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Discover vibrant Metz, France
Metz, France is the capital of the northeastern region of Lorraine, part of the larger Grand-Est region. Situated near the border of Belgium, Luxembourg, and Germany, this historic city has been called "the gateway to Europe."
Just 80 minutes from Paris by train, Metz is at the heart of renowned arts, political movements, scientific innovation, and more. Today, Metz is known as much for its beautiful Gothic cathedral and the Centre Pompidou-Metz, as it is for being a center for innovation, driven in part by Georgia Tech-Europe.
GTE Facilities
Be a part of Georgia Tech's innovation in the Metz Technopole
Tech's European instructional site is located in the Metz Technopole, a short transit ride from downtown, Metz.
Georgia Tech-Europe joins other prestigious French engineering and business schools, research labs, and business centers, as a key player at this crossroads of innovation and technology,
The heart of Georgia Tech-Europe is housed in one secure building where you will find classrooms, labs, faculty and administrative offices, and a student lounge.
The small instructional site fosters a strong sense of community, and students enjoy small class sizes and highly accessible faculty.
Access to GTE Building
The Georgia Tech-Europe building is accessible with an electronic key fob that is provided to each student upon arrival.
Students will be advised of building hours at the beginning of the semester.
Computer Access
When students arrive, they will receive their personal GTE computer account (ID + password).
For assistance with access issues, students should contact the system administrator, Jean-Jacques Michel.
Webmail URL: http://webmail.georgiatech-metz.fr
For additional information regarding computer access, such as forwarding emails to external accounts, resetting local passwords, etc., please click here (IntraWWW).
Slides of the computer orientation: Computer Orientation for Spring 2023.
Library
The GTE library is a technical and scientific library with all of the basic textbooks for the required courses. The library is open during building operating hours.
Photocopies & Printing
Students will learn about options at their orientation at the start of the semester.
Housing
Undergraduate Housing
Undergraduate students live in residence halls just a short walk away from the GTE building. These residence halls are operated by several of our French partner institutions.
Most dorms offer studio apartments complete with a small kitchenette and full bathroom.
There is also an option of two-person apartment-style rooms that can be shared with a Georgia Tech-Europe student, or in the Fall and Spring semesters, a French student from a nearby engineering school!
Not all dorms will be available every semester. Housing will be assigned based on the date a student is accepted into the program; students may therefore not get their first choice in dorms.
GTE Housing Requests
- We try to take into consideration any requests to be near friends, but this is not guaranteed.
- Room requests based on specific medical needs will be taken into consideration.
- Once dorms have been assigned, there is no possibility to change.
Important to Know
- Housing costs are significantly lower in Metz than in the residence halls of Atlanta. The housing cost will vary according to which dorm you are assigned.
- Undergraduate students are required to live in the student residence halls. We do no offer married student housing.
- The residence halls are operated by several of our French partner institutions. Students may be living side-by-side with French and other international students.
- If you have a housing contract on campus, the Housing Office can provide you with a form via Docusign so that you can break your contract without penalty.
What to Bring
You will receive guidance on what to pack during the mandatory orientations. Cookware and bed linens are provided.
At the beginning of each semester, a "Swap Shop" will be hosted, where students will have the opportunity to choose items left behind by previous students, such as small appliances, fans, and cookware.
There is also a textbook purchase process from previous semesters' students organized by the Georgia Tech-Europe staff. If you cannot find what you need, you can either bring your pre-purchased textbooks or have them shipped to the Georgia Tech-Europe building.
Graduate Housing
Most graduate students stay in Résidence Edouard Branly graduate student housing.
Graduate students must complete an application for accommodations through the Résidence Edouard Branly website and submit requested documents to the dorm manager via email well in advance of the semester start date.
Georgia Tech-Europe staff will provide contact information for the residence, as well as information regarding options for housing insurance, and VISALE, a service that guarantees student security deposits for free.
Résidence Edouard Branly is comprised of six buildings, offering a mix of single or double rooms (with separate living space for each student) and a shared bathroom.
- These rooms have small refrigerators and microwaves for personal use, and there is a common kitchen shared by six students on each floor.
- The Résidence also has single or double studios, each with a bathroom and kitchenette within the unit.
- Accommodations are assigned by the dorm manager based on availability and on a first-come, first-served basis.
Graduate students coming to Metz with a partner or a family are not eligible to live at Résidence Edouard Branly.
Our staff can recommend local housing options, but the responsibility for securing housing before the start of the semester lies with you. As availability is limited, the sooner you submit an application for housing, the better.
- Please contact us at info@europe.gatech.edu for more information. Here are several local options:
- Les Estudines
- Residhome
- Student Factory (furthest away from campus)
Health & Emergencies
Resources for when you are not feeling well
Students have 24/7 access to an emergency contact at GTE who can advise on how to obtain medical care.
All students are given an emergency card on arrival with pertinent phone numbers and emergency procedures.
An English-speaking nurse keeps office hours at Georgia Tech-Europe up to several days a week and can refer students to local doctors if needed. Students will learn about the nurse's hours during their orientation at Georgia Tech-Europe.
Dining
Food is at the heart of French culture - and there are so many options!
Make your own meals in your dorm room's kitchenette. Or, take a look at some of the other options below.
Meal Plans
- Students can eat lunch and dinner at the local student cafeteria, CROUS. You'll learn about getting a meal card at the beginning of the semester.
- Summer students will be provided lunch on the days they are in class.
Groceries
There are two nearby grocery stores: CORA and Simply. CORA is like a Super Walmart, where you can get your hair cut, buy clothes, groceries, and maybe even a chocolate croissant.
Simply is a smaller grocery chain with fresh fruits and vegetables.
At the beginning of the semester during the swap-shop, students can pick up several reusable grocery bags to assist with trips to the store.
Restaurants
There are many restaurants in Metz and the Technopole area, and some are close to campus. For a full list of restaurants around Metz, see the city's restaurant listings.
Extracurricular Activities
There are always things to do around GTE and in Metz!
The Student Events Committee
Similar to the Student Government Association of Georgia Tech-Atlanta, GTE's Student Events Committee plans events for and supports the student population.
Past events have included indoor skiing, karaoke and go-karting, amusement parks, Super Bowl parties, cheese and chocolate tasting, and more!
Get involved with the Student Events Committee and take part in the planning! Elections will be held early in the semester.
Learn French for Free!
Whether you are a beginner who has never studied French, or someone who wants to brush up on the French they learned in high school, our "FLE" (Français Langue Etrangère, or French as a Foreign Language) courses will give you the tools you need to start communicating with the locals.
From simple words and phrases to complete dialogues, learn enough vocabulary, grammar, and idiomatic expressions to handle yourself while traveling in France or in everyday situations.
Classes are held on Mondays (beginners) and Wednesdays (intermediate to advanced).
The Leonardo Program
Stop by the kiosk for an apple and to find out what’s going on in Metz!
The brainchild of one of Georgia Tech-Europe's French lecturers, Sonia Serafin, the Leonardo Program takes Georgia Tech-Europe students on cultural excursions that would otherwise be essentially inaccessible to students, such as fruit picking, behind-the-scenes rehearsals of the National Orchestra of Metz, opera and ballet performances at the Metz Opera, visits to the Centre Pompidou-Metz, a fancy French lunch and etiquette afternoon, and more!
For more details and other excursions, check out our blog, written by current students, To GT-Europe and Beyond!
Check out the kiosk at Georgia Tech-Europe for more information.
Sports
Get Involved
Gym: Georgia Tech-Europe staff and the BDE work to establish a schedule with a local university’s gym each semester, based on availability. There are also several reasonably priced gyms in the Technopole. Additional information will be provided upon arrival.
Soccer: The fields located across the lake from Georgia Tech-Europe have set times for use by Georgia Tech-Europe students. This is a great way to meet and connect with local students, but you may want to start referring to soccer as football - you are in Europe, after all!
Basketball: Students usually have access to a court and are sometimes invited to form a team to play with a local team.
Softball: Students can participate in a softball tournament with teams from nearby schools.
Become a Fan
- Soccer: FC Metz is a professional football team playing in Leagues 1 and 2. Their stadium is a bus ride away, and tickets are affordable. Get into the football spirit during a Friday night home game!
- Handball: Metz Handball plays in the French Women's First League. The handball club has won multiple championships across France, and tickets are reasonably priced.
Travel
Georgia Tech-Europe students become expert travelers!
Check out our official blog, written by and for students, "To GT-Europe...and Beyond!" to learn more about what life is like at Georgia Tech-Europe - and find some inspiration and tips for your travels!
Undergraduate Independent Travel
Independent travel is an important part of the Georgia Tech-Europe experience.
Students usually have 3-day weekends to travel Europe. And you will have one week off for Fall and Spring break. Summer students might have the occasional 2 or 4-day weekends.
Dates for breaks and holidays change from semester to semester.
Between a Eurail pass, budget airlines, and discount buses, students travel all over France and Europe. Every weekend is a new adventure!
The closest train station to Georgia Tech-Europe is Metz-ville, which also offers shuttle service to the Lorraine TGV Station.
Enjoy writing and getting involved? Check out our GTE Blogger contest offered in the Fall and Spring semesters, and you could be paid to write a few weekly blog posts!
Graduate Travel
Although you likely won’t have as much time to travel as our undergraduate students, when you are ready to go you will be within easy reach of many exciting destinations within Europe.