A humble Assimil French log

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renaissancemedici
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A humble Assimil French log

Postby renaissancemedici » Sat Jun 30, 2018 8:55 am

There is a good job opportunity in the form of exams to enter the public service, and it's something that would interest me a lot. It happens every year around July/August. You need a university degree and C2 in English for about half of the percentage, but in order to have a shot at all the job openings you need a C2 in a second language as well.


My plan is to study and take a November exam for C2 in French, for the reason I mentioned. My current level is not nearly as good as it should be, but I figure why not?


I have just ordered my books especially for this purpose, and I'll have them next week. I also found the french books I aready have (becherelle conjugaison/bescherelle vocabulaire/a grammar in greek/a couple of exercise books etc).

Now, the problem is that I am supposed to be a B1, but I feel like an A1 sometimes... My passive skills are pretty good, but my active skills sont terribles! I don't know if time is enough to take me to a C2.

On the other side I am very enthusiastic about French, I love studying it and I have a great desire to get both the C2 and to finally succeed in the job exams.


So, my fellow language learners, this is indeed a race and perhaps I should be posting under the challenges.


Note that I must also brush up on my English, as I saw the past papers and you get asked to translate things like αειφόρος ανάπτυξη, which is sustainable development apparently...


I can't stress enough how I don't have the time to goof around about this. I will follow the book I have ordered closely, and read grammar, syntax and vocabulary on the side. I'll do as many exercises as possible, even randomly, I don't care! I'll immerse myself in the francophone universe (happily!) and in short je vais bosser comme une dingue, if you know what I mean.

Do you think it's possible though?
Last edited by renaissancemedici on Sun Aug 12, 2018 4:43 am, edited 1 time in total.
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Ani
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Re: A french race for C2

Postby Ani » Sat Jun 30, 2018 9:10 am

Well.. it sounds like it's worth a shot! People always say there is a difference between being a "true xx level" and passing the test. You only need to pass the test.

Is B1 a level you have by testing?

Whatiftheblog had a higher level to start, I think, but she made it to C2 in a race against time. You might enjoy her log.. or not. You have no time for that :-) (I think she wrote a few posts about her experience in French though)

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renaissancemedici
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Re: A french race for C2

Postby renaissancemedici » Sat Jun 30, 2018 9:16 am

Thanks Ani. I really like your log. I'll be following other logs because you get both motivation and good information on native material. Nice to learn someone made it! I'll check Whatiftheblog's log out.

Yes, B1 one by testing but it was such a long time ago.
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Re: A french race for C2

Postby rdearman » Sat Jun 30, 2018 9:22 am

You might want to take an online test to get an idea of your current level. C2 seems a lot in a year, do youget points for C1? Even if you don't hit C2 a C1 seems awfully bloody good to me. What is the job? Translation or Interpretation?
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renaissancemedici
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Re: A french race for C2

Postby renaissancemedici » Sat Jun 30, 2018 9:37 am

Yes, you do get points for C1, depending on your score. Of course in order to use it for the job you need a C2, but C1 would be a miracle to be honest :D

The job includes several posts in public administration but they are not the same each year. For instance this time it's the ministry of finance, ministry of health, digital policy, cultural management (which is what I've studied actually, along with communication and mass media), administration posts about the refugee situation etc. In past years there were jobs for the foreign office press centre (I'd love that one...)etc. You get the idea. It's cool because it's as objective as you can expect, and you join the ranks of some well qualified public servants as you get a two year training on top of everything else. Needless to say that, apart from French, the things I have to study are endless. Economics, law, public administration, communication, and more. I don't mind though. I have a good feeling about this. After all whatever we learn is good, right?
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Sarafina
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Re: A french race for C2

Postby Sarafina » Sun Jul 01, 2018 12:11 am

I'm looking forward to reading your future posts and seeing your progress. Are you sitting the C2 exam for November this year or next year?
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renaissancemedici
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Re: A french race for C2

Postby renaissancemedici » Sun Jul 01, 2018 5:35 am

Ani wrote:
You have a very different mission. You're not going to spend a hundred hours on your accent, or repeat lower level courses to dig out the last bits of juice. You're going full speed ahead on the test prep path. Stop reading logs and go study :-p



You are right, thanks for having my back! The reason I was stressed reading about hours is because I never could study for hours on end without my concentration and memory failing completely. Usually after four hours I need a good break where I do anything but study (like log in the forum). Of course it can be listening to native material like a tv station for example, or watching a documentary in say French.

I'll have to be smart about how I go about this, and I need some distraction without procrastinating of course. This forum is perfect for it because it feeds motivation and there is a sense of accountability. Not to mention all the encouragement I get!

It's true, experience matters and last night I kept thinking about how to get the best results out of every studying move: daily study, great concentration, breaks and clearing of the mind. Focusing on material and exercises, exercises, exercises till there are no more exercises. And always going the extra mile. PS: keeping a French log would be helpful too...


Hopefuly my books will arrive tomorrow, so I'll keep you posted. Until then I am having a verb revision of ÊTRE and AVOIR, and keeping tv5 playing in the backround while I do other things.

:)
Thanks Ani
Last edited by renaissancemedici on Sun Jul 01, 2018 5:56 am, edited 1 time in total.
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I use Assimil right now as a starting point, but at the same time I am building the foundation for further studies of German.

Assimil German with ease: 8 / 100

renaissancemedici
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Re: A french race for C2

Postby renaissancemedici » Sun Jul 01, 2018 5:40 am

Sarafina wrote:I'm looking forward to reading your future posts and seeing your progress. Are you sitting the C2 exam for November this year or next year?



Thanks! November this year is the French exam, and next July is the job exam. So it's fairly balanced. There is also a May exam for French, but I thought I would be better off of I made a good effort for November, as May is too close to the job applications. But it's still an option.
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I use Assimil right now as a starting point, but at the same time I am building the foundation for further studies of German.

Assimil German with ease: 8 / 100

renaissancemedici
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Re: A french race for C2

Postby renaissancemedici » Sun Jul 01, 2018 5:46 am

rdearman wrote:You might want to take an online test to get an idea of your current level.


I took a random one last night and I got an 85% score. This does not correspond to reality, believe me! It was all passive skills, and multiple questions. That's easier than writing a text from scratch. If you know of a good one please tell me so that I can try.

When I get the book I'll know precisely how the exams work (although I have a fairly good idea already), and all will be revealed: which course of action to take, and just how much ground I have to cover.
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Re: A french race for C2

Postby Ani » Sun Jul 01, 2018 6:23 am

You are welcome. Can I recommend using the forum as a reward for a set time & after a completing the daily goals? There are so many logs and posts to read, it can be a real distraction.

You can always just ask in the log for resource recommendations and we can deliver to your virtual door step.
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