BA in French

The Major in French supports FAU's focus on excellence in undergraduate education in the liberal arts and sciences, with special emphasis on its commitment to fostering diversity and international dimensions of modern thought.

French Studies at FAU are global. Just as language courses include French linguistics and the history and dialectology of French, so cultural courses emphasize historical and modern France but include the francophone cultures of the Caribbean, Canada, West Africa, Southeast Asia. It is primarily Freshman and Sophomore courses that situate the language in global contexts, while Junior and Senior courses focus on the culture, literature, and history of metropolitan France, with continuous elective offerings in such areas as "La Culture Francophone" or "Caribbean Literature."

All graduates of baccalaureate level programs will have developed a depth of understanding and an adequate level of competency in their major field to afford them the opportunity to enter a related career or advanced program of study upon graduation.

The BA program requires that all students, once they have completed the pre-requisites (FRE 1120 through 2204 or equivalent*), take the following number and types of courses:

2 courses in advanced language and culture (6-7 credits)

FRE 3400 Advanced French or FRE 3340 Francais de perfectionnement
FRE 3500 Culture et Societe

 4 seminars in literature and civilization from medieval to contemporary (12 credits)

FRW 3001 Introduction to French-Language Literature
FRW 3100 Moyen Age et Renaissance
FRW 3101 17e et 18e Siecles
FRW 3122 19e 20e Siecles

 2 courses in linguistics (6 credits)

LIN 3010 Introduction to Linguistics
FRE 4850 Structure of Modern French

 1 course in research methods (2 credits)

FOL 3880 Research and Bibliographic Methods

6 electives in French and/or Languages & Linguistics (18 crs). Recommended:

FRE 3440 and 3442 Commercial French I and II
FOT 3511 The European Union: Culture, History, Institutions
FRW 4930 La Culture Francophone
LIT 4938 Caribbean Literature
FRE 4957 French Language Study Abroad
FRW 4957 French Literature Study Abroad
FRT 3956 French Culture Study Abroad

 The large number of electives enables students to branch out into three different specializations or tracks within the major:

Commercial French (for students planning careers in business and government) entails a core of two electives in "Le Français commercial" (FRE 3440/3442), culminating in the Commercial French examination offered on campus by the Paris Chambre de Commerce each April; every year 8-10 FAU students complete this exam successfully, and receive official certification of their skills in French for business. Additional electives include "The European Community: History, Culture, Institutions" (FOT 3511).

 Teaching (for students planning to teach in the public schools) combines the French major with courses in the College of Education, leading to Certification to teach French in Florida grades K-12. Majors concentrating on Teaching are encouraged to use their elective hours to acquire another foreign language. Seniors holding a B average may take FLE 5223 Electronic Media and Foreign Language Pedagogy by previous arrangement with the instructor.

Pre-Professional (for students intending to go on to the M.A. degree or other graduate school curricula in higher education, law, medicine) entails focus on culture and literature. Pre-professional majors who are in their last year, and have a B average, are eligible to take introductory graduate seminars, such as French Critical Theory (FRT 6826), History & Dialectology of French (FRE 5835), Intro to Comparative Literature (LIT 6066), and selected seminars in graduate-level French Studies.

 New students who would like more information on these options should see Professor Marcella Munson (mmunson@fau.edu) or any French faculty member (click on FACULTY). All majors must have a faculty advisor and discuss their course selections each semester during Advanced Registration (November, April, July) in order to ensure timely progress toward the BA degree.

Double Major

 Increasingly, many students are combining French with another field in a double major, such as Computer Engineering-French, Biology-French, Communication-French, in order to open international possibilities in the student's primary field.

To graduate with a double major, students must meet all the requirements for both majors, file a "Double Major" form at the Registrar's office, and be sure that a faculty advisor in both departments is monitoring course work and progress toward the degree.

 Concerning dual or concurrent degrees (such as BA in French-BS in Computer Information Systems), consult the Registrar's office for the most recent information and guidelines.