French (HDip in Arts)

Course details

The Higher Diploma in French is aimed at graduates who want to be considered for a master’s course in French, but do not have an honours degree in French, or who want to add a Higher Diploma in Arts subject to their qualifications.

Objectives of the course:

• to provide you with opportunities to further develop your skills in the study and the use of the French language
• to provide you with opportunities to extend and deepen your skills in the reading and discussion of texts
• to introduce you to work in specialised areas of French as a multidisciplinary subject
• to give you a sense of French culture in French-speaking countries around the world

On graduation from this course, you will have:

• developed a capacity for independent critical thinking
• acquired and developed transferable skills such as information gathering, analysis and interpretation
• acquired a range of personal and interpersonal skills in addition to communication and listening skills
• developed reflectiveness, self-awareness and a capacity for cooperative endeavour through taking responsibility for group work

Registration with the Teaching Council

The Higher Diploma in Arts programme consists of modules to the value of 60 credits taken from Levels 2 and 3 of the undergraduate BA degree.  The Higher Diploma in Arts is recognised by the Teaching Council for teacher registration provided candidates have completed modules to the value of at least 70 credits in the chosen subject.  Students who register for the Higher Diploma in Arts and wish to register the chosen subject with the Teaching Council must also register for an additional 10 credits of first year modules in that subject.  

Course Details

The modules on offer, are in the main, those offered to second-year and final-year degree students. French as a degree-level subject is organised into a number of distinct elements:

• language modules on reading, writing, speaking and listening
• core modules dealing with the study of culture and literature
• specialised modules covering different areas of French as a multidisciplinary subject, including literary studies, linguistics, French thought and the history of ideas, cultural studies, French society and institutions, the francophone world.

Modules (60 credits):

• FR2602 Modern French Culture
• FR4202 Structure and Varieties of Contemporary French
• FR2305 Introduction to Francophone Postcolonial Studies
• FR2306 Theatre of the Absurd
• FR4307 Contemporary French Theatre
• FR2404 French Language Today
• LL3002 Travel Writings
• FR2403 Introduction to Specialist Translation
• FR4308 Literary Studies: Modern French Fiction
• FR4407 Advanced Specialist Translation
• FR4403 Second Language Acquisition
• FR 2702 Women in French Society and Culture
• FR2204 Topics in Literature and Culture
• FR4702 French Society and Institutions

In general, if you wish to qualify as a teacher, you are advised to refer to the school curriculum and match the modules to that broad field. Modules are chosen in consultation with the programme coordinator in September.   For students who will wish to register the subject with the Teaching Council, the 10 credits of first year modules will be in addition to their Higher Diploma in Arts programme registration.  There will be no additional fee for students who register for the additional 10 credits with the Higher Diploma in Arts.  Students who have already completed 10 credits of first year modules in the subject as part of their primary degree will be exempt from the additional requirement to meet the Teacher Council requirements.

Please see the College Book of Modules for information and descriptions of modules for the current academic year.

Detailed Entry Requirements

It is intended for those who already have a degree, preferably in the area of Arts or the Sciences

The Higher Diploma in Arts is a conversion programme and applicants would not normally have studied the relevant subject to Honours Degree level previously.  

Course Practicalities

For the full-time one-year option, you are required to choose from modules which, when combined, result in 60 credits. Most modules have a value of 5 credits and involve one hour of teaching per week for the duration of the academic year. However, a language module represents 10 credits and involves three classes a week, one of which focuses upon oral skills. This means a full-time student will have a total of 13 hours of classes per week for the duration of the academic year.

Assessment

Assessment is by a combination of essays and final year examinations in both written and oral French.