French is an important language in international affairs. Along with English and German, it is a procedural language (langue de travail) of the European Union and one of the six official languages of the United Nations.
Applicants should already have studied French at upper secondary school and attained a basic level of proficiency. This programme builds on that knowledge and explores French grammar, pronunciation and texts in greater depth.
The programme is 60 ECTS and is organised as one year of full-time study.
It is made up of:
The programme is taught in French.
As of the autumn semester 2024, all mandatory courses will be offered through distance learning.
The programme is designed to ensure that students:
Icelandic matriculation examination (stúdentspróf) or equivalent qualification.
Students are required to have language proficiency in French at the A2 level according to the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages.
To complete the diploma in French the student must complete all the compulsory courses specified in the programme structure:
- FRA101G French Grammar I
- FRA104G Pronunciation
- FRA106G French society I
- FRA113G Translation I
- FRA201G French society II
- FRA203G History of France
- FRA205G French Grammar II
- FRA214G French Literature and Culture
The other 12 credits are FRA electives from the BA in French Studies, free of choice.
Check below to see how the programme is structured.
This programme does not offer specialisations.
The students get the opportunity to develop their knowledge in french grammar and they learn to talk about it (with the appropriate terms). Emphasis on verbs and personal pronouns.
Students are asked to be autonome in their studies and to prepare the courses.
Conversation practice in discussion. There will be one academic lecture per week (1x 40 min.) to teach students the basic concepts and methods of General Phonetics, and one and a half training session per week in a language-lab.
n this course, students will practice both writing and speaking French. Various topics will be covered related to the different provinces and regions of French society and French-speaking countries.
Media and social media, films, and more will be used.
The material will be discussed, and students will have the opportunity to practice their presentation skills.
Students will be trained in writing short and concise texts on various topics in French. They will practice summarizing material, retelling, paraphrasing, presenting written arguments for their case, and structuring a text clearly. They will also get used to using dictionaries and other aids.
In this course students will be trained in reading, analysing and translating French texts (easy to average difficulty) from French into Icelandic. Students will translate different kinds of texts (news, blogs, articles, literary texts) and discuss their characteristics, grammar, syntax, etc. Students will also be trained in the use of dictionaries and others important tools.
In this directed study in French students can further develop their skills in translating from French to Icelandic. Texts are chosen in collaboration with the teacher.
A reading project in French literature. Students must contact the supervisor.
A pronunciation practice.
The course will focus on specific topics related to French society, culture, and history, from the colonial era to the present day. Literary works, films, and academic articles related to the material will be used.
Students will be trained in summarizing material, presenting arguments for their case, and explaining the course material in short essays and presentations.
Short story writing in France reached its peak in the 19th century when the master of storytelling, Guy de Maupassant, was active and short stories regularly appeared on the front pages of newspapers and magazines. The writing of short stories has a long history in French literature, although the definition of this literary genre has varied over time. As a narrative of a “recent event”, the short story emerged in France during the Renaissance with The Heptaméron by Marguerite de Navarre, while the historical short story made its mark in the 17th century with Madame de Lafayette and others. In the 18th century, the short narrative was then used in various ways by Voltaire, Sade, Germaine de Staël, and others, and the diversity increased even further when 19th-century writers and poets tried their hand at the short form, including Balzac, Baudelaire, George Sand, and Mérimée…
In this course, the development of the short story will be briefly presented, and some of its predecessors read and introduced. The main emphasis will be on texts from the 17th to the 19th centuries, examining their content and narrative form. Finally, we will consider the short story in the contemporary French literary world.
The texts will be read in Icelandic or English translations. The course will be taught in Icelandic, but students who read French have access to reading material in French and an optional extra class every week where the week's material is reviewed in French.
Among the authors who will be read and discussed are Marguerite de Navarre, Charles Sorel, Madame de Lafayette, Sade, Germaine de Staël, Baudelaire, Balzac, George Sand, Mérimée, and Maupassant.
Please keep in mind that THIS COURSE IS TAUGHT IN ICELANDIC.
MOM101G is intended for students of foreign languages OTHER than English. BA-students in English and those who do not speak Icelandic should register in MOM102G.
his course will cover the French language today, focusing on different registers. It will also discuss the main changes that have occurred in French in recent decades, particularly regarding feminine forms of nouns and gender-neutral language. To this end, newspaper articles and academic articles on the development and status of the French language will be used.
Exercises will focus on various aspects related to register and style, word choice, grammar, sentence structure, and text structure.
Students will be trained in arguing their case, summarizing, and explaining the course material in written exercises, lectures, and discussion groups.
French history from the origins to the twentieth century.
New elements studied: interrogation, determinants, relative pronouns, negative sentences and subjunctive.
Students should finish French grammar and written expression I before enrolling in this course.
This course emphasizes on how to use grammatical concepts in their assignments.
Students must be well prepared before each lesson and are autonom in their learning process.
An introductory course in the BA program in French Studies.
Short stories, poems, excerpts from novels and plays from different periods will be read and studied. Students will become familiar with the principal literary texts, the terminology and methods of text analysis and interpretation.
A reading project in French literature. Students must contact the supervisor.
A pronunciation practice.
The objective of this course is to introduce trends and developments in the French novel from the late 20th century to the beginning of the 21st. The emphasis will be on auto(bio)graphical female writing where the status of women or gender discrimination is the core focus. The syllabus includes works that have been influenced by feminist discourse and have been at the forefront of new understandings of sexual differences, both in France and in other French speaking countries, such as Morocco and Algeria. Some of the works that will be discussed have been influenced by the #MeToo movement or have been read as an important contribution to it.
A two-week intensive course in French language skills at the Université de Rennes. Students will engage in conversation related to history, culture and contemporary issues in French society. The course takes place in weeks 7 and 8 during the spring semester. Max. 18 participants.
Evaluation:
Participation: 50%
Presentation: 25%
Written assignment: 25%
Optional course for students of the Faculty of Languages and Cultures, in their 2nd or 3rd year of the BA-programme. The students read and study a well-known play that has been translated into several languages. The students will read the text in the target language. The students choose scenes from the play for the production.
Teachers from the target languages will assist the students with pronunciation.
Maximum number of students in this course is 15.
The students get the opportunity to develop their knowledge in french grammar and they learn to talk about it (with the appropriate terms). Emphasis on verbs and personal pronouns.
Students are asked to be autonome in their studies and to prepare the courses.
Conversation practice in discussion. There will be one academic lecture per week (1x 40 min.) to teach students the basic concepts and methods of General Phonetics, and one and a half training session per week in a language-lab.
n this course, students will practice both writing and speaking French. Various topics will be covered related to the different provinces and regions of French society and French-speaking countries.
Media and social media, films, and more will be used.
The material will be discussed, and students will have the opportunity to practice their presentation skills.
Students will be trained in writing short and concise texts on various topics in French. They will practice summarizing material, retelling, paraphrasing, presenting written arguments for their case, and structuring a text clearly. They will also get used to using dictionaries and other aids.
In this course students will be trained in reading, analysing and translating French texts (easy to average difficulty) from French into Icelandic. Students will translate different kinds of texts (news, blogs, articles, literary texts) and discuss their characteristics, grammar, syntax, etc. Students will also be trained in the use of dictionaries and others important tools.
In this directed study in French students can further develop their skills in translating from French to Icelandic. Texts are chosen in collaboration with the teacher.
A reading project in French literature. Students must contact the supervisor.
A pronunciation practice.
The course will focus on specific topics related to French society, culture, and history, from the colonial era to the present day. Literary works, films, and academic articles related to the material will be used.
Students will be trained in summarizing material, presenting arguments for their case, and explaining the course material in short essays and presentations.
Short story writing in France reached its peak in the 19th century when the master of storytelling, Guy de Maupassant, was active and short stories regularly appeared on the front pages of newspapers and magazines. The writing of short stories has a long history in French literature, although the definition of this literary genre has varied over time. As a narrative of a “recent event”, the short story emerged in France during the Renaissance with The Heptaméron by Marguerite de Navarre, while the historical short story made its mark in the 17th century with Madame de Lafayette and others. In the 18th century, the short narrative was then used in various ways by Voltaire, Sade, Germaine de Staël, and others, and the diversity increased even further when 19th-century writers and poets tried their hand at the short form, including Balzac, Baudelaire, George Sand, and Mérimée…
In this course, the development of the short story will be briefly presented, and some of its predecessors read and introduced. The main emphasis will be on texts from the 17th to the 19th centuries, examining their content and narrative form. Finally, we will consider the short story in the contemporary French literary world.
The texts will be read in Icelandic or English translations. The course will be taught in Icelandic, but students who read French have access to reading material in French and an optional extra class every week where the week's material is reviewed in French.
Among the authors who will be read and discussed are Marguerite de Navarre, Charles Sorel, Madame de Lafayette, Sade, Germaine de Staël, Baudelaire, Balzac, George Sand, Mérimée, and Maupassant.
Please keep in mind that THIS COURSE IS TAUGHT IN ICELANDIC.
MOM101G is intended for students of foreign languages OTHER than English. BA-students in English and those who do not speak Icelandic should register in MOM102G.
his course will cover the French language today, focusing on different registers. It will also discuss the main changes that have occurred in French in recent decades, particularly regarding feminine forms of nouns and gender-neutral language. To this end, newspaper articles and academic articles on the development and status of the French language will be used.
Exercises will focus on various aspects related to register and style, word choice, grammar, sentence structure, and text structure.
Students will be trained in arguing their case, summarizing, and explaining the course material in written exercises, lectures, and discussion groups.
French history from the origins to the twentieth century.
New elements studied: interrogation, determinants, relative pronouns, negative sentences and subjunctive.
Students should finish French grammar and written expression I before enrolling in this course.
This course emphasizes on how to use grammatical concepts in their assignments.
Students must be well prepared before each lesson and are autonom in their learning process.
An introductory course in the BA program in French Studies.
Short stories, poems, excerpts from novels and plays from different periods will be read and studied. Students will become familiar with the principal literary texts, the terminology and methods of text analysis and interpretation.
A reading project in French literature. Students must contact the supervisor.
A pronunciation practice.
The objective of this course is to introduce trends and developments in the French novel from the late 20th century to the beginning of the 21st. The emphasis will be on auto(bio)graphical female writing where the status of women or gender discrimination is the core focus. The syllabus includes works that have been influenced by feminist discourse and have been at the forefront of new understandings of sexual differences, both in France and in other French speaking countries, such as Morocco and Algeria. Some of the works that will be discussed have been influenced by the #MeToo movement or have been read as an important contribution to it.
A two-week intensive course in French language skills at the Université de Rennes. Students will engage in conversation related to history, culture and contemporary issues in French society. The course takes place in weeks 7 and 8 during the spring semester. Max. 18 participants.
Evaluation:
Participation: 50%
Presentation: 25%
Written assignment: 25%
Optional course for students of the Faculty of Languages and Cultures, in their 2nd or 3rd year of the BA-programme. The students read and study a well-known play that has been translated into several languages. The students will read the text in the target language. The students choose scenes from the play for the production.
Teachers from the target languages will assist the students with pronunciation.
Maximum number of students in this course is 15.
The timetable shown below is for the current academic year and is FOR REFERENCE ONLY.
Changes may occur for the autumn semester in August and September and for the spring semester in December and January. You will find your final timetable in Ugla when the studies start.
Note! This timetable is not suitable for planning your work schedule if you are a part-time employee.
The University of Iceland collaborates with over 400 universities worldwide. This provides a unique opportunity to pursue part of your studies at an international university thus gaining added experience and fresh insight into your field of study.
Students generally have the opportunity to join an exchange programme, internship, or summer courses. However, exchanges are always subject to faculty approval.
Students have the opportunity to have courses evaluated as part of their studies at the University of Iceland, so their stay does not have to affect the duration of their studies.
PLEASE NOTE. In order to be eligible for exchange studies or other study periods abroad, students must be enrolled in a programme of at least 90 ECTS credits.
A qualification in French can be an asset in many different ways. Language skills can open doors in the cultural and intellectual sectors in other countries. In our modern society, which is increasingly connected and globalised, language skills and inter-cultural understanding are extremely valuable.
French-speaking countries and territories, other than France, include Belgium, Switzerland, Luxembourg, Québec in Canada, Martinique, Guadeloupe, French Guyana, Mauritius, Senegal, Cameroon, Réunion, French Polynesia and New Caledonia.
French can also be the key to future careers in a wide range of professions.
An education in this area can open up opportunities in:
This list is not exhaustive.
What interests you?
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If you still have questions, feel free to contact us.
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