2 of 21

��

Senior Lecturer

Director of the UCLA Center

of Excellence

laurence@humnet.ucla.edu

�

�Deputy director

Le français des affaires

CCI Paris Ile de France Education

aholle@cci-paris-idf.fr

Alexandre Holle

�

Senior Lecturer

Department of World Languages

Southern Methodist University

pbuckley@smu.edu

Paola Buckley

Laurence Denié-Higney

��fficer

Higher Education Program Officer

Ambassade de France - États-Unis

elisa.alvarez@frenchculture.org

Elisa

Schilling-Alvarez

3 of 21

The CCI Paris Île-de-France has been working since 1958 �to spread professional French and promote the economic Francophonie

Certify the ability to communicate and work in French

Promote French, as a language of professional opportunities and economic development

Train teachers in teaching professional French and examiners

4 of 21

Why support the development of French for professions courses? �

In 2010, 9,509 job advertisements requested advanced language skills in French.
In 2015, 22,296 job advertisements requested advanced language skills in French.

Not Lost in Translation

The Growing Importance of Foreign Language Skills in the US Job Market�

New American Economy, 2017

135%

Making Languages Our Business: Addressing Foreign Language Demand Among U.S. Employers�.

ACTFL, 2019

French is the 3rd most sought-after language in the American job market.
Among employers looking for foreign language skills, 17% express a shortage of French skills to meet the needs of their business.

5 of 21

Mapping of French for professions courses in the USA

Study conducted by Deborah Reisinger of Duke University and Hélène Bouche of the French Embassy among nearly 150 establishments:

French for Professional Purposes in US Undergraduate Education :

An Analysis of Course Offerings and Student Demand

Global Business Languages, May 2021

RESULTS

Of 545 French departments studied, nearly 59% offer French for professions courses at the undergraduate level.
Among these departments, only 27% offer two or more courses, which shows that the offer of professional French is generally of little consequence in language departments.

Profiles of students enrolled in a French for professions course:

And also…

Demands increasingly expressed by high school and community college teachers
More and more international mobility of students from France / United States (Business school / Fashion and Luxury)
Ongoing partnership with the College Board, to promote this professional aspect in AP French Language courses

6 of 21

Training and resources

7 of 21

Training teachers

On-line and 100% free training

« L’essentiel du français professionnel »

4 face-to-face training courses

offered each year

Nearly 70 teachers

trained every year

8 of 21

lefrancaisdesaffaires.apolearn.com/catalog

9 of 21

+ 130

lesson plans

ready to use and download

avec

10 of 21

Fiche enseignant

Fiche

apprenant

12 of 21

Certify the ability to communicate and work in French �

French for Professions diploma

AN EXPERTISE OF + 60 YEARS

in 4 professional fields

A DIPLOMA CHOSEN BY COMPANIES

to identify and retain their talents

Ex : IBM République Tchèque, Banca nazionale de Lavoro Italie…

A DIPLOMA CHOSEN BY UNIVERSITIES, VOCATIONAL HIGH SCHOOLS to validate training courses

Ex : Ferrandi Alula, EFREI Paris, HEC Paris, MGIMO à Moscou, Université Bocconi à Milan, Académie diplomatique de Vienne…

13 of 21

More resources

14 of 21

Can you teach professional French in beginner and intermediate classes ?

Do professional French courses compete with literature courses ?

Do I need to be an expert to teach professional French?

Have you ever wondered?

Question 4

Question 2

Question 3

Is professional French an asset on the job market ?

Question 1

15 of 21

Is professional French an asset on the job market?� �

Perception (macro-level): we must shift the attitude towards the relevance of language education

Employees need soft skills to navigate and thrive in the global workplace: skills are developed in 2L classroom
Top 3 skills that employers want 2023 (World Economic Forum):

Analytical thinking
Creative thinking
Resilience, flexibility, and agility

Reality (micro-level): we must articulate our case for the relevance of French and offer a “product” that is in sync with today’s market demands

consumers = our students
French benefits their careers (FOS courses, internships, study abroad)
French provides a superior ROI (bi-lingual employees can earn 5-20% more)

I want proof! We must offer tangible evidence to state our case

French is the only language that offers multi-level proficiency testing and certification for the professions
Diplômes de Français Pro: Affaires, International Relations, Healthcare
Other: OPI, Seal of Biliteracy

Short answer: Yes!

16 of 21

Do you need to be an expert to teach professional French?

CCI Paris Île-de-France

A professional French course is a language course.

Speaking

Listening

Reading

Writing

Communication

Culture

Connections

Comparisons

Communities

Short answer: No!

17 of 21

If you build it, they will come

if your program attracts and retains more students, you can offer more courses and a wider variety (including Lit courses)

Case study: Spanish and French at SMU

SMU Spanish area is as big as all other language areas combined (roughly 800+ students enrolled in classes vs. roughly 300+ in French)

Spanish offers a traditional literature-based curriculum and only one LSP course (Spanish for Business)

Results

This academic year:

Spanish: 32 majors / 140 minors

French: 28 majors / 38 minors

Importance of scheduling: per semester, the French Area offers one Lit course, one LSP course, one culture course, internships

Do professional French courses compete with literature courses?

Short answer: No!

18 of 21

Can you teach professional French at the beginner and intermediate levels ?

CCI Paris Île-de-France

Objects in the classroom

Objects on a workdesk

Description of a person (students or teacher)

Description of a person (at work)

Learn numbers

Learn numbers with le CAC 40

Description of places

Description of the workplace

Questions: the job interview

Short answer: Yes!

19 of 21

French for Specific Purposes trainings

24-hour training courses (over 4 days) entirely paid for by the Embassy.

Designed for university professors wishing to teach new or develop their professional French courses.

Various themes offered.

CCI Paris Île-de-France

French for Tourism

May 14-17

College of Charleston (SC)

French for Professions

May 21-24

George Washington University (DC)

Business French

May 28-31

University of Massachusetts

– Lowell (MA)

French for

International Relations

June 11-14

University of Oregon

(OR)

Training opportunities offered in 2024

20 of 21

It’s your turn to speak !

Feel free to jump in !

Send us your questions in the chat !

1 of 21

2 of 21

3 of 21

4 of 21

5 of 21

6 of 21

7 of 21

8 of 21

9 of 21

10 of 21

11 of 21

12 of 21

13 of 21

14 of 21

15 of 21

16 of 21

17 of 21

18 of 21

19 of 21

20 of 21

21 of 21