WHY STUDY FRENCH?

More than 220 million people speak French on the five continents and that number is expected to rise to over 700 million by 2050. French is also the official language of 29 countries including France, Belgium, Switzerland, Canada, Senegal, and many more. ^[1]
French is both a working and an official language of the United Nations, the European Union, UNESCO, NATO, the International Olympic Committee, the International Red Cross and international courts. French is the language of the three cities where the EU institutions are headquartered: Strasbourg, Brussels and Luxembourg.

According to Bloomberg News, French was ranked third, after English and Chinese, as the most useful business language ^[2]. As the world’s fifth biggest economy and number-three destination for foreign investment, France is a key economic partner.  Knowledge of French opens the doors of French companies in France and other French-speaking parts of the world (Canada, Switzerland, Belgium, and North and sub-Saharan Africa) as well as of multinational companies all over the world. 

FRENCH AT THE UNIVERSITY OF AKRON

Here at the University of Akron students will learn to value the French language, culture, history and themselves as individuals. We offer a wide variety of courses to fit all learners. Those with previous French study should greatly consider taking a placement test, located on MyAkron underneath the My Experience tab. 

No prior experience, no problem! Students can enroll in Beginning French I and continue their study through the Intermediate and Upper-levels. 

THE FRENCH MINOR [352000M]

The minor in French provides a formidable enhancement to any undergraduate major. Students develop their cross-cultural competence and awareness, as well as developing proficiency in all four skills (speaking, reading, writing, and listening). This enables effective and culturally appropriate communication in many informal and formal (professional) settings.