Why French?
- French is spoken in the 51 member states of the International Organization of Francophonie, including economically developing nations in Africa.
- France has the fourth largest economy in the world.
- More than 1200 French companies have subsidiaries in the USA.
- French is the only language other than Engl, spoken on 5 continents.
- In 2000, the US exported more to countries having French as a national language than to countries of any other language.
- French-speaking Quebec is the fifth largest trading partner of the US with over $104 billion in 2000.
- French is one of three official working languages of the European Community, the second-largest trading block in the world.
- French is a leader in telecommunications (Minitel), aero-space (Airbus, Ariane rocket missile), technology, auto production 20% of all Ford Motor Company cars will be manufactured in Bordeaux), tourism and the garment industry.
- France ranks first in the world for Nobel Prizes in Literature, second in Peace, fourth in Chemistry, Medicine, Physics and Economics.
- Over 40% of English comes from French.
French at RCTC (See college catalog for course descriptions)
French 1001:
French-speaking cultures (In English)
1101, 1102: Beginning French I & II (Series offered each
year)
1111: French conversations
Careers
in French:
French education (K-16) interpreter services, international relations,
governmental agencies, and tourist industry are among the fields in which
a French major or minor may be a prerequisite.
A French major, minor, or fluency equivalent is recommended for many careers, including international business (e.g. import-export, banking, industry), hotel/motel management, and humanitarian agencies.
Lower division courses which lead to a French major or minor at a four-year institution:
French 1101 4 credits Beginning French I
French 1102 4 credits Beginning French II
French 2101 3 credits Intermediate French I
French 2902 3 credits Intermediate French II
French major or minor at a four-year institution:
The student typically studies French language (conversation, composition),
literature (by periods, author, or special topic such as Poetry of Quebec
or The French Press) and French-speaking cultures (e.g. Francophone Africa).
The student may obtain a B.A. major in French, French-Italian, French
with a Business Concentration, International Relations, B.A. minor in
French, French-Italian, a B.S. major in French (Teaching), International
Business, B.S. minor in French (Teaching), Linguistics, International
Studies, or combine a French major or minor with another major (see careers).
Students of French often spend time studying overseas.
Additional
lower division courses which complement the above major/minor courses:
French 1111 2 credits French Conversation
(This course provides additional credits to meet transfer
institution lower division credit-total requirements.)
French 1001 3 credits Introduction to French-Speaking Cultures (in English)
An encouraging word!
Many universities offer retroactive credit at a nominal fee upon completion
of an upper-level course with a grade of A or B. The student with previous
language experience should continue the same foreign language, and enter
the sequence at RCTC at as high a level as possible, so as to complete
the entire lower division sequence before transfer. The University of
Minnesota also offers FLIP and FLAC, Foreign Language Immersion and Across
the Curriculum certificate programs. For the past 5 years, the University
of Minnesota-Rochester has offered a successful certificate program for
Interpreters and Translators as an extension of Continuing Education.