Using French enhances your travel abroad to Canada, the Caribbean, Europe and Africa.

French opens up an entire world of sporting events to enthusiasts

Knowing French will improve your vocabulary in English.

French is the language of culture, opening your door to art, music, dance, fashion, cuisine and cinema.

French is the language of many great literary masterpieces.

Knowing French will allow you not only to function but to compete effectively in the global economy of the future.

Proficiency in French will significantly improve your chances of being accepted to the university and graduate school.

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for reasons why French is better than...

• chocolate

• coffee

• shopping

• sleep

• Spanish

• television

1)      FRENCH is widely spoken on five continents and in many countries, as a native tongue, language of instruction, language of government, lingua franca of business.

2)      FRENCH is among the principle languages of diplomacy and of important international organizations.

3)      FRENCH is consistently among the two or three most important languages of the internet, because of the number of WWW pages up, vigorous efforts to create viable internet discussion lists and recent successes in connecting francophone countries in the southern hemisphere.

4)      Many people in Francophone countries are among the very enthusiastic promoters of the French language.

5)      French speakers worldwide enhance their sense of linguistic community through the organizations of "la francophonie", which now has its own secretary general.

6)      The language's characteristics of semantic reliability and clarity, vessel of the universals of contemporary material culture, strength in verbs, representation in Roman characters, are positive attributes. So are its association with the more widely appreciated features of French culture

7)      Since France has the second largest foreign aid budget (behind Japan) people tend to listen when it speaks.

French

The Most Practical Foreign Language

While any language will be useful for some jobs or for some regions, French is the only foreign language that can be useful throughout the world as well as in the United States. French as a foreign language is the second most frequently taught language in the world after English. It is spoken as an official language in 33 countries around the world and is the only language other than English spoken on five continents. French and English are the only two global languages.

When deciding on a foreign language for work or school, French is the language that will give you the most choices later on in your studies or your career.

French, along with English, is the official working language of

·       the United Nations

·         UNESCO

·         the International Monetary Fund

·         the International Labor Bureau

·         the International Olympic Committee

·         the 31-member Council of Europe

·         the European Community

French is the dominant working language at

·         the European Court of Justice

·         the European Tribunal of First Instance

·         the European Court of Auditors in Luxembourg.

·         the Press Room at the European Commission in Brussels, Belgium  

The Economics of French and France

·         French is the foreign language spoken by our largest trading partner (Canada).

·         The U.S. And France share many trade similarities, particularly their global standing as the world's top 2 exporters in 3 very important sectors: defense products, agricultural goods, and services. Franco-American trade is also remarkable for its symmetry, as 6 of the top 10 exports are the same each way.

·         France has the fourth largest economy in the world after the U.S., Japan and Germany.

·         France is the second largest exporter of agricultural products in the world after the U.S.

·         In recent years, the U.S. has been the largest direct investor in France and France has been one of the three largest investors in the U.S.

·         French companies employ over 400,000 Americans.

·         France is the third largest destination of foreign investments in the world.

·         Overall, the French export more per capita than the Japanese and more than twice as much as the Americans. France is overall, the fourth largest exporting nation of the world.

·         France is the world's leader in the production of luxury goods.

·         More tourists visit France than any other country in the world.

Science and Technology

·         Seven of France's top ten exports to the U.S. are industrial or high technology products.

·         France is the fourth largest producer of automobiles in the world (Renault, Peugeot, Citroën) and the third largest exporter. (All Mack trucks are manufactured by Renault.)

·         France is fourth in research among countries of the Organization for Economic Development and Cooperation (after Japan, Germany, and the US).

·         France is a major world research center in the field of high energy physics.

·         The French are a world leader in medical research: the AIDS virus was first isolated by French doctors.

·         The French are a leader in medical genetics (the Human Genome Project is located in Paris).

·         The French are the world's third manufacturers of electronics equipment.

·         European leader in aerospace (Aérospatiale, Arianespace, Airbus...).

·         Most commercial satellites are put into space on French Ariane rockets.

·         The fastest train (TGV) is French.

·         The fastest commercial airplane (Concorde) is French (built in collaboration with British Airways).

·         France is the world's third military power (after the US and Russia), and has the world's second largest defense industry (i.e. exocet missiles, radar technology.)

·         France is the world's second largest builder and exporter of civilian and military aircrafts and helicopters (Airbus is the world's second largest fleet of commercial airliners, and all the US Coast Guard helicopters are made by Aerospatiale in Toulouse.)

·         France has one of the most advanced systems of telecommunications in the world. Fiber optics were invented in France.

·         France is the world's largest manufacturer of television sets (HDTV was invented in France).

Importance of French in school and work

Historically France and the French language have had an enormous influence over American society. French thought played a dominant role among the founders of the United States in the 18th century and it continues to shape America today through the influence of such intellectual currents as post-structuralism and post-modernism. In the humanities and the social sciences many of the most important writings have come from France. Students and researchers who know French have access to these works for several years before they are translated into English. Many significant works are never translated and remain accessible only to those who know the language. In addition, most graduate schools require knowledge of at least one foreign language, and French remains the most commonly used language after English.

When employers and universities look at applicants, they do not start looking at the bottom of the list to see who has done only the minimal amount of requirements necessary or taken the easiest route available, they start at the top of the list and look for those students who have risen above the rest. High school students should consider studying at least four years of a foreign language. With French they have access to the most widely spoken foreign language in the world after English and they become familiar with a culture that significantly influences our own. The French economy is one of the strongest in the world and is increasingly a leader in technological innovation. In sum, French is the language of the future.

Occupations Using French

Why French?

·         30% of English words come from French. Your English vocabulary will increase and learning French will be easier.

·         English grammatical structure is similar to French structure. Your understanding of English will be enhanced and vice versa.

·         The history and literature of the English and French speaking worlds intertwine in essential ways. Your understanding of our culture and our past will be improved.

·         Those interested in art, dance, film, law, music will greatly benefit.

·         Knowledge of a second language is essential in over 60 occupations.

·         Each of the major U.S. corporations routinely employs 500-5,000 persons abroad.

·         Commercial language schools now have waiting lists, due to increased demands in business and industry for people with strong language skills.

·         1,261 companies surveyed reported 60,687 positions requiring a second language.

France is SECOND in the world in commercial aircraft production;

·         first in trains;

·         third in rocketry;

·         fourth in automobiles.