tommycull

I am due to arrive in Montreal around Christmas finally, to join my Canadian wife, who is living in Notre Dame de Grace. I am fully looking forward to it, I spent two weeks there in September and loved it. My kind of city. The only thing I am concerned about is finding a job, from what I have read on this Forum, it may well be difficult. I have been taking private French lessons for two years now and I would describe my French as intermediate. I can have conversations with people but it has to be less than full speed and very deliberate otherwise I will struggle. Also, I cant yet follow French language TV or read the newspaper. I realise that my French will probably get a lot better, but I don't think it is good enough to say I am bi lingual, and that is what a lot of jobs ask for.
Apparently though, as an immigrant, I qualify for a free French course (and may even get paid for it!). Immersion in French I think it is called but I don't know much about it. Has anyone done this course? Do they tell you about it when you land? To be honest, I'm well up for it. Anything to help my situation and employment opportunities. I hear that there are people in Montreal who don't speak French at all, surely they must stick to their neighbourhoods. Maybe I could find a job where these people work. Anyway, I'm rambling too much. Does anyone have any experience of these French courses? Any info would be a bonus, cheers. Tom

Gray C

Hi Tom

I too have studied French in the UK. The problem you may find is that French French is nothing like Canadian French and even French people have trouble understanding the Canadian version. What chance have we got? I would think that an immersion course in Canada would help you learn the language, as I think that it is really the only way to learn a language, but do not rely too much in your UK learned French

dbd33

That's a bit much. Written French is pretty much the same everywhere. Conversation with people in Quebec might be a rough go at first but since the poster has difficulty with conversation anyway he may as well master it with a mouthful of marbles accent as not.

Remya

Hi Tom.

Gray C is totally right. Secondary school French or anything similar will not really prepare you for quebecois French - I've lived here almost 2 years so I know! NDG is a nice area, by the way, it's much more anglophone than the east side around St-Denis and Berri (you'll see when you get here what I mean). No need to worry about following the French media as we have English TV (channels 6 and 12) and newspapers (Globe and Mail, Montreal Gazette and tons of free ones lying around that are good indicators of the cultural stuff that goes on).

However, you're probably right to be concerned about a job. What areas have you worked in? I've got a degree and some experience in certain things (but not much, I only graduated in 2002) and to be honest, it's unsurprisingly not got me anywhere as my degree isn't recognised. I would have to say that if people complain about the lack of jobs in Canada, it's twice as hard here due to the language. Montreal is the call centre capital of north America so you might well find yourself there if you need the money although even then, a lot of employers require you to be bilingual! There are English only people but if you really want to get anywhere and not be stuck in a dead-end job, you'll have to speak French or be very lucky and get a job for an American or other non-Canadian company unless you live out in the West Island where basically only English is spoken.

About the French course: sounds like a good idea. Until now I haven't qualified to do it (I'm only just about to get PR) but if I was staying permanently (which I'm not sure I am, partly due to the job scene) I would probably do it. It definitely can't do any harm... I have heard, however, that the waiting times to get in are huge as there are obviously a lot of immigrants here. And you'd have to search for the courses yourself. As far as I know you don't get given any help when you get here. I've had to hunt down my SIN and everything else myself, in any case. There's probably more info. about it at the local CIC office which is somewhere near Berri Metro (I don't recall the street and can't find it online right now, I only know how to get there!). There may be one more local to you in NDG.

Sorry to be of absolutely no assistance but this is just my experience of how things go here. People will tell you it is possible to find an English only job but it's very difficult. Doing a French course is a good idea but with potential long waiting lists would you need to start work immediately for the money or can you wait? Whatever happens, good luck, let me know how you do when you get here...

(Edit: Just found this, may be of some help: http://www.immigration-quebec.gouv.q...ourse.html#kit)

Gray C

A bit much or not, the comments about French speakers having trouble with the Canadian version of the language has actually been made by no less than three native French speakers who teach at the Alliance Francaise, so I think that they are better qualified than you or I on such matters.

dbd33

I dunno, my "wife" is a european francophone. She now coaches adult immigrants to high school equivalency, the classes cover all the high school subjects but are given in French to students who don't speak English. My children are francophones educated here with a specific effort made to avoid them getting a Canadian accent. One daughter now lives, works and attends university in Montreal. Language issues get mentioned from time to time.

In what way would you say written French in Canada is different from written French elsewhere ? The accent is different and spoken expressions are different but, for someone just starting out with conversation I don't know that this matters, not being accomplished in one style is much the same as not being accomplished in the other, innit ?

Gray C

Where in my posting did I refer to written French, that is your interpretation? I agree that the written version will vary little, but I was mainly referring to the spoken language being different.

All that I am pointing out is that learning French here in the UK is not an ideal grounding to converse comfortably with someone from Quebec. It helps, but it can come as a bit of a shock to someone who only has intermediate knowledge of the language.

dbd33

Your original comment :

suggested that French as taught in the UK would be close to useless. I think that's too strong. If the written form is the same then the words are the same, the structure of the language is the same, a different accent is a shock at first but, in English, we can eventually work out what even geordies are saying. The same is true of the different French accents.

Gray C

You do jump to some conclusions. I have never suggested that French taught in the UK is useless. Far from it. All I am saying is that the spoken French taught in the UK is not an ideal grounding for a "Brit" with limited French to speak with someone from Quebec. I am no expert, but I can also tell you that my brother in law, who has a degree in French and speaks the language fluently told me that he could hardly understand a word that was being said when he visited Quebec last year. Maybe it is a bit like a Geordie speaking to a Scouser I suppose.

Still do not see where I specifically referred to "written French" in my posting. The comments I am making have been said many times before on this forum and I am just expressing my own opinion, based upon the conversations that I have had with several French people that I know who have visited Quebec..

JAJ

What do you mean when you say your "degree isn't recognised"?

There are credential evaluation services in Canada that are accepted for many purposes. In Quebec, this service is provided by the government - have you made a formal application for your degree to be evaluated?




Jeremy

Remya

I meant by employers for jobs that require a general degree and not those maintained by a professional body. I was told as soon as I got here that employers will regard a BA (for example) from a non-Canadian university as absolutely nothing. So I could get it accredited and that would probably tell me my BA (Hons) is equivalent to a Canadian BA (Hons), but as soon as employers see on my resume that it's not from within Canada, they disregard it and the job will go to a Canadian with the same degree (or other). Of course, this could go for all Bachelor's degrees that are not job specific (the whole 'would you like fries with that' attitude to BA grads over here) but it certainly doesn't help my case that my degree is UK based and that to general employers in Quebec that means nothing.