It may seem intimidating to live in an apartment where the only language you’re allowed to speak is French, but for some BYU students, it is an enriching opportunity.
While language learning often begins in the classroom, true fluency comes when language becomes embedded into everyday routines. This is certainly true for students living at the French House, part of BYU’s Language Immersion Student Residence (LISR) program. Through this program, students are offered a unique experiential learning opportunity that helps them develop greater language proficiency, beginning in their apartment.
How it Works
The LISR includes houses dedicated to Chinese, Japanese, Korean, French, Spanish, Italian, Portuguese, German, and Russian. While at home, students are required to speak in their designated language. Students are also required to have four dinners together each week to practice their language as a group. Each house is also assigned a faculty coordinator, who visits weekly for a lesson and discussion in the assigned language. Residents also work with a male or female student language facilitator, a native speaker who helps students practice vocabulary and correct grammar.
Jérôme Picard (Mechanical Engineering ’29), the male language facilitator in the French house, enjoys mentoring his peers, because "they have very different ideas, and they grew up in different backgrounds.” He also appreciates the relationships he has built with his roommates, mentioning that they’re “cool to be around because they're all there to study French, but beyond that, to be friends as well.”
The French House is made up of one apartment of 6 boys and one apartment of 6 girls. French house resident Eliza Whiting (Linguistics and Anthropology ’27) loves the close relationships she has formed with her roommates and peers. “It feels like a friend group—we do stuff together all the time,” she says. In the Fall 2025 semester, she and the other French house residents went camping, hiking, and had a few bonfires together.
A Supportive Environment
Whiting studied French throughout her life, but was called on a German-speaking mission, so she had never had her own immersive experience with French. This made her a little nervous when she first moved into the French House, as the idea of complete immersion was daunting. But she noticed that because “everybody learned [French] in different ways, it makes for a really comforting environment.”
This environment, along with the immersive nature of the LISR, has, Whiting says, “been very beneficial for my language. I've learned a ton.” And not only has her confidence in speaking improved, but her overall confidence has also increased, too. She says, “if I can do something moderately competently in a non-native language, then doing that in my native language seems a lot easier.”
Both Whiting and Picard also appreciate the studious environment of the LISR. Picard has noticed that since the students who live in the LISR are all learning a second, third, or even fourth language, they are usually very driven and goal oriented. Whiting observes that the LISR residents love school, love to learn, and love to seek out experiential learning opportunities.
The students that live at the French House share a common purpose: “we all want to improve our language,” says Whiting. And, in Picard’s opinion as a native speaker, living at the LISR is great practice for those learning French: “The best way to learn is to be forced to talk and listen,” he says. “If somebody wants to improve their language, the LISR is a good way to go.”
Learn more about the Language Immersion Student Residence program here.