Quebec student
Marianne, 19, an exchange student from a small region of Quebec, spent 2 months at SUPMODE from November to December as part of her fashion design studies at the Campus Notre-Dame-de-Foy in Quebec City.
Before studying at the CNDF, she did a sport étude in high school, then switched to fashion design at the CNDF.
Her fashion design course lasts 3 years, and she attends a school that, unlike SUPMODE, teaches several general and technical programs.
She completed two internships as part of her studies:
- A first at the Simons photo studio in Quebec
- The second at Remark by Lauren in Toronto
Marianne has always loved to travel, and chose her school in Quebec mainly because of the student exchange program it offered in Bordeaux. She wanted to discover a new way of learning, learn to be inspired differently, and visit France.
She is present at SUPMODE to learn how to make a corset alongside the Bachelor 3 Design option, supervised by Mme. Morel, a model-making instructor.
A few questions about her gap year in France at SUPMODE
Would you recommend a gap year to a student?
"Totally. The people are so welcoming, and you meet new people and experience new things. You discover new things every day in terms of culture, architecture and environment. It's a different way of learning, the school is taught differently and it's fun to make changes and see that other techniques are possible. Both in the teaching and in the application of the work.
For example, back home in Quebec we're more technical, whereas here it's much more artistically advanced."
How did you like France, and Bordeaux in particular? What did you discover and visit?
"Everything is so pretty and good. People seem to have it easy and the cafés are full every day of the week, it's not like that back home. It's fun to go into town for a drink after class).
Partying in Bordeaux is great too. Those who make the exchange to Quebec may be disappointed to find that the bars close at 3 a.m. and nothing's open after that...
I really like Bordeaux, I think it's even prettier than Paris. Because yes, I've been to Paris, I've visited all the clichéd squares filled with touristy stores and it's super pretty, but Bordeaux is still prettier to the eye. It's like a big Old Quebec.
I went to visit Arcachon and Le Cap Ferret too, it's crazy to see palm trees everywhere here even when it's cold."
What did you learn from SUPMODE during your gap year? What are the 3 best reasons for studying there?
"Everyone is very welcoming, dynamic and no one gets in anyone's head.
I really appreciate the common core of design and marketing courses, it's really interesting to understand both at the same time. You have more cards in your hands and more knowledge: the "2 sides of the coin" as they say. It's very relevant and interesting to learn these two complementary fields.
What's more, this makes for an even stronger collaboration when working together. Everyone has a grounding in their chosen specialization in the third year, and above all, everyone knows each other, having shared their first and second years.
It gives you a more complete vision of things from both sides. In our case, it's very distinct at the CNDF, because you have to choose between design and marketing right from the first year. They're two different programs.
SUPMODE trainers are all passionate people, full of experience who share it with us on a daily basis, and that's what makes them so good at what they do.
Or, in a nutshell, the good reasons for doing your gap year at SUPMODE:
- Develop your creativity to the full.
- Increase autonomy/decision-making.
- Gaining highly specific technical knowledge.
- Travelling at the same time
- Discover new ways of learning.
Where do you see yourself in 10 years? What's your dream job?
"I have no idea. Maybe more in-depth studies in marketing or/and communications to get a job in fashion anyway."
