Did you know that French is the 5th most spoken language in the world with about 274 million speakers? Also, according to OIF (Organisation Internationale de la Francophonie) there are 125 million French learners on the 5 continents!
You can have different motivations to learn French; it can be for your work, studies or because you will move to a French-speaking country or just because for fun. However, whatever your motivation is you can be asked or want to take an exam to certify your level in French.
There are different qualifications for the French language; TCF, DFP, TEF etc. However, today I’m going to talk about the most popular ones.
DELF-DALF exams!
DELF (Diplôme d’Etudes en Langue Française) and DALF (Diplôme Approfondi de Langue Française) are the official qualifications awarded by the French Ministry of Education to certify the competency of candidates from outside France in the French language.
These two certificates are valid for life. They are also admitted all around the world and they are undoubtedly the most well-known FLE (French as Foreign Language) qualifications. It is useful for school records or for college and job applications in French-speaking countries.
There are in total 6 independent diplomas; DELF A1, A2, B1, B2, and DALF C1 & C2. These diplomas correspond, respectively, to the six levels of the Council of Europe’s Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFRL).
Basically, A1 and A2 are beginner levels then B1 and B2 are for the intermediate levels and finally C1 and C2 are for more advanced levels. See the post about the best resources to learn French for more details on the different levels!
For every exam, whether is A1, A2, B1, B2, C1 or C2, there are 4 competencies that are evaluated: listening, speaking, reading and writing. Please note, there’s not a strict grammar or vocabulary paper. I think it’s normal, as grammar and vocabulary are just tools and should not be an end in itself.
The duration of the exam varies between 1h30 to 4 hours depending on the level. Each paper is scored out of 25 points, so in total, 4*25 = 100. In order to pass the exam, you have to get at least, a total of 50/100 with a minimum of 5/25 in each paper.
Who can take the DELF-DALF exam ?
Well, basically everyone.
If you’re an adult; you can take the DELF Tout Public exam or the DALF (if you have an advanced level). If you’re seeking an initial employment opportunities or promotion within a French-speaking work environment; you can take the DELF Pro which is for business. There is also DELF Prim for children between 7-12 years old. Then, for 12 to 17-year-old teenagers, there are DELF Junior or DELF Schools; these two diplomas are the same, there’s only an institutional difference. You can find out more about it here
If you want to take the DELF-DALF exam, here’s what you have to do!
You should first contact the nearest approved TCF test centre, they would inform you about where the exams take place, the dates and, the fees! Click here to find the approved TCF test centres.
In general, there should be three dates a year. For example, in Madrid you can take the exam in September, February or June. The prices, as well, varies from country to country. Here’s, for instance, the prices for DELF-DALF in New York;
That is why you should contact the nearest TCF centre to get more information and eventually to register for the exam.
CONCLUSION
In further posts, I will talk more about each level in DELF-DALF exams. To help you prepare the exam of your choice, I will give you a detailed description of each category, topics, samples etc. Meanwhile, you can take a look at the best resources to learn French and the top 10 ways to learn vocabulary in French to start studying right now!
Feel free to ask me any question about DELF-DALF exams. Moreover, I am curious to know if you feel interested in taking an exam to certify your French level. Tell me which diploma you’d be willing to take and why!
Thank you so much for reading!
