Paul Vanier is a graduate of the Rhoda Scott Class of 2022 from IMEP • Paris College of Music, and thanks to the credits he acquired at IMEP, he is joining Berklee College of Music this year. He has been in Boston for a month now, he tells us about it.
Having transferred credits from IMEP and having done the school before being here is a great plus. I am happy to come here at 22 years old after 4 years of study. I feel mature and experienced enough to know what I want to learn and to give 100% to absorb the courses given here. Thanks to IMEP and my current level, I can reduce my studies to about 3 years. Anyway for now, I’m super happy to be here, I feel like it’s going to help my whole life to have taken this opportunity and study here.
Getting ready : Before I left, this whole summer was a big puzzle game of getting organized and getting every detail right. From health insurance to housing and food, vaccines and visa, phone, plane and luggage, I spent a lot of time caught up in administrative and organizational matters!
Settling in : The trip went well, the jet-lag wasn’t that bad, I’m staying on campus at 150 Massachusetts Avenue, the school’s more or less historic building. I’m in a double room with a great roommate who is a rapper from Los Angeles (so stylish!). It’s not that different from having a small apartment in Paris so I adapted quickly.
Boston is a great city, quite “European” for an American city. It’s on a human scale. It’s also much more expensive than Paris, so I’m careful with my money.
Meeting new people : Being on campus has allowed me to meet a lot of people, it must be around 300 people at the moment! Everywhere I go, I know people, and I know that it will already be super beneficial for the future!
Being together with musicians from all over the world is an incredible opportunity, all cultures come together here and this leads to many interesting projects that can only exist here. Personally, it’s an incredible opportunity and I’ve already started collaborating with many different people. I’m jamming hard with different people, projects are forming (I’m working on a house EP with a Finnish dj I just met, on instrumentals for a roommate rapper, on fusion with local friends).
Studying music : The courses themselves are very interesting, they cover a lot of things and are very specific. The teachers are super nice. Academically, everything is very fluid and flexible, you can choose your courses in the order you want, make classes or sets in addition. We’re pushed to get involved in the life of the school and that leads to a tremendous amount of stimulation here, and it shows.
Financial matters : I received $5,000 in aid, in addition to my $23,000 scholarship that I won when I entered. Financially, there are really a lot of options to find solutions. External grants, federal aid. But above all, merit-based scholarships are given automatically by Berklee if you are academically sound. Alors je suis confiant sur mon niveau et le fait que je mérite de rester au bout !
Working in the USA : Another important detail is that you can’t officially work here. With our student visa, the government allows us to work on campus. That said, there are plenty of different jobs and opportunities here that can allow us to earn some money while studying.
To learn all about the Berklee program offered at IMEP and the admission procedures for Berklee College of Music:
See you on October 4th at the IMEP: Marek Dykta, Berklee Assistant Director of Admissions will be on hand to answer all your questions.
Admission is free and open to all
