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Aim and Ambition of our association
"To open the doors of World's cultures - To further communication between young people all over the World"
Etudiants du Monde is a French non-profit association, whose aim and ambition is to open the doors of the world's cultures to young people.
If you are a schoolboy, a schoolgirl, a student, or just a fan of world cultures, then our association can propose you pen-friends who are the same age as you, in the countries of your choice. Then, you will be able to discover new cultures, exchange ideas, stamps, postcards, improve your knowledge of a foreign language, and why not decide later to travel there ? But above all, you will enjoy having friends in various parts of the world.
The founders of the association (1995) :
from left to right : Yvonne, Nicolas, Géraldine and Marie-Jo
Our activities began in March 1995, with the help of a specific application running on a big computer, and a very wide information campaign over 30 countries.
From 1995 to 2001, we have registered 10 000 penpals from 120 countries, through snail mail only.
Since 2001 (the year of birth of this website), we can offer more services : E-mail penpals, Schools of the World, Countries of the world (geography, statistics, pictures...), Educational games, clubs, blogs...
In 2007, our website (90 000 visitors/day) includes a database of 250 000 penpals from 220 countries, 4000 blogs, 7000 clubs, 2500 penpal groups, many forums, educational games, 248 school from 57 countries, and cultural information about 234 countries & territories (including 234 forums, 532 touristic pictures from 65 countries and 750 "virtual tours" views from several countries).
In 2012, our counter reached more than 200 million visitors, with near 1 million registered penpals + 12 000 blogs.
The team :
| - Board of managers : | | Yvonne, Colette, Jacques, Jean, Gilbert |
| - Author of this site : | | Nicolas |
Statute of the association
Part 1 : The website "studentsoftheworld.info"
1.1 - Free services |
On this web site, all services are free. However, SNAIL MAIL penpals have several options, including free or paying subscription. For more information, see also Part 2 "Snail mail correspondence" and the button "downlad more information" (bottom page).
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1.2 - Public |
This website is opened to everyone, and particularly, for correspondence, clubs and thematic areas, to kids, students and teachers from all over the world.
Since 2019, the penpal area is separated into TWO parts: Kids & students aged 0 to 24 or Fans of world cultures aged 19 to 99.
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1.3 - Personnal data |
In accordance with the "data protection" French act, you have access and rectification rights about your personal data registered on this website. We strongly recommend not to include your full name, personal address & phone number in your messages. We are not responsible neither for page contents, nor for the consequences of your publications. Authors have to take on their own responsibility. You don't need any email address to use this website, and you don't have to register any personal information. Registering your email address may help you to remember your password, but you don't have to register it. Kids under 13 can use a parent's email address, but not a private one.
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1.4 – Intellectual Property |
In accordance with the "Intellectual Property" French act, any original creation (software, artistic or literary creation) made on a voluntary basis for the benefit of the association stays the author's property.
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1.5 - Correspondence, clubs and thematic areas |
Included messages must neither be collected, nor be used in other contexts. We are not responsible for message contents published on any page or exchanged through e-mail. Everyone has to take on his own responsibility and any consequences. We may modify or delete ads, messages or pages that seem too far from the cultural mind of the association.
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1.6 - Feature of clubs and penpal groups |
Each page is officially managed by a supervisor (the creator or a new owner in case of abandonment) that takes on the full responsibility of page contents. The supervisor (also called "manager") must delete bad-minded messages and enter his password regularly. Otherwise, the page is considered as abandoned after 15 to 30 days, and then, any visitor can become the new manager. For lack of volunteer, the concerned page is automatically deleted after a few days.
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1.7 - Blogs |
Any blog, once created or updated, will become a real website that will be automatically published as soon as we have verified it, within a period of 1 or 2 days. This website will be also registered into the main search engines. We do not publish empty pages or pages that don't contain enough information. We also refuse pages including too many big pictures, advertising or links to commercial websites or any page that seem - at first sight - too far from the cultural mind of this website. Included text and pictures are supposed to belong to the blog authors or to be in the public domain, or to have all needed authorization for publication. We are not responsible for blog contents. Authors have to take on their own responsibility.
Limits : 200x25 vertical & horizontal areas (cells) - size limit of pictures = 2000x1500 / 2 MB - 5 pictures/cell - 120 pictures/page
Any blog, once published, can include 3 optional pages : a forum, a guest book and/or a visitor survey (see also 1.5). These optional pages are managed by the blog author and stay under his responsibility, the same way as the main page. Forum owners must delete bad-minded messages and enter their password regularly. Otherwise, the forum is considered as abandoned, and the page content is automatically deleted after 40 days.
see also :
Warning "Penpals" -
Warning "Clubs" -
FAQ "Clubs"
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Part 2 : Snail mail correspondence
2.1 - Public |
We allow any registration, regardless of nationality, social surroundings or age. However, you will have a higher quality of service if you are about 10 to 25 years old. It concerns the greater part of our pen-friends who (theorically) are students. But teachers are also welcome. "Penfriend" or "Penpal" word assigns people who showed the wish to join the association with the idea of getting some pen-friends sometime in the last 3 years. The paying option (annual subscription) allows you to get a member card and a selection of (at least) 4 snail mail penpals.
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2.2 - Penpal selections |
In all penpal selections, we take into account languages known, age, sex, hobbies and wished countries as far as possible. We are not restricted to the countries written on our list.
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2.3 - Unexpected penpals |
Thanks to this option, once registered in our snail mail list, you may get unexpected letters from new penpals (we may give them your address) during the year or later. You don't have to pay anything. But this is only a contingency and we can't promise anything. The non-member penpals can also join this free option. If you enclose (together with your request) a French stamp or an international reply coupon (IRC), or only your e-mail address, then we may select your first penpal immediately. Theorically, the caller can't choose the country. He can tell us his preferred countries but it may not be taken in consideration.
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2.4 - Responsibilities |
Our unique role is to further communication between young people all over the world, according to concerned people's requests. We are not responsible neither for mail contents exchanged by pen-friends to each other, nor for correspondence happening. Everyone has to take on his own responsibility and any consequences.
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2.5 - Turning down |
In case of recurrent complaints towards a pen-friend, this one will be removed from our lists. We are allowed to turn down (or cancel) a resquest (or a message publised on our web site) if the aim is - at first sight - too far from the cultural mind of the association.
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2.6 - Guarantee (members) |
Each member gets from us some addresses of penpals. All these penpals are callers and they contacted us on their own initiative. Technically, we are not responsible if your penpal(s) don't want to reply to your letter(s). But we can gracefully give you another address, provided your request is justified, and you send us a French stamp or an international reply coupon, or only your e-mail address.
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2.7 - Personnal data |
In accordance with the "data protection" French act, you have access and rectification rights about your personal data registered by our association.
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Contacts
Etudiants du Monde / Students of the World
Since 2001, September 8
Home = https://StudentsOfTheWorld.info
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