What French level do I need to start the Higher Diploma in French Language Studies?

We expect upper-intermediate (CEFR B2) as the working entry point. Applicants without a current certification confirm their level at interview. The Higher Diploma in French Language Studies takes you toward the C1-to-C2 transition over the course of the year.

Does the Higher Diploma in French Language Studies cover francophone Africa?

Yes. Current-affairs seminars cover Senegal, Côte d'Ivoire, the wider francophone West Africa, the Maghreb and francophone Central Africa, alongside metropolitan France, Belgium, Switzerland and Quebec. The Higher Diploma in French Language Studies treats the francophone world as a single linguistic conversation.

Can I take the Higher Diploma in French Language Studies online?

Yes. The online route mirrors the on-campus syllabus with live tutor sessions, recorded translation workshops and structured speaking practice in small groups. Distance learners follow the same outcomes with milestone-based deadlines.

Will the Higher Diploma in French Language Studies lead to CIOL registration?

The course is aligned with CIOL standards and is excellent preparation for the CIOL Diploma in Translation. CIOL membership and registration are administered by the institute itself; many of our Higher Diploma in French Language Studies graduates progress to CIOL credentials within a year.

How does credit transfer from the Higher Diploma in French Language Studies work?

Graduates can apply for direct entry into the final year (Level 6) of a UK BA in French or related discipline at LSJHML or a partner university. Admissions reviews your transcript and maps credits at the application stage.

Higher Diploma in French Language Studies | LSJHML | Harold International College of London

Course Overview

The Higher Diploma in French Language Studies at the London School of Journalism, Humanities & Modern Languages (LSJHML) is a fifteen-to-eighteen-month UK qualification that takes upper-intermediate French to a confident advanced working level — the point at which an Élysée correspondent, a Brussels-based UK firm or a postgraduate translation programme would treat you as a serious user of the language. The Higher Diploma covers metropolitan French and the francophone world beyond Paris.

The course is aligned with Alliance Française and Chartered Institute of Linguists standards and draws on Institute of Translation & Interpreting professional practice. By the end you will translate news, policy and short legal material between French and English to a working standard.

Key Features

CIOL- and Alliance-Française-aligned curriculum at the C1-to-C2 transition.
Translation laboratory covering news, policy, short legal and commercial texts in both directions.
Francophone current-affairs seminars — France, Belgium, Switzerland, Quebec, francophone Africa.
Specialist business and legal French modules at a working professional level.
ITI-aligned professional-practice module for students moving toward translation careers.
Direct top-up into the final year of a UK Bachelor's degree at LSJHML or a partner university.

What You Will Learn

The Higher Diploma in French Language Studies is structured around the working life of an advanced professional user of French. You graduate able to hold an extended conversation in French at near-native pace, translate substantive texts in both directions, and read across the francophone world with cultural literacy.

Advanced grammar and syntax — subjunctive, conditional, complex period.
Reading the French and francophone press — Le Monde, Le Figaro, Libération, Jeune Afrique.
Translation theory and practice — equivalence, register, the French-English asymmetries.
Specialist business French — meetings, contracts, regulatory correspondence.
Legal French at a working translator level — civil-code vocabulary, EU institutional French.
Composition — essays, briefings, summaries in French to an advanced standard.
Listening for advanced pace — broadcast news, panel discussions, recorded meetings.
Cross-cultural communication across the francophone world.

Who This Higher Diploma Is For

Advanced Diploma French graduates ready for a near-degree-level credential.
Heritage and bilingual French speakers wanting structured advanced training for professional use.
Working translators expanding their working pair or formalising their qualification.
Diplomatic, NGO and international-business professionals who need advanced French for francophone-facing roles.

Career Pathways

Graduates of the Higher Diploma in French Language Studies move into translation, francophone-facing professional and area-analyst roles across UK and international employers. Typical roles include:

French Translator (in-house or agency, with growing seniority)
Bilingual Editor (FR/EN — publisher, news agency)
French Teacher (with CIOL-registration and appropriate teaching qualification)
Localisation Specialist (technology firm, content agency)
Foreign Service Officer (France or francophone Africa desk)
EU-Facing Policy Researcher (think tank, professional body)

The Higher Diploma articulates directly into the final year of a UK BA in French or a related discipline.

Entry Requirements

An Advanced Diploma (Level 5) or equivalent in a related subject, OR a Diploma plus two years of relevant work experience.
Demonstrable upper-intermediate French (CEFR B2 equivalent) confirmed at interview.
IELTS 6.0 overall (no band below 5.5) for non-native English speakers.
Personal statement and CV.
Mature applicants (25+) without standard qualifications may apply with significant senior-track work experience.

Why Study at LSJHML

The London School of Journalism, Humanities & Modern Languages is a specialist higher-education provider based in central London. Our programmes are designed in dialogue with working professionals — journalists, translators, civil servants, academics, broadcasters, editors, publishers and policy researchers — so what you learn in seminar on Monday is what your future employer is using on Tuesday. We deliberately keep cohorts small, give every student named tutor support, and treat employability as a structural part of every programme rather than an optional add-on.

London is the work — politics, courts, capital markets, theatre, broadcasting, publishing, public service, the global press. Your studies are taught in the same square mile where the stories you read about happen. Whether you join us on-campus, online or by distance learning, the city is your classroom and our industry network is your launchpad.