FEATURES ​

1. Entering the French Forest

   In this department, students acquire comprehensive basic French language skills in their first and second years. To ensure that even those with no prior experience of French can learn without difficulty, all of the "Grammar," "Reading," and "Conversation" classes use original teaching materials created by department staff. Japanese and native speakers teach in the right places, so students can efficiently learn comprehensive French language skills (comprehension, speaking, reading, writing), which are the foundation for acquiring more advanced language skills. First and second year classes taught by native speakers are small, with around 15 students, and feature interactive teaching programs using electronic whiteboards.
   The program is designed to allow students to come into direct contact with living French and acquire practical French conversation skills. In the second year, students can improve their writing and comprehension skills at the same time through "Expression Écrits I and II" classes taught by native French teachers.

2. Develop flexible thinking and sensitivity

   In the specialized field, lectures on French culture and society are held from the first year, and from the second year, students can choose from "Basic Seminars I and II" and "Special Lectures". In "Seminars I and II", which are divided into three fields of literature, language, and culture, students can deepen their interests and learn methods of academic analysis through presentation-style classes. In "Seminars III and IV" from the third year, students further improve their ability to explore fields such as literature (thought), language, and culture, and cultivate presentation and communication skills that are useful in the real world. In "Special Lectures", experts in each field discuss research subjects in easy-to-understand language, students can learn more about specialized knowledge by coming into contact with cutting-edge research results. Through these classes, Department of French Language and Literature aims to hone students' thinking and sensibility, which are flexible and full of humanity, and are not bound by preconceptions.

3. Studying French abroad

   Our university has exchange agreements with eight universities in France and French-speaking countries, including the University of Paris III and the University of Geneva. Each year, around 10 students from Department of French Language and Literature study at the Applied Linguistics Center of the Marie & Louis Pasteur University (Besançon), which has an established reputation for language education, and learn with students from all over the world. When studying at a partner university, credits earned locally can be counted toward the graduation requirements of our university, making it possible to study abroad for a long period of time without repeating a year.