Spoken on all five continents by more than 75 million native speakers and with 235 million people speaking it fluently, French is definitely a language you should learn. But French is also so much more than just a lot of speakers throughout the world. It is THE language of culture with centuries of history and cultural evolution. Today we will guide you through 7 more reasons why you should study French today, such as:
- English is not enough anymore;
- French is so important for your career, studies and resumé;
- French is the language of International relationships;
- It will help you learning other languages;
- It will allow you to travel to French speaking countries;
Read on and start learning French with General Français!
Reason #1: Speaking English only is not enough
While it was primordial to speak English a few years ago, nowadays it is not enough anymore. English still is the language of internationalisation but speaking a second language, whether French or Spanish, will give you so much more opportunities.
Career-wise, it is a very nice feature on your resumé. We will dive into this later in this article, but a lot of industries would rather hire bilingual/trilingual people than people who only speak one language. And it includes almost every job field.
If you are looking to travel the world or just visit the city of your dreams, knowing another language is very useful too. Even if a lot of countries have English speakers, there’s still many more that don’t. Knowing the language of the country you are visiting will not only make it easier to visit it, but also to connect to local people and learn about their culture. Even in a non French speaking country!
Reason #2: It is one of the most world-wide spoken language
Just like we saw, French is spoken on all five continents. You will always find a little bit of French somewhere, no matter where you are on the planet.
There are roughly 76 million native speakers and about 235 million people that know and speak French on a daily basis (as their second or third language). Needless to say that French is one of the most worldwide spoken languages and it is in itself a very good reason to begin learning French today. It is also a good motivation: it will help you meet people from all over the world and travel wherever you want to.
There are so many different countries it also means many different cultures: Knowing French will give you access to all these different traditions and will truly open yourself to the world.
Reason #3: Knowing how to speak French will help you in your career
Knowing at least one or two languages in addition to English has become a must in a lot of careers and job fields. Bilingualism is something that is highly valued and looked for. Studies have also shown that people who speak several languages will get a significant pay rise in their jobs. In fact, the idea of learning French as a child is not bad at all.
So whether you are working in the pharmaceutical industry, in the automobile industry, in communication, in healthcare, in international relationships, in IT… or so many other job fields, French is one of the top languages to learn along with English and will always be a nice addition to your resumé.
Knowing another language allows your company to expand their connections to other countries and create meaningful partnerships, so it is very important that you can bring them this help. Do you understand now why it is important to study French?
If you’re interested in getting started, you’ll find plenty of online resources for learning French for every level.
Reason #4: French is useful if you want to study abroad
It is difficult to say how long it takes to study French, but it is certain that by going abroad you will be able to learn it in much less time. So, if you want to learn French in a quick and easy way, then learning abroad is the best option you have. French study programs are pretty much everywhere and they are very interesting. You can either pick French study or something of your own field of expertise: there are a lot of programs and you will find something that suits you for sure.
Immersion is the best teacher so it’s the best way to become fully fluent in speaking French. It will also help you gain a more in depth understanding of French culture and local traditions. Also, France is not the only option you have! Just like we said, French is spoken in so many countries it is really easy for you to find a city in a French speaking country you’ll definitely want to go to, but, if you want, also in a non speaking French country: there are a lot of International schools and French is present in a majority of them.
In conclusion, going abroad is definitely one of the best tips to learn French easily.
Reason #5: French is the language of International relationships
Did you know that French is the official language of many many international organisations and committees?
We are so used to seeing English everywhere that we often forget that French is the official language of diplomacy and international relations: The United Nations, The European Union, the Olympic Committee, the Red Cross, the international courts but also UNESCO and NATO have French as their official language.
So, if you are considering a career in international relationships or in diplomacy, knowing how to speak French will be a major advantage. If not mandatory! It will also help you grasp a better understanding on how the world works through news and events from these organisations.
Reason #6: Learning French will help you learn other languages
The more languages you know, the easier it is to learn them. This is science! A lot of studies have shown that once you’ve learned a language, the next one is easier to learn: the more you learn, the easier it gets. When you learn a language, you also learn a complete set of skills: grammar mechanics, memorisation through vocabulary, reading skills, speaking skills, pronunciation, comprehension skills, writing skills, communication skills and so on. There are a lot of advantages to learning a new language and it definitely helps your brain.
French especially helps you: it is a medium leveled language (meaning it is not easy but not too hard to learn too!) and will surely help you get advanced grammar concepts as well as train you on how to manipulate them to make sentences. Once you’ve used to it, it gets easier to learn other languages with the same features.
Learning French will also help you learn Romance languages. This set of languages all have the same latin roots and are very similar in grammar, sentence construction as well as in their vocabulary. Knowing one Romance language is a great start at learning the others. Plus, they are very important and world wide used languages, juste like French, so you will always know someone who speaks one of them. They include: Spanish, Italian, Romanian, Portugese but also regional languages such as Catalan and Occitan.
Reason #7: You will have access to French speaking countries and their wonders
Because French is spoken in so many countries, it also means that you will have access to many different cities and wonders of the French speaking world. In Europe, you definitely should see Paris and the French countryside which has so many different beautiful landscapes. You can also visit Belgium and Switzerland where French is spoken as a main language in some of their regions. French is widely taught in Germany, Greece and Italy too! In Asia, Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos and Liban all allow a significant place to French.
If you are more into visiting Africa, then you will also find a lot of countries that have French as their official or second language. They include: Algeria, Marrocco, Tunisia, Congo, Ivory Coast, Senegal and a lot more sub saharan countries. As surprising as it gets, Quebec (in Canada) is not the only place where French is spoken on the American continent. While it is the official language of Quebec, French is widespread in the states of Maine, Vermont and Louisiana. All of these possibilities also mean that you will have the opportunity to learn about different regions, cultures and dialects. The only “French model” that you see at school is to be found in France only. All of these other countries all have their own cultures and traditions and learning French will help you get a better understanding of them as well as meet so many different interesting people.
Who never dreamed of making friends all over the world?
Your online solution to learn French: GlobalExam
If these reasons convinced you to start learning French today then you should look into our online solution to learn French: Global General. GlobalExam now provides you with an online platform which will help you learn a new language or get better at either French, Spanish, German, Italian or English.
Meant for beginners and intermediate levels, our Global General training is conceived after the CECRL which is the common European guideline for teaching languages. This training offers academic teachings that are fun and will help you evolve with confidence in your learning journey. 500 Audio files, flashcards, in-situation scenarios as well as 5.000 detailed corrections are all available through your account. Coaches will also follow your progression and communicate with you in order to help you get the most personalized experience and the most out of your learnings.
Training with us will guarantee you will never be discouraged or left alone in your learning journey!
What are you waiting for? Let’s learn French together!
