interview with Qasem, a student at Sciences Po Lyoninterview with Qasem, a student at Sciences Po Lyon

Context

In 2015, the Université de Lyon, the Métropole de Lyon, the Région Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes and the University Collective for supporting Syrian students launched a large-scale financial, administrative and psychological support program for Syrian students.
Its goal? To give ten Syrian students, selected based on their academic performance, the opportunity to pursue their studies in France whilst the crisis in Syria prevents them from studying at home.
At the start of the 2016 academic year, following a year-long intensive French language course at the Université Lumière Lyon 2's International Center for French Studies (CIEF), the students started specific teaching programs in line with the courses they were taking in Syria.
These accounts are not intended to reflect on their past and the difficult situation in Syria. Instead, they aim to focus on the students' university careers, their new lives in France, their plans and the future.

Qasem, a student at Sciences Po Lyon

Qasem Albasri comes from the outskirts of Deir ez-Zor, a city near the Iraqi-Syrian border. Before fleeing his country and taking refuge in Turkey, he was an economics student at the public Aleppo University and had completed his bachelor's degree.
Qasem is currently a student at Sciences Po Lyon, having arrived in France in January 2016. To help him succeed, the institution has created a special teaching program combining first-year and fourth-year courses and French lessons.

Hello Qasem. Now that you have been a student here for two years, have you noticed any differences between French university and Syrian university?

The university systems are very similar, apart from maybe the exams. I was surprised to find that, in France, you have four hours to answer just one question, whereas we were used to having lots of multiple choice questions in my university. The university supervision system is also different. Here in France, and particularly at Sciences Po Lyon, I am continually monitored, and the lecturers and administrative staff are very attentive.

I was also surprised to see how may major universities there are in France. In Syria, there are only five large public universities which have slightly higher enrollment fees and a limited number of places that depend on your baccalaureate results. There are also 15 private universities with very high enrollment fees. Also, we don't have a government support system for low-income students in Syria.

Apart from the obvious reason that forced you to leave your country, did you specifically choose to come to France or could you have chosen another country in Europe?

I didn't choose France specifically, but I was offered the opportunity to come here after receiving a message from a Facebook group I found. They said that they were still looking for a final student to study in Lyon.

But generally speaking, I think Syrians like to come to France. Historically, the bond between our countries is very strong, especially for university cooperation. We also learnt French in school, even though it was replaced by Russian after the relations between the French and Syrian governments cooled. Lots of Syrian politicians left to study in France and that encourages students to do the same.


When you arrived in France, did you find it difficult to adapt to your new life?

The beginning is always difficult. There was a language barrier, but all my course mates are really nice. We really help each other. I was surprised by French society, because I had learnt about France from reading Émile Zola and these days, the social and economic climate in France has changed a lot.
Some people think that I should speak better French, but what they don't realize is that the simple act of pronouncing certain sounds is really difficult for me. And then when I say that I'm Syrian, a lot of people say that they feel sorry for me, but I want to tell them that my life isn't just about the Syrian conflict.
[He pauses to think] Ah, yeah, the really difficult thing was French bureaucracy and all the documents I had to fill in!

Did you know Lyon before you came here to study?

Yes. I knew Lyon because it's a big French city. But I didn't have an accurate image of the city before I came because it had been described as a very industrial city in the various books and volumes of poetry I had read. I also support Real Madrid's football team and at one point, the Lyon team were beating my team quite a lot!

Did your opinion change once you got here?

Yes. I now recommend a lot of people to go to Lyon because I really like the city's architecture, particularly the old universities. I also enjoy going to the Maison de l'Orient et de la Méditerranée and the many university libraries where I can find loads of works that I couldn't access in my country.

What are your professional/university career plans for when you finish the welcome program?

After I finish my Master's, I would like to do a PhD in France before I go back to Syria. I would like to be a university lecturer or even travel to Syria in the political or economic sphere, so I can work on the development of my country. Once I've returned to Syria, I'd also like to take a training program for a few years to become a certified French-Arabic translator.

Would you like to add anything else?

I would like to thank all the people who have been involved in my stay here. Firstly, the Université de Lyon for helping me settle here, for the administrative monitoring, the psychological support and the staff at Sciences Po Lyon for welcoming me and creating a training program adapted to my level. I would also like to thank the Région Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes and the Métropole de Lyon for their great support.