What is the value of studying French? When you decide what foreign language you would like to learn, please remember that French is the language that can give you the most choices in your studies or your career. Let me try to convince you that French remains the second most practical language in the world after English! Prepared by Maria Wowro, who is accomplishing her own career goals thanks to the knowledge of French.

Why the knowledge of French is so useful? French is a language spoken around the world French remains the language of high diplomacy French makes you more competitive in the job market There are career development programs for American students that can help you gain unique work experience !!

Lets have a look at some numbers to see why French is a “global” language and can be useful throughout the world ! Just imagine, that there are 6 thousand languages now spoken on Earth! French is one of only 15 spoken by more than a hundred million people, and one of only four along with English, Spanish and Arabic used as official languages in more than 20 countries ! (French with 33 countries ranks second to English)! Moreover, if you can speak French you can be understood in 43 countries across five continents by over 200 million people in the world! French, along only with English, is taught in every country in the world!

French has of course official status in several European countries such as: France Belgium Switzerland Luxembourg Monaco I will talk about France and its commercial ties with the U.S. a little later. I would like to present to you now the 3 other countries: Belgium, Switzerland and Luxembourg

Belgium This small country located in the heart of Europe is famous for its beer and chocolate , but you might be surprised to learn that its capital – Brussels - is considered the “administrative heart” of the European Union (EU). Brussels is the seat to EU’s most important institutions which are European Commission, Council of the EU, and European Parliament Brussels also hosts many key international institutions like NATO, along with 1,000 other international organizations and 2,000 international corporations. Just imagine, there are more ambassadors and journalists in Brussels than Washington, D.C.

Switzerland Switzerland is another country located in the heart of Europe. Although its surface is relatively small, Switzerland is one of the richest countries in the world! (Switzerland has a higher GDP per capita than such huge economies like USA or Japan)! Moreover, Switzerland is the second highest rated country in the quality of life index! It means that it is one of the best places to live in the world!!! One of its cities - Geneva - hosts many international organizations, and NGOs including Red Cross, WTO , WHO, ILO, and U.N. Geneva is also the European headquarter to several large multi-national corporations (P&G, HP) and many Swiss banks.

or Grand-Duché de Luxembourg Not only is Luxembourg the world's only remaining sovereign Grand Duchy but also a country that possesses the highest GDP per capita in the world !!! Moreover, Luxembourg is the fourth highest rated country in the quality of life index. So, once again, one of the best places to live in the whole world!! The capital of the Grand-Duché - Luxembourg City - is one of the wealthiest cities in the world, it is banking and administrative centre and a seat of several institutions of the E.U. including the European Court of Justice, the European Court of Auditors, and the European Investment Bank.

Many African countries have also chosen French as their official language Benin Burkina Faso Burundi Cameroon Central African Republic Chad Comoros Congo (Brazzaville) Côte d'Ivoire Democratic Republic of the Congo Djibouti Equatorial Guinea (former colony of Spain) Gabon Guinea Madagascar Mali Niger Rwanda Senegal Seychelles Togo French is also spoken by a large percentage of population in Maghrebian countries : Maroco, Algeria, Tuniesia. If you were ever interested in discovering the Islam culture I strongly encourage you to study French!

It would take too much time to talk about all of them! French has official status or is spoken in many other countries such as: Haiti, Lebanon, Syria, Laos, Cambodia, Vatican, France's overseas territories of French Guiana, Guadeloupe, Martinique, Saint Barthelemy, St. Martin, Saint-Pierre and Miquelon, French Polynesia and New Celedonia. It would take too much time to talk about all of them! Instead I would like to tell you few more words about your closest neighbor – CANADA…

Canada and the U.S. have the world's largest trading relationship! The province of Quebec alone is the fifth largest trading partner of the United States Approximately 81% of all Quebec’s exports go to the United States. Quebec has the second largest GDP of the Canadian provinces and is Canada’s largest province by area. French is the official language of Quebec.

Sources “The Story of French” by JeanBenoît Nadeau and Julie Barlow Article by Richard Shryock fromVirginia Polytechnic Institute and the State Univeristy: “French the Most Practical Foreign Language” http://www.fll.vt.edu/french/whyfrench.html The Economist Intelligence Unit’s quality-of-life index 2005 CRS Report for Congress Received through the CRS Web : “U.S.-French Commercial Ties” French – American Chamber of Commerce in Cleveland Embassy of France in the United States Great Cincinnati Chamber of Commerce IFA – Invest in France Agency Ambassade de France Missions Economiques CIA World Factbook

Continue on to the “Language of Diplomacy” link on the “Careers” web page for further information.