One year in France

Last year, Marius Müller left the the ISOS and spent one year at a research institute in France. We asked him for a report on his impressions.



Marius N. Müller

Moving from the GEOMAR (Kiel, Germany) to the LOV (Laboratoire Océanographique  de Villefranche-sur-mer, France).


The most obvious difference coming from northern Europe and arriving in southern France is the weather! Besides the weather other things are different compared to Kiel and the GEOMAR. In my opinion, I encountered advantages and disadvantages; I start with the first:

1) I have the feeling that people identify themselves more with their work and the institution. This is probably strengthened by the more social activities you can attend within the frame of work. You can attend sport classes during lunch time (what includes rowing, dancing, yoga, gymnastics etc.) and, for example, a special Christmas celebration for kids is offered (every child of an employee gets a present). So all in all, it seems that you can spend a lot of your free time related to work.
2) The food! It is not a rumor that French people care about what they are eating and I have to confirm this. Additionally, everybody pays for the lunch in regard to his income.

The disadvantages I encountered:
1) Speaking French helps a lot, don’t expect all people to speak English. I was actually surprised to encounter Post-Docs and PhD-students who barely spoke English.
2) Scientific possibilities are far better and more various at GEOMAR than what I experienced here. On the other hand, it is a very good experience doing science without financial and facility supports like at the GEOMAR.
3) Most of the scientific meetings are held in French.
4) Administration is really tricky and takes a lot of time.



Some impressions about the differences in the scientific culture and working behavior:

I don’t think that there is much difference in the way how scientists work here or in Germany; we all follow some hypothesis and try to find a way to proof/disproof it. The only thing I can say is that it seems that German scientists have a good reputation here in France. We are supposed to be very strict and straight forward in our thinking and working (But I am not sure if that is some typical German thing).
In summary, I know that this year here in Villefranche-sur-mer is a very nice and good experience for me. If the stay in France is an important step for my further carrier will be shown by the future. Unfortunately, one year living at the Cote d’Azur is too short to get everything known. In this manner, one advice from my side, if you go abroad try to do it for a longer time period!