Coming to Nancy

Registration

There are several registration processes which will occur when you arrive in Nancy. Due to the joy that is French bureaucracy, these procedures are enough to keep you running around for 2-3 months, if you are unprepared. The ability to speak and understand some French will make things smoother, as most of the people you will deal with in these places speak only French. However, it is still possible if you do not understand any French, provided you have all the necessary documents ready beforehand. Be sure to have all your documents translated to French and/or English beforehand! Translators can be hard to find in France and are very expensive.

Visa Registration - Non-European Students Only

Although you have three months from the issue of your visa to visit the OFII office, it is recommended to do this as soon as possible since they will give you an additional sticker in your passport, which many other administrative procedures will be checking for. The OFII office is located near Place Stanislas. You will need:

  -   a passport with visa,
  -   proof of the address / residence where you will be staying, "justificatif de domicile" (ask the residence staff),
  -   proof of enrollment or proof of acceptance to University of Lorraine (ask your coordinator),
  -   your invitation letter to the EM-Fusion program,
  -   proof of scholarship or financial independence,
  -   two passport photos, taken according to French standards (there are photo booths at the train station),
  -   a stamp proving you have paid the visa tax (around 58€), obtainable online or ground floor of OFII office building).

These documents are accepted in French or English. All other languages must first be translated at your own expense. The office will provide you with two appointments, one for a medical check-up and another for a chest x-ray. The date, time, and location for these appointments will be given to you. DO NOT MISS THEM!!! Bring all the documents mentioned before to these appointments, as well as any documents related to your previous medical history, though they will likely not require anything but your passport. After the appointments, return to OFII office with the papers that they give you, as well as all the documents above, in order to receive the sticker validating your visa.

Enrollment in University - Getting Your Student Card - All Students

The day and time for this will be arranged by your coordinator and will take place at the "Faculté des Sciences et Technologies", or FST, where most of your classes will be. For student registration, you will need:

  -   a passport with visa or European passport or European identity card,
  -   proof of acceptance to University of Lorraine (ask your coordinator),
  -   a birth certificate, stating the names of your parents, original copy,
  -   your Bachelor's degree,
  -   proof of inscription from your previous university, original copy,
  -   a transcript from your previous university, stating which courses you took and your grades,
  -   your invitation letter to the EM-Fusion program,
  -   two passport photos, taken according to French standards (there are photo booths at the train station).

These documents are accepted in French, English, German, Spanish, or Italian. All other languages must first be translated at your own expense. Other things may be asked for so bring all the documents you have, just in case, and note that it is not uncommon for the registration process to temporarily fail. At the end, you should receive your student card and a yellow sheet with lots of information on it, both of which are important.

Registering for Social Security - Non-European Students Only

After this you will register for "Securité sociale", which is an additional sort of health insurance that is mandatory in France. Go to MGEL, which is close to the science campus (FST). You will need:

  -   a passport with visa,
  -   the validation sticker provided by registering with OFII,
  -   the yellow sheet given to you at the end of the enrollment process,
  -   the RIB (IBAN and BIC) of your bank account, printed copy.

The program already paid the necessary fee for you regarding the social security, make sure you do not pay any more money for this.

European students are still required to visit MGEL with their passport / identity card and the yellow sheet, but they can avoid registering with a local doctor by bringing your European health insurance card with you.

Other Mandatory Insurances - All Students

You will also need to purchase another thing called "Responsabilité civile", which can also be done at MGEL. This insures you in the case you have damaged someone else's property, and costs around 14 Euros for the year.

  -   a passport with visa or European passport or European identity card,
  -   a birth certificate, stating the names of your parents, original copy,
  -   your Bachelor's degree, original copy,
  -   proof of inscription from your previous university, original copy,
  -   a transcript from your previous university, stating which courses you took and your grades, original copy,
  -   your invitation letter to the EM-Fusion program.

It is also possible to purchase house insurance, "Assurance de domicile", from MGEL as well, which is required by the CROUS residences. The cost depends on the type of room you have. For a studio, it should be around 55 Euros for the year.

Opening a Bank Account

Pick a bank, any bank. The ESN office may recommend a specific bank due to some specific student deals they have negotiated with that bank, but you are free to choose as you wish. The documents you will require to open a student account are:

  -   a passport with visa or European passport or European identity card,
  -   proof of the address / residence where you will be staying, "justificatif de domicile" (ask the residence staff),
  -   proof of enrollment or proof of acceptance to University of Lorraine (ask your coordinator),
  -   your invitation letter to the EM-Fusion program.

Expect to pay between 1-5€ per month as a general fee, despite it being a student account. Depending on your level of integration into French society, it may also be necessary for you to order a book of cheques from the bank, as some organizations and activities only accept cheques as payment.

Obtaining Financial Aid for Housing

As a student in France, you are automatically eligible for financial aid to help pay for your rent. However, it is not automatically given to you and you must first register with CAF. The CAF office is a 10 minute walk from the train station, in the direction opposite to the city center. In order to register with CAF, you will need:

  -   a passport with visa or European passport or European identity card,
  -   a birth certificate, stating the names of your parents, original copy,
  -   proof of the address / residence where you will be staying, "justificatif de domicile" (ask the residence staff),
  -   proof of enrollment or proof of acceptance to University of Lorraine (ask your coordinator),
  -   your invitation letter to the EM-Fusion program,
  -   the yellow sheet given to you at the end of the enrollment process,
  -   the RIB (IBAN and BIC) of your bank account, printed copy.

In the case that you live in the CROUS residences, you will receive approximately 170€ per month paid directly to the residence and the residence will deduct the amount from your monthly rent. Despite this, they will still ask for your bank account information, so have it ready anyway. It will likely take the organization 2-3 weeks to process your application before they will pay you, so be patient. They will inform you by courier or email if something went wrong.

If you intend to take advantage of this financial aid, register as soon as possible. Officially, they claim to only pay from the date you started the application, though some students have received money from earlier months even though they were late in submitting this.

Finding The Department and Classes

The department, and all your classes are contained within a building/campus called "Le Campus Aiguillettes" and is part of the Faculté des Sciences et Technologies [1]. It is located near a very famous cross section called "Vélodrome" in Vandoeuvre-les-Nancy. It is easily accessible by bike, either along the tram lines or by the specially made bikepath (see google maps for more details)(+/- 20 min from the city center). With the tram, you take tram 1 in the direction "CHU Brabois" and get of at the stops "Vélodrome" or "Callot"(+/- 20 min from the city center). During rush hours, trams are very busy, but during the other times it's nice and empty. Tickets are €1,30 for a one-way trip and it's €9 for a 10 trip ticket. There is the ability to get a actual rechargeable card, but i have no idea about the cost and if it is worth getting.

There is one exception, your language class will be hosted at EEIGM, which is a European Material Engineering school at the other side of Nancy. Again this is easily reachale by bike aswell as tram 1 in direction "ESSEY Mouzimpré" and the stop is called "Division de Fer".

Getting Around

The buses are useless, [except for number 2!] often having hour delays between them or simply not running at all on mystery days. The upgrades to the bus stops improved the situation, still almost no bus runs beyond midnight during weekdays and 1AM in weekends. The Trams however run on a fairly good schedule, coming every 5 or so minutes during the busy parts of the day, and every 20-30 minutes during the less busy periods of the day. From the central train station the 1 line will ferry you either to the Velodrome or to your language classes at the EEIGM building.

Student Restaurants

Nancy hosts a lot of student restaurants which serve different kinds of food. For example, there is the chinese restaurant, which typically serves something "asian" like we can say. Meals are €3,20 and for that price you get 5 items: Bread, Main course, Entrance, a piece of fruit fruit and a desert. Paying is by putting credit on your student card, this can be done using cash at an office but these are rare. Another way to add credit is by using your "carte bleu" (French bank account card), other cards will probably not work.

Biking in Nancy

Bringing a bike to Nancy, or getting one here is a very good idea. Bikes are really usefull to get around town in Nancy as nothing is really far and there are a fair amount of bike lanes present + you can bike on the tram tracks in between two trams. You can get a bike and if needed repair your bike at a shop called Dynamo [2]. At Dynamo you can buy cheap bickes (€30 - 50) or repair you bike, the concept is that you pay a membership fee €15 and they you can use all the equipment all year and get professional help with fixing your bike, but you must perform the work yourself. Most bikes bought at Dynamo need some work but the first set of parts u need is included in the bike price.