McDonald: Last summer; I went the month of July.

 

HC: What made you want to attend the Paris American Academy?

Megan: I have always wanted to go to Paris since I was little. It was kind of a no brainer; I had to go.

 

HC: Did you travel anywhere other then Paris during your month abroad?

Megan: Unfortunately, we never had the time to travel around. I wanted to, but it was just a very busy program!

 

HC: How many classes did you take?

Megan: We took… I want to say about 5 classes. We had different workshops. Like a luxury industry workshop, a hat making workshop, a feather workshop, a writing workshop, a dyeing workshop, and a boutique project workshop.

 

HC: What are some pros of the program?

Megan: I loved the whole atmosphere of just walking around and experiencing the culture. My favorite class was luxury industry. At Kent we don’t really get to learn about that industry and what it takes to have a career in luxury industry. It was really challenging and interesting. Oh, and the fashion shows were so much fun to help with. One of the designers we got to help with, we’ve seen his gowns and shoes at award shoes now, like the VMAs. A ton of celebrities were wearing them and Cara Delevingne was wearing one of the outfits I dressed my model in, in Paris, so that was really cool to see.

 

HC: What are some cons?

Megan: Our apartment was very small and very crowded, which you do have to expect that being in a big city. The program wasn’t as organized as what we thought it would be, so that was a little disappointing, but overall we still had a good experience.

 

HC: What advice do you have for KSU students who are about to attend the Paris American Academy this summer?

Megan: Email and ask the directors if you have any questions. Make sure you know what’s happening; when we got there it was kind of a challenge because we didn’t know where to go. So make sure you know as much detail as possible, if you have any questions email, and if you don’t get a response, keep emailing. Make a list before you go of everything you want to do, like your must haves!  

 

HC: What was your favorite part about Paris?

Megan: EVERYTHING! I honestly loved just walking around and it was so neat seeing the different fashion, and the different way of living. We loved walking around the gardens and little houses. The most fun day we had were days we didn’t plan and just walked around and took it all in.

 

HC: How do you think attending the Paris American Academy will affect your future career?

Megan: I think I have a better understanding of a different culture. With my international business minor, I understand what it’s like for somebody to go to a complete foreign country and have to adjust their entire life thanks to my experience in Paris. We lived there for a month, so we had to communicate, and eat, and adjust our manners to their culture of living. Things in America are open 24/7 and in Paris they’re not so just different adaptation skills are a key takeaway from this experience. 

 

HC: What is your dream job?

Megan: My dream job, I want to travel more… I would love to work with fashion shows; I think that would be amazing and I loved working the annual fashion show in Kent. So going and experiencing Paris’ fashion week definitely I love it.

 

For more information on Megan’s adventure, check out the blog she made to document her experience.

 

 

Next we want to introduce one of our very own Her Campus writers, Laci Lock, 20, a junior fashion merchandising major with a double minor in fashion media and marketing.

 

Her Campus: When did you go to the Paris American Academy?

Laci Lock: I got to go this past summer for the whole month of July! 

 

HC: What made you want to go to Paris?

Laci: I feel like Paris is every little girl’s dream; it’s just one of those places that makes your heart flutter when you think about it. But when I really started developing my interest in fashion and learning about the industry and its roots, I became obsessed. The chance to study and learn with some of the best in the business in the most widely recognized fashion capital in the world was just too great of an opportunity to pass up.

 

HC: Do you remember how many classes you took?

Laci: Technically, we only took 2 courses for 3 credits a piece. However, when we started counting, we realized there were actually about 8 different subjects that we learned! 

 

HC: What are a few pros you have after your experience in Paris?

Laci: There were so many pros of the experience! For one, I was in Paris! Enough said. The teachers were incredible and all so qualified. For example, one sold her own fabric to Yves Saint Laurent himself, while another worked at Dior for ten years! On another note, I’m a huge history buff and I LOVE antiquing and old pieces and architecture. To be in a city with so many world-famous museums and old, historic buildings and structures was so exciting for me!

 

HC: What are some cons of your experience in Paris?

Laci: I wish I had practiced more French before I had gone! While most people understood English pretty well, it was still difficult in the beginning to figure out stuff on menus and in grocery stores. It was definitely a “learn as you go” kind of experience. Another thing was the lack of communication in our program. I know that that’s part of the French culture—how laid back and lax they are, but there were days when we literally had no idea where we were supposed to be or who we were supposed to be meeting with. 

 

HC: What advice do you have for students who are about to participate in the program?

Laci: Go into the program with an open mind. Experience as much of the city as you can and appreciate it while you’re there. Don’t be afraid to leave your comfort zone a couple of times because, trust me, that’s just part of the experience! I created a Pinterest board just for places and things I wanted to do in Paris and used it as a guide. I suggest doing the same because I cannot tell you the number of times it came in handy! Do your research, but understand that no amount is going to completely prepare you for everything.

 

HC: What was your absolute most favorite part of Paris?

Laci: I LOVED getting to explore! Days that we had off, I would take the metro to a new part of town and spend all day there just getting lost. It was amazing; I learned so much more about myself in the process! Montmartre was, by far, my favorite section of Paris. Between the amazing views and charming villas, it was so easy to lose myself there. Standing on the steps of the Sacre Coeur, you could see all of Paris and its beauty. Such an incredible day!

 

Laci: Unfortunately, no. We had class five to six days a week, along with different projects due every week; there was just not enough time. I guess I would say that’s another downside to the program. I would have loved to go to London or Amsterdam for a weekend.

 

Laci: The crepes! No doubt about it. My roomie and I discovered the cutest little crepe place a couple of blocks from our apartment called “Le Creperie.” It was the BEST! Tori, my roommate, would get the same thing every time and I would always try something different. We got to the point where we would go three or four times a week and the servers would recognize us!

 

Laci: Just saying that I studied in a foreign country will help me out when it comes to employers. But to have my resume say I studied fashion under such qualified professors in Paris will speak volumes about me and help me stand out from other potential hires. I helped dress and work haute couture shows for Paris Couture Week—no amount of educational background trumps a firsthand experience like that.

 

Laci: To be completely honest, I’m not even sure yet. I’m still deciding between something dealing with media or maybe publicity. I think I would really love creating editorial content for a fashion magazine. If I decide to go the other route, a fashion publicist for a designer/brand would be ideal. I’m also considering being a buyer, but I feel like that’s what every fashion merch major says. Ask me again in two years, and hopefully I’ll have a better answer for you!

 

Laci: I think it’s just @laceeee_17 for both Instagram and Twitter. I’m trying to get better at posting more consistently, and to make sure my feed isn’t just selfies! 

 

Laci: I actually don’t have one right now! After months and months of friends and family begging me, I will admit I have been working on something. It’s just a side project right now, but I’m really excited about it! It’s a slice of my life with fashion, friends and family all in the mix. Hopefully it’ll be ready in the next couple of months before I leave for Florence for a semester, but keep an eye out for that in the near future! 

 

Finally, we’ll wrap up the City of Lights with fashion student Tracie Pfrogner, founder of the style blog Tracie Marie Please. Her Campus was fortunate enough to talk to Tracie about her experience at PAA and hear her feedback of the program.

Name: Tracie PfrognerMajor/Minor: Fashion Merchandising with dual minors in Marketing and AnthropologyHometown: Dayton, Ohio

 

Her Campus: Kent has several different study away programs. What made you choose Paris?Tracie Pfrogner: I liked the fact that the Paris program was only a month and that it was during the summer. Plus, visiting Paris has always been a dream of mine.

HC: What were you the most excited to experience while abroad?TP: I was most excited to visit the Palace of Versailles.  I have been obsessed with the story and history of Marie Antoinette ever since I was a little girl, so it truly was a dream come true to be able to see the Hall of Mirrors and walk through the gardens.

Tracie was able to take tours around many of the museums in Paris, including the breathtaking Louvre, which houses the biggest collection in the world!

HC: Any pros and cons to the experience?TP: I would say a pro was definitely living in the Latin Quarter. Notre Dame was only a short walk away so there were always different cafes to visit and it was so nice to buy a crepe and just sit along the Seine. Another pro was working backstage for Paris Couture Week, which was a once in a lifetime opportunity. A con was being in class all day six days a week. We hardly had any free time and I didn’t even get to see all of Paris. A con was also that there is no air-conditioning literally anywhere in Paris, and living in tight close quarters when it’s 100 degrees outside was definitely not fun.

HC: What did you think of the program as a whole?TP: I thought that it was unorganized. To this day I still am not sure what grade I received in each of the individual eight different classes/projects I had to do. The staff was also very unresponsive to emails and was unhelpful as a whole. We were in an entirely new country with an unfamiliar language and culture, and we never were given a proper orientation to living in Paris. Instructors gave very unclear verbal instructions for projects and were not very helpful. The programs we were participating in were things that we had already learned, so I was disappointed because I was hoping to learn new information and new aspects about the fashion industry. The only good part of the program was getting to work backstage for Paris Couture Week.

HC: What was your favorite memory that you made?TP: Being on top of the tallest building in Paris and having 360 degrees view of the entire city of Paris. It was so gorgeous and we watched the sunset and saw the Eiffel Tower twinkle!

Tracie gets a stunning view of the Palais Garnier, Paris’s most famous opera house and the venue of one of the couture shows she was able to help with.(P.S. This landmark actually served as the full inspiration behind the Phantom of the Opera movie!)

HC: Did the experience live up to/exceed your expectations?TP: Honestly, not really. I went to Paris to “study abroad” and I do not feel that I learned very much. Yes, the experience was a once in a lifetime opportunity, but I did not get my money’s worth out of the program.

HC: You run your own fashion blog. How do you think your experiences while living in Paris for a month impacted your blog?TP: Getting to experience so much beautiful architecture, art, and even people was very inspiring. I was so fortunate to get to take so many gorgeous pictures. The culture was so different from what I am used to, and getting to blog about it and share my experiences with my readers was so fun!

HC: Any regrets or things you wish you had done differently?TP: I wish I had brought more warm-weather clothes. We were told that you can experience all four seasons in one day in Paris, and that totally wasn’t true! It was so incredibly hot during the entire month we were there, and I ended up having to buy clothes so I wouldn’t catch heat stroke!

HC: Best word of advice for someone considering the program?TP: Be prepared to have very little free time. Plan out exactly what you want to see beforehand and schedule out when you plan on going.