Handbook - Introduction
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French and English are the only languages spoken as a native language on 5 continents.

French is the official language of France and its overseas territories as well as Bénin; Burkina Faso; Central African Republic; Congo (Democratic Republic of); Congo (Republic of); Côte d'Ivoire; Gabon; Guinea; Luxembourg; Mali; Monaco; Niger; Sénégal; Togo; the Canadian province of Québec; and the Swiss districts of Vaud, Neuchâtel, Genève, and Jura.

 

 

French territories:

   

Départements d'outre-mer (DOM)

 

 
  • French Guiana, Guadeloupe, Martinique, Réunion

 

Territoires d'outre mer (TOM)

 

 
  • French Polynesia, New Caledonia, Wallis and Futuna, French southern and Antarctic lands

 

Collectivités territoriales

 

 
  • Saint Pierre and Miquelon, Mayotte

French is a co-official language in Belgium, Burundi, Cameroon, Canada, Chad, Comoros Islands, Djibouti, Equatorial Guinea, Haiti (the two official languages are French and French Creole), Madagascar, Rwanda, Seychelles, Switzerland, and Vanuatu.

In many countries, French plays an important role, either as an administrative, commercial, or international language or simply due to a significant French-speaking population: Algeria, Andorra, Argentina, Brazil, Cambodia, Cape Verde, Dominica (French patois), Egypt, Greece, Grenada (French patois), Guinea-Bissau, India, Italy (Valle d'Aosta), Laos, Lebanon, Mauritania, Mauritius, Morocco, Poland, Syria, Trinidad and Tobago, Tunisia, United Kingdom (Channel Islands), United States (Louisiana, New England), Vatican City, and Vietnam. Well over 100 million people speak French in the world. 

Studying French means broadening your knowledge in other areas of study: history, anthropology, political science, literature, geography, linguistics, philosophy, and theology. Studying French at Calvin College means more than simply acquiring linguistic competence; it involves improving one's memory and self-discipline, enhancing verbal and problem-solving skills, developing multicultural sensitivity, and, overall, learning what it means to live as a Christian in the Kingdom of God. 

The Department of French offers courses of study for students interested in continuing their work on the graduate level, for those interested in careers in which foreign language plays a key role, and for those interested in teaching French at the secondary or elementary school levels.  Programs in the department include major and minor concentrations in French, major and minor concentrations in secondary and elementary education, and K-12.  To be eligible for a major concentration in general French studies, a student must have completed at least two courses in French with a minimum grade of C (2.0) and must have completed 101-102, 121-122, or the equivalent. To be admitted to the Teacher Education Program, a student must have a cumulative GPA of at least 2.5 in the courses required for the major and/or minor.