French major Tricia Carreon has received a scholarship from the Université de Tours in France to study abroad there during the Spring 2022 semester. She recently completed her first year of undergraduate study at Michigan State University and is looking forward to her first semester on campus in the fall before traveling to France for this opportunity.

Carreon began studying French in high school and enjoyed the rigor of her classes and learning about the different aspects of French culture and history. While she knew she wanted to continue her French education in college, she did not know at first that it would shape her long-term educational goals. She entered her first year of study at MSU as an Animal Science major, but later switched her major to French and is now interested in attending graduate school to become a French professor.

Though she is still discovering her research interests in the field of French study, she is greatly looking forward to her time in Tours, France, to help shape those interests. One potential interest for her is the French literary movements. During high school, she participated in the International Baccalaureate program, for which she wrote a 15-page research paper on the French existentialist play, Rhinocéros. Her interest in this area was part of what drew her to Tours, France.

When I was looking into Tours to see which classes I could take, I saw that there was a 20th-century literary movements class that used plays from the same literary movement as my high school research paper, so it felt perfect that I could learn more about that part of French history.

“When I was looking into Tours to see which classes I could take, I saw that there was a 20th-century literary movements class that used plays from the same literary movement as my high school research paper, so it felt perfect that I could learn more about that part of French history,” Carreon said. “I’m also just excited to be able to study and live in France in general.”

Carreon would like to thank her high school French Teacher, Madame Blain, and her first-year French Professor, Elizabeth Tuttle, for encouraging her to continue her studies in French. “They both supported me so much to the point that I’m inspired to do the same for future French students,” she said, “especially those who are hesitant to pursue it as a career.”