Choosing French at IGCSE will allow you to build on the skills you developed and knowledge you learnt at KS3 to become a more confident linguist.

By the end of the iGCSE course, you will enjoy using French in a range of situations and will have a deeper understanding of Francophone culture. Learning French is not only a stimulating academic exercise but, perhaps more importantly, an extremely useful life skill that will open doors to many opportunities in your future.

In fact, your knowledge of French will strengthen your understanding of English and other languages through a deeper level of literacy that only comes with the study of a foreign language.

In addition to this, you will develop your memory, a huge range of thinking skills and learning strategies as well as presentation, communication and social skills.

These are some of the reasons for which IGCSEs and A Levels in French are considered by many employers and the world’s top universities to be such prestigious and valuable qualifications.

‘Learning a foreign language is more than just a boost to your CV or handy for travelling. It will make you smarter, more decisive and even better at English.’ (The Telegraph 2013)

The benefits of pursuing the study of French beyond KS3 are numerous. In addition to improving communication skills, your ability to connect with and forge relationships with francophones all over the world and make yourself a highly desirable candidate at the best universities (regardless of the course you are opting for) you will reap the personal rewards that come with mastering the grammar, sound and lexical systems of one of the world’s most beautiful languages.

French has a major presence internationally and is the working language of many international organisations. It has a long history as a language of commerce and trade and is extremely important in the developing world. France itself has the world’s sixth largest economy and is ranked very highly amongst world leaders in medical research and engineering.

1) How will it benefit me?

When applying to universities, you will be competing with IB students, all of whom study a Modern Foreign Language up to the end of KS5. This is because language learning is highly valued in Further Education and beyond. This message was confirmed by representatives of Oxbridge who visited GIS recently. Some universities have even made IGCSE in MFL a compulsory component of their entrance requirements even for courses that are not related to language learning.

2) Will I be fluent at the end?

You will be able to hold a reasonably fluent conversation on a wide range of topics, speak with spontaneity and have developed the skills to deal with the unpredictable. You will also be able to express yourself in writing when responding to native speakers, speaking at a natural speed, using a range of tenses and a broad vocabulary. You will also be able to write accurately in a range of formats (letter, article, interview, etc.) about a broad selection of subjects.

3) How much speaking will I have to do and what is the oral exam like?

There will be many opportunities for you to practise your oral French in lessons throughout the course just as in KS3. The oral exam lasts for around 10 minutes and has 2 main components: 1 role-play, a general conversation questions about some of the topics covered throughout the year. You will be fully trained for all of this so that by the end of the course, you do not find the prospect half as daunting as it may do now- who knows you may even enjoy it!