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SHOULD FRENCH DIPLOMAS BE VALID EVERYWHERE IN EUROPE OR EVEN MORE?

Estelleh

Estelleh

France

Should French diplomas be valid everywhere in Europe? That's the real question !

As I am a french girl who wants to get a job abroad, I have to pass my A-levels and then, speak severals languages…,

But, nowadays a French student will always find it hard to convince a European employer to hire him/her as he/she has passed his "Baccalauréat". People abroad are likely to look totally puzzled when seeing that word which, to a British man, is all Greek as he is more familiar with "A. levels", while the Germans will speak of "Die Habitur". Of course all those exams have their own specificities and even if they are all school leaving certificates, their requirements and their contents are all different. The question whether the Bac or other diplomas should be valid everywhere in Europe is therefore very relevant since if they were, all French students would be entitled to study or to work abroad far more easily! It would make working in foreign countries a real opportunity. It would also urge young people to feel more European and slightly erase the barriers between our countries especially the language ones! However would French patients accept to undergo an operation in France from a young Swedish doctor knowing that he has not been trained in French universities of medicine?That's a real question too! 

Tell me what do you think about this and give me your opinion ! 

05:47 PM May 27 2010 |

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seagull2010

Russian Federation

Russian students used to get good higher education lots of years ago, but their diplomas were recognized oficially to be invalid.

The substance is more important than the form.

06:19 PM May 27 2010 |

chocolate_wonder

United States

I think that they should be valid, at least throughout europe. wasn't that the whole point of creating the Union? 

02:14 PM May 29 2010 |

Estelleh

Estelleh

France

@Chocholate_wonder : You're right, but what about the fact that each country has a different education system ? Each country has his own history, and students don't learn the same things, so what about this point?

08:31 PM May 30 2010 |

tiffintime

tiffintime

Sri Lanka

I'm rather surprised at your question as to whether French diplomas are recognized or not anywhere else in Europe. I would have thought that the Sorbonne is as famous as Cambridge or Oxford. But what seems to be the common qualification in the Anglo-Saxon based countries is usually a "degree", and not a "diploma".

Anyway, for somebody who is probably good in Mandarin and French, your English is pretty good. So cheer up, I think you should not have any difficulty in finding opportunities to study or work in any other part of the world. 

07:14 AM May 31 2010 |

Estelleh

Estelleh

France

@tiffintime : Thank you ! I don't think that my english is as good as you say. I try to do my best to speak english fluently. This post permit to communicate with people from all over the world and so, an opportunity to write in english as well.
You must be right concerning the common qualification in the Anglo-Saxon. As I'm french, I have, depending on the schools, to sit the TOEFL or ERASMUS in order to be in an english school.
I speak french fluently and cantonese. I've learned mandarin since I was 8. So, I have to improve it again, again and again. Thank you for sharing your opinion.

03:30 PM May 31 2010 |

tiffintime

tiffintime

Sri Lanka

Good luck (bonne chance!) for your exams. I had never heard about ERASMUS till now, but from the bit of snooping around I did, it's apparently a Europe-centric examination. But then there is also IELTS. TOEFL is usually required for American universities.

By the way, you need to be more careful about your English spellings if you want to sit for any examinations. In English, we always write "English", "French", "Cantonese', etc. with a capital letter as they are considered as "proper nouns". In French, on the other hand, we would normally have to write "anglais", "francais" etc. Frown

07:45 AM Jun 01 2010 |

Estelleh

Estelleh

France

@Tiffintime : Thank you for correcting my mistakes in English! "C'est en faisant des erreurs que l'on apprend", I'm sure you will understand this. I will try not to repeat the same mistake :D. Do you speak French? 

05:32 PM Jun 01 2010 |

tiffintime

tiffintime

Sri Lanka

My French is not very good, but I like to improve on it – especially my spoken French. But I understand what you have written above; it roughly translates to: We learn from our mistakes. Cool

05:14 AM Jun 02 2010 |