About the Program
The French Program in the Department of Modern Languages and Linguistics at Florida State University gives students a solid grounding in the French language, with courses ranging from basic French to advanced conversation and composition. The Program also provides an excellent introduction to the literature and cultures of the French-speaking world. There are courses on every major period from the Middle Ages to the present, and on a variety of specialized cultural topics concerning France and other Francophone countries.
French majors develop sophisticated ways of analyzing information and communicating across multiple contexts as they build important professional and interpersonal skills—distinctive assets in an increasingly connected word. And with opportunities to earn credit toward the major during study abroad on FSU’s Intensive French Program in Paris, students enhance their cross-cultural awareness and develop an ability to think critically about their own cultural practices and beliefs.
At the graduate level, we offer MA and PhD degree programs spanning many aspects of French and Francophone studies, including literature, culture, and contemporary society. Thanks to the generosity of Mrs. Ada Belle Winthrop-King, the Program provides an exciting range of scholarships and other awards to graduate and undergraduate students. The Winthrop-King Institute for Contemporary French and Francophone Studies enriches our programs with its internationally renowned conferences, seminars and public lectures featuring leading scholars, writers and other figures from around the world.
Undergraduate
The program offers a 30-hour major, a concentration in business, a co-major option with another language (Chinese, German, Italian, Linguistics, Russian, or Spanish), as well as a 12-hour minor option.
Graduate
The program offers a Master of Arts (MA) in French Literature and MA in French with a concentration in Contemporary French and Francophone Studies. Students take 32 semester hours, a comprehensive exam and write a research paper. It also offers a PhD program that normally requires a minimum of 60 hours beyond a French (or equivalent) BA degree.
Why Study French
With more than 300 million speakers, French is the second most widely learned foreign language after English, and the fifth most widely spoken language in the world. It is also the only language, alongside English, that is taught in every country in the world.
French is an important part of international relations as both a working language and an official language of the United Nations, the European Union, UNESCO, NATO, the International Olympic Committee, the International Red Cross and international courts. It's also a critical to understanding culture as the international language of cooking, fashion, theatre, the visual arts, dance and architecture.