The budget

As you can imagine, life is more expensive in Scotland than in France, but personally I expected a greater difference. For example, there are some things you can find in Scotland more cheaper than in France.

Academic scholarships

Of course, before going to Erasmus, I applied for scholarships to enable me to finance my year abroad (rent, transport, shopping, travels, etc.).

For my part, I was able to receive the Erasmus scholarship, which varies according to the country where you are leaving. As a scholarship holder, I was also able to receive the 'Aide à la Mobilité Internationale' (AMI) scholarship and the' Crous' scholarship from Montpellier.

As you have been or will be informed, you will only be able to receive 70/80% of the scholarships (Erasmus + AMI scholarships) once you have started studying at your university abroad. Then, you will be able to collect the rest by returning the requested thesis of your academic year from your country of origin.

To give you an idea of the total amount of scholarships I may have been entitled to for my Erasmus year in Scotland:

- Amount Erasmus scholarship (calculated for 8 months of stay in Scotland): €2,590

- Amount AMI scholarship: €800

- Amount Crous scholarship: €1,009

Of course, these amounts of scholarships are specific to my university in France and more precisely to the University of Montpellier. Depending on the cities and regions in France, the amounts of the scholarships vary.

In addition to the scholarships

In addition to the scholarships, my family helped me finance my year then that I could live this experience fully. If you are going to be abroad, you might as well do as much as you can and enjoy it to the end. I also used money from a saving account to supplement my expenses.

I know that some French students take student loans in their bank in France to finance their year, but they will have to repay this loan in the future....