PeterMollenburg wrote:I am in New Caledonia currently. Despite practically everyone speaking French, this solution is not practical. I have been speaking French but it does not push me more than my studies back home (in fact far less). It’s very expensive here, and while I remain here I am losing considerable money by the day - it’s not practicle to stay here. I cannot work here (I already inquired prior to leaving Australia) as my qualifications are not recognised and having them recognised is lengthy, costly and simply not feesible. I cannot do other work as I have a family to support, I can’t just up and leave Australia on a whim - it requires extensive planning as three others rely on my wage and I have house payments etc to make, so I can’t just work in hospitality. I am here with my family, so running off to strike up random conversations that hopefully turn into lengthy challenging discussions is not only weird but selfish. I’m not that social, drinking holds no interest whatsoever to me, I don’t drink coffee, I don’t like noisy environments in part due to hearing issues, I don’t smoke. I’m in my 40s with a family- bars aren’t my thing (never were). When we get home just going somewhere where French is spoken is always expensive and always a huge undertaking. We are planning for 2.5 to 3 years away for next French immersion experience, I won’t wait till then to get my French practise, I need to study at home and I need to do so to actually improve my chances of getting suitable work in 2.5/3 years time in that French speaking environment. While I appreciate your suggestion tarvos, it really doesn’t suit my circumstances. If I were single, without children, then the situation would be extremely different and upping and leaving to immerse myself in a French speaking environment would certainly be more achievable.
Yes, that's why I recommend a lot of stuff for a recluse learner
Vast majority of us simply doesn't have the luxury of just leaving our sofa and living abroad for half a year, the cost would be too high and we wouldn't be the only ones to pay it. I consider myself very lucky to have the opportunities but I didn't have them not that long ago. And I won't have them some time from now again. I am in a rare window with various possibilities. But that is a priviledge, not something automatic.
Having the practice opportunities is great but not necessary. I didn't have any such opportunities but a few short touristy ones (=worthless at the level) during the 5 years between my B2 and C2 exam. By the time I started intensive preparation for the C2 exam, I had already been at the level as far as speaking went. The tutor was for the writing. The tons of listening and other alone activities simply worked.
I can see how frustrating this is, you have 2.5-3 years to become damn good at French. They'll probably take you even at B2, the French healthcare is getting a bit desperate in some areas, all the healthcare professions are in huge demand in vast majority of the EU countries these days. But communication with patients (= mostly older people with accent from their home region, with hearing conditions, neurologic troubles, breathing troubles etc) at B2 must be a real pain.
I've seen a few immigrant nurses there. The most memorable one was obviously a Spanish native. She was an excellent nurse. Her language skills were great as far as comprehension went, very good actively. She had no problem working there despite making a not that serious yet still notable mistake every few sentences and an accent screaming "Spanish native" immediately. So, don't let your worries stress you too much.
The good news: you can get there on your own, 3 years are definitely enough for such an endeavour, especially with your discipline and attitude. You are awesome! Your "lack of progress" now doesn't mean anything serious in the long run. You'll get there!
The bad news: we may need to learn a few dialects of Arabic too. This is in no way an opinion on the current demographic changes, it is a simple observation based on 6 months in French hospitals. And perhaps some Mandarin may come useful once in a longer while