How to live abroad on a whim as a grad student?

December 1, 2008 10:21 PM

How to get started thinking about living abroad (possibly Paris)? And does anyone have any wisdom from doing it while writing a dissertation?

I'm a PhD student who has realized that I'll never have this much freedom again. I'm at the stage where all I have left to do is write a dissertation, and I'm in a discipline where I don't need a lab or anything, only a good library, to do it.

So I'm thinking of going to live somewhere I want while I do so, starting next year. Paris is number 1 on the list, though Rio, Florence, Vienna, and (if I'm in the mood to be conservative) New York are also candidates.

I don't have any French, natch, though I'd probably try and pick up some before going and hopefully pick up quite a lot while there.

Can anyone offer advice on how one goes about this? I'm particularly interested in wisdom on:

- Citizenship issues: can I even do this without violating French law or making myself liable for taxes to multiple countries? (Possibly helpful on legality, hurtful on taxes: I'm a U.S. citizen but I'm eligible for, and about to apply for, dual citizenship via British citizenship by descent -- and hence will be a citizen of an EU country when it comes time to do this thing.)

- Financial issues: my grad school stipend is paid in dollars... how hosed will I be, financially, if I go to Paris?

- Being a good grad student issues: will I ever actually write a dissertation if I do this?

- Logistical issues: how does one plan for and execute a move to a foreign country? What kind of paperwork does one need to do to live in France? How does one find a place? etc.

I wonder if there's a book on all of this...

Thanks!

posted by paultopia to travel & transportation (17 comments total)

Financial issues: my grad school stipend is paid in dollars... how hosed will I be, financially, if I go to Paris?

Paris is very expensive, but the dollar is getting stronger. I'm sure a creative person can live cheaply in paris, but will that distract you from the dissertation?

I don't have any French, natch, though I'd probably try and pick up some before going and hopefully pick up quite a lot while there.

Everyone in Paris seems to speak English, if you greet them in French first and then ask them nicely. You shouldn't have any trouble communicating, particularly if you try to pick up more French.

Being a good grad student issues: will I ever actually write a dissertation if I do this?

Hard to say. You will probably enjoy yourself and meet lots of great people.
posted by b1tr0t at 10:32 PM on December 1, 2008

This made me laugh out loud.

Are you the type of grad student who REALLY says, "all I have left to do is the dissertation" and really mean it? Or are you the ABD grad student (meaning "all but dissertation" and being very tongue-in-cheek about it) trying to pretend you're not? My experience is that there are about 5-10% of grads that fit the former, and 80-95% the latter.

Are you the type of grad student who says, "oh maybe there is a book on this moving abroad thing," which leads to searching for such a book, which leads to researching websites, which leads to talking to folks, which leads to packing, which leads to preparation, which leads to moving abroad, which leads to taking classes in the language, which leads to "getting settled" for months? Then: oh, look, it's a great weekend to go away to this other Close Cool City, and hey, when else am I going to have a chance to get there? Or do you just decide, hey, me and my books, we can go anywhere - and go?

Because the way you've written it REALLY looks like you're ready for a distraction. In which case: go. But finish the diss first!

This is not the exciting advice. This is not the advice which will help you get the details sorted. But it is the advice that every adviser ever seems to give to grad students, and fairly knowingly too. On the other hand, if you know that you can get up every single workday, and churn out 8-10 hours of work, manage time zones and the disastrous difficulty in getting the books you need abroad, it'll help your work in some way, your adviser is cool with it, and you can easily sort out the logistics, maybe then think about it.

The idea of a foreign grad student writing a dissertation, without any kind of support, in Paris or Rio is kind of hilarious though. It's just the kind of thing I cook up about this time of night, delirious from reading and writing and needing OUT.
posted by barnone at 11:08 PM on December 1, 2008 [1 favorite]

You need a good library - make sure that there is one near you that you are permitted to borrow from and that will not cost you an arm and a leg. If this is crucial for you, it will not help if you can only access the Bibliotheque Nationale and they don't have materials on your topic in English. Does your university have reciprocal arrangements in France? Can they get you an introduction letter? Can you meet with the faculty there just to have a bit of a support system?

If you want to learn French, take a class while there. The amount of interaction one has with people is surprisingly limited, it is hard to just pick up a language unless you consciously immerse yourself (I learnt very little Dutch in the Netherlands for example).

If you are resident in France, you will probably not need to pay taxes as you are not earning an income, but I only lived in the Netherlands so I am not entirely sure. Check this site for much more information on the topic - UK in France . You most likely will need to register with the local government and obtain a residency permit as your citizenship is UK not French. You will probably need local health insurance.

My favourite book before I moved was Expert Expat. Covers all the logistical issues and more.

Do it, enjoy it, and don't worry too much about the details.
posted by wingless_angel at 11:09 PM on December 1, 2008

I tend to agree with barnone above.

However, if money is not an issue, and you're absolutely certain you'll be able to finish the dissertation, and if you're absolutely certain that you'll be able to find a library in a non-English speaking country that meets your needs, well, why not?

The neat thing about living in a totally unfamiliar culture, in my experience, is that the almost unhinging unfamiliarity of the surrounds can help unlock creativity. And Paris has been home to lots of writers.

So, if you have money and a good library, the next step is a visa. Check out how long a tourist visa lasts. Its usually three months. When your visa expires, simply go over the border and come back. You may get some hard questions at Customs, but you're free, so you can always go back to the States (or wherever you're from).

It may be difficult to rent longterm accommodation without a working or a student visa.

BTW, I would question your assumption that this is the last taste of freedom you will have. Freedom begins with a job and income, which, presumably, will follow your PhD.
posted by KokuRyu at 11:18 PM on December 1, 2008

Also, looking at your posting history, there are a few signs that moves and logistics aren't really your strong suit. I know, people change. And maybe being a little out of sorts would be good for your writing. But those are both warning signs to me. Can I guess that you're writing your dissertation proposal right now? 'cause that's how this question is framed.
posted by barnone at 11:41 PM on December 1, 2008

Barnone: yeah, I am.

Your words worry me, because they make sense.
posted by paultopia at 12:11 AM on December 2, 2008

They make sense because I'm there too, in a slightly different field. OK. Let's play intellectual madlibs for a second.

Fill in the blank: How to ____ on a whim as a grad student? How to get started thinking about _____ (possibly ____)? And does anyone have any wisdom from doing it while writing a dissertation?

Now insert:
-- train a dog, possibly a retreiver
-- learn how to work on old cars, possibly a vintage Camero
-- open a cooking school, possibly Thai or Indian food
-- manage a farm, possibly organic
-- be an interior designer, possibly a stylist

Don't some of those look like other good options? Yeah, I think so too. The point is not that those things cannot be done while you are writing a dissertation. But they happen organically, easily or by necessity if it's a good idea at this point. Oh sure, you say, but sometimes you have to take the bull by its horns? That would be your dissertation, my friend. Go grab that one in first.

Sounds like you could use a break. I took last summer off. Entirely. Went abroad, travelled, read, swam, ate, gardened, talked, etc. It was delicious. Why not save your money and go to Paris or SE Asia or South America for a month or two in June/July? I'll let others weigh in and bugger off for a bit. I'd say MeMail me but I'm slammed for the next few weeks "writing" my dissertation.
posted by barnone at 12:35 AM on December 2, 2008 [1 favorite]

If you have UK citizenship, you can enter, live and work in France freely. You have to register with your local Maire (basically the town council) to say you're living there, but there are no restrictions on you picking up work to supplement your stipend (although you'll need your UK passport and attestation d'enregistrement, which the Maire gives you, to prove your right to work). Details.

Taxation wise, you should only pay taxes on income earned in France to the French treasury, unless you earn over $80,000 while you're away (unlikely I'd wager). You'll still need to report income earned abroad in your tax return.

In terms of organising and actually moving, the forums at UK Yankee are invaluable, even though they're focused on moving to the UK rather than Europe. As a grad student coming over for likely less than a year, I'd caution you against bringing much with you (shipping is pretty expensive). Music and other data can be stored electronically, and you can buy clothes and so on over here. Bring the basics, put everything else in storage and buy what you need when you get here. That way the coat or whatever that you bought in Paris will be a nice reminder.

Anyway, only you can know if this would be a wonderful and delicious experience that would supplement and enhance the task you have of writing your dissertation, or an immense distraction in waiting. Whatever the case, your pending UK citizenship effectively wipes out any issues with living, working, visas and so on, so it's really up to you and your work ethic.

Good luck!
posted by Happy Dave at 1:15 AM on December 2, 2008

Oh, and have a good think about accomodation - your university may be able to help you find a student flat and get you registered with one of the universities in Paris (good if you need access to the library). Alternatively, you could go into a group flat, or see if there is anyone hosting foreign students (the URLs escape me, but there are websites for finding local hosts who specialise in this).
posted by Happy Dave at 1:18 AM on December 2, 2008

Look, if you want a break in Paris, take a break and go. You'll have a terrific time, and will come back refreshed.

If you don't speak French or if Paris in particular doesn't have a direct link with your line of study, I'm not sure why you'd want Paris in particular... aside from the boho/freedom connotations. Why not Amsterdam instead? More English speakers, fantastic culture, great rail links to the rest of the continent.

You might be able to get along without very much French in Paris, but only if you stick to a pretty narrow spectrum of neighbourhoods and only stay within the city.

I'd also mention that for some people that being plonked like a stone in a moving river of another language can in itself be distracting. 24 hrs a day, 7 days a week, you'll have French TV, radio, media around you. I found that for the first couple of months I lived in France that by the end of the day I'd have banging headaches from the background processes of my mind trying to unravel or make sense of the stream of babble around me. Your mind may not work the same way. Why add that kind of thing to the effort that your dissertation will ask of you, unless it's absolutely necessary?
posted by Grrlscout at 2:12 AM on December 2, 2008

(5 months from submitting my PhD thesis here.) Do not underestimate how frustrating it will be to suddenly realize, "I need this book/article/reference/media piece and it is not in the city I am presently in". I have been writing my thesis between two international cities with two of the best libraries in the world and this keeps happening to me.

I think you're at Stanford? That's a bit of a snag in the advice I was going to give. I also had the realization that I am never going to be as free as I am in my life right now and I want to take full advantage of this situation. So I have spent the past year and a half working my ass off for 4-8 weeks at a stretch (long 12 hour days at times) and then taking off for an adventure. Sometimes a weekend (Tallinn!), sometimes 12 days (Kenya & Tanzania!) but one of the cities I am based in is London, which makes this pretty easy in terms of geography.

Maybe instead of completely moving to another city, try to structure your time over the next year or so to incorporate some travel. And believe it or not, it can actually be cheaper than living somewhere really expensive like Paris. (This last comment comes from trying to make ends meet in the expensive metropolis known as London.) Just know that writing your diss is going to be a hundred times harder than you think it is, but you can still enjoy this flexible time in your life. Good luck!
posted by meerkatty at 2:41 AM on December 2, 2008

A few cents from an expat teacher in South Korea working on his first book (300 pages):

Consider using your freedom in a way meerkatty suggests - incorporating travel into your life. That, as opposed to requiring your life to change so drastically, is likely to have more success on both the diss level and the satisfaction of traveling.

Another option is to find the places in the US with good libraries but low costs of living.

Whatever your Ph.D. happens to be in, some international / travel experience can't hurt - but balancing the two priorities will be the key. There's been more than a few nights when I've forced myself to sit at the computer and write instead of seeing that place a friend told me about.

Good luck :)
posted by chrisinseoul at 4:25 AM on December 2, 2008

How are you guys able to pay for "incorporating travel into your life" while in grad school? Is there some financial part of grad school I don't know about?
posted by amtho at 5:24 AM on December 2, 2008

N'thing the advice to think hard about access to research materials. I lived abroad twice as an academic while doing work on film history and American popular culture, and was constantly amazed and frustrated by the absence of books and journals that would be fairly commonplace back in the states. Libraries in different countries obviously have different priorities, and what you take for granted in the States might not be available in even the leading research libraries in Paris. Having to make elaborate arrangements and wait for weeks just to look at one book is a good way to have your dissertation grind to a halt. If you do go, really make sure you already have everything you need when you get on the plane. Unless you're writing on French lit; then you're set. :)
posted by ga$money at 6:52 AM on December 2, 2008

amtho: I've got full funding at a private university, routinely apply for other small grants that add up to $3-4k extra money, sometimes get part of travel paid for if I can find a conference that works, live in a very cheap area of the country, don't have super expensive hobbies or other debt, and have no dependents. I found a sub $500 ticket to South America this summer, and travelled cheaply while down there. Not exactly rolling in the dough, but I live pretty comfortably and I know how lucky I am. But you should see the science students at this school: they pretty routinely make over $30k a year. /humanities jealousy.
posted by barnone at 8:32 AM on December 2, 2008

I am a remote PhD student for the moment (getting to my dissertation now....ish). I'm not in Paris, not in a different timezone, and have access to library and other resources as a "visiting scholar" at a local university. It is tough.

So tough that I'm thinking of moving back to finish, so that I can actually get done. It's lonely. There's no community (even a community of griping grad students is a community). There's no social pressure to get to work and get it cranked out. I'm not saying don't do it, but, yeah, if you're not producing 8-10 hours of great work product now, you'll have all manner of (new) distractions to deal with in a foreign country.
posted by zpousman at 9:46 AM on December 2, 2008

Chiming in late to say that Paris is a *really* expensive place to live. The absolute minimum you will pay in rent in Paris proper is 400 euros a month, and then there's everything else...Plus as a foreigner (even with EU citizenship) finding a place can be really hard. French landlords usually require a French person (your parents or employer usually) to guarantee to cover your rent for a year if you default. The apartment hunting websites are appartager.com, pap.fr, colocation.fr and you can try the fusac magazine (online as well), and the American Church in Paris. 'Tout compris' means bills included. Or I've had friends have success subletting through Craigslist, but this was more expensive.

I have no idea how much US PhD stipends pay, but I would say, yes, you'll be pretty financially screwed by moving to Paris. I'm not necessarily saying don't do it, but you are right to be concerned that it will be expensive.
posted by Emilyisnow at 2:48 AM on December 8, 2008 [1 favorite]