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 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:

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• The United Nations.
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• UNESCO
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• The International Monetary Fund
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• The European Community
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• The 31 member Council of Europe
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• The International Labor Bureau
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• The International Olympic Committee
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• The 31 member Council of Europe

French is the official language of

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• Postal services throughout the world.

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• The International Red Cross

French is the dominant working language at

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• The European Court of Justice
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• The European Tribunal of First Instance
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• The European Court of Auditors in Luxembourg
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• The Press Room at the European Commission in Brussels, Belgium

One example of the importance of French can be seen in a recent listing of International jobs(4/8/97) distributed by the US State Department: 47 required or preferred French, 29 Spanish, 10 Russian, and 3 German.

THE ECONOMICS OF FRENCH AND FRANCE

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• French is the foreign language spoken by our largest trading partner (Canada).
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• The U.S. and France share many trade similarities, particularly their global standing in 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.
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• France has the second largest exporter of agricultural products in the world after the U.S.
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• In recent years, the U.S. has been the largest direct investor in France and France has been one of the 3 largest investors in the U.S.A.
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• French companies employ over 800,000 Americans.
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• France is the third largest destination of foreign investments in the world.
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• Overall, the French export more per capita than the Japanese and more than twice as much as the Americans. France is overall, the 4^th largest exporting nation of the world.
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• France is the world’s leader in the production of luxury goods.
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• More tourists visit France than any other country in the world.

SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

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• 7 of France’s top 10 exports to the U.S. are industrial or high technology products.
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• France is the 4^th largest producer of automobiles in the world (Renault, Peugeot, Citroen) and the 3^rd largest exporter. (All Mack trucks are manufactured by Renault Vehicules Industriels.) cf. Mack Truck in Allentown, PA.
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• France ranks 4^th in research among countries of the Organization for Economic Development and Cooperation (after Japan, Germany and the U.S.A.)
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• France is a major world research center in the field of high energy physics.
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• The French are the world leaders in medical research: the AIDS virus was first isolated by French doctors at the INSTITUT PASTEUR.
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• The French are a world leader in medical genetics (The Human Genome Project is located in Paris).
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• The French are the world’s 3^rd manufacturers of electronics equipment.
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• European leader in aerospace (Aérospatiale, Arianespace, Airbus…).
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• Most commercial satellites are put into space on French Ariane rockets.
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• The fastest train , the T.G.V. (Train à Trés Grande Vitesse) is French.
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• The fastest commercial airplane (Concorde) is French (built in collaboration with British Airways).
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• France is the world’s 2^nd military power and has the world’s 2^nd largest defense industry( i.e Exocet missiles, radar technology).
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• France is the world’s 2^nd largest builder and exporter of civilian and military aircrafts and helicopters (Airbus is the world’s 2^nd largest fleet of commercial airliners, and all the US Coast Guard helicopters are made by AEROSPATIALE in Toulouse, France.
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• France has one of the most advanced systems of telecommunications in the world. Fiber optics were invented in France.
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• 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 enormous influence over American society. French thought played a dominant role among the founders of the Unites States in the 18^th Century and it continues to shape American 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.

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 (avoiding a field which requires knowledge of a foreign language, for example), 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.

Text prepared by Richard Shryock

Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University (Virginia Tech.)

Dept. of Foreign Languages and Literatures

Revised by Dr. S. Pascale Dewey

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