Department of Modern Languages French
French is the second official language of Canada, spoken by some nine million Canadians. It is also an important international language and, in addition to increasing your employment opportunities, knowing French will contribute to your appreciation and enjoyment of travel to the many parts of the French-speaking world.
Opportunities
Learn French & Experience Culture in Quebec City this Summer!
Langara’s French Summer Institute in Québec City offers students an immersive French language learning experience over two weeks. In the morning, students will take small-group courses which focus on developing communication skills that students can test out in the real world during class as well as during their free time. In the afternoon, students engage in enriching cultural outings held in French.
Program Philosophy
Our goal is to support students who are learning French to apply their language skills in real-world settings while developing intercultural competence and engaging with Francophone and Indigenous communities.
Instructors
Instructors are dynamic and experienced French language educators who will support students both inside and outside of class time, during meals, and in cultural visits, throughout this immersive experience.
Dates
- Program Starts: Tuesday, August 18
- Arrival on Monday, Aug. 17, Check-in starts at 5 pm
- For early arrivals, suitcases can be kept at the residence
- Program Ends: Friday, August 28
- Departure after 12:00 pm, no earlier
Daily Schedule
9:00 – 9:25 Daily Orientation. Students attend a morning orientation of roughly 20-25 minutes in which we do a territorial acknowledgement, explain the activities of the day, and engage in a brief cultural activity.
9:30-10:30 French Class. Students learn in an immersion-oriented, small-group setting. Activities focus on interaction, with a strong emphasis on place-based learning.
10:30-11:00 Pause Café. This is an opportunity to take a short break while mixing with the learners from other class(es). Students will be provided coffee, tea, juices, and a snack.
11:00-12:30 French Class.
12:30-13:30 Lunch. We all eat together in the “salon universitaire.”
14:00-16:00 Francophone Outings.
Outings and Activities
Every afternoon after lunch, students will participate in enriching French-language activities and excursions, including a tour of the Old City, museum visit, historical reenactment, concert, treasure hunts, trip to Wendake, and workshops.
Weekend
There are many organized activities during the week, but the weekend of the middle of the program is free time for students to explore the city.
Career opportunities
In Canada some nine million people speak French. As the second official language of Canada, French opens the door to many jobs with the federal government or with companies which have dealings with the French-speaking areas of our country.
French is also still one of the working languages of diplomacy and is used in several international organizations.
Immersion programs, regular high school, and colleges and universities offer many opportunities for employments as teachers.
The French are renowned for fashion and food, and French is often useful to those interested in careers in these areas.
In addition, tourism and airlines offer many openings for qualified multilingual employees. French is spoken by about 500,000,000 people worldwide. There are French-speakers in Africa, the Indian Ocean, the Caribbean and the South Pacific, as well as in Canada and France.
Outcomes & Objectives
Langara College's French instructors are dedicated to helping you build a solid foundation in the language and develop your ability to understand, speak, read and write French. During the time that you spend with us, you may expect to gain a solid basic foundation in the structures and vocabulary of the French language.
In the more advanced courses, you will also learn more about how people communicate in many different social and cultural settings and will explore some of the history, art, music, and literature of the French-speaking world.
I started studying French in October, 2013 when I was still living in Brazil because of my plan to immigrate to Quebec. However, I fell in love with the language and even though I ended up moving to Vancouver two years ago, where French is not widely spoken, I decided to continue studying this beautiful language.
Programs
Credits from French courses can be used to fulfill requirements of many of our programs.
Related programs of interest include:
Transferability
All our French courses are university-transferable. Please check the British Columbia Council on Admissions and Transfer website for specific transfer details at www.bctransferguide.ca.
UBC
All questions regarding the UBC Faculty of Arts language requirement should be directed to the Arts Advising Office.
The Department of French, Italian, and Hispanic Studies at UBC may not grant transfer credit for levels which are repeated within five years of obtaining the initial qualification.
SFU
For Simon Fraser University, the general rule is that all our courses count for unassigned first year credit, and you will need to take a placement test in order to continue. This SFU test may allow you to continue in second or even third year in some cases.
For other B.C. institutions, our courses often have a direct transfer credit assigned. If this is not the case, you need to submit your transcript to the receiving institution and request individual evaluation.
Placement tests
A placement test is available for students who have spent time in a French-speaking environment or who have previous French, but are unsure of their level. Please read the Langara Calendar and try to determine which course you wish to request and then contact any French instructor. You may also request a test by emailing french [at] langara.ca (french[at]langara[dot]ca). The test can be returned directly to an instructor.
We do not have suitable courses for native speakers of French who have done all their studies in French and can write French perfectly.
