French Integration Course

[Argenta Sugden]

Not only did my integration process take a long time, it is still not finished. Either I am extremely unlucky, or I just move too much. You decide. Below is an update about my integration process and my experience with the formation civique in 2021/22.

The last time I wrote about the integration process in 2020, I was waiting for my new convocations to my formation civique and to change over to the OFII of Eure-et-Loir. At this time, I already successfully renewed my visa to a carte de sjour.

The first two days of my formation civique took place in July of 2021. They did not take place at the OFII offices, but in an education center called INSTEP. It is important to note that the professors in the center are not affiliated with the OFII.

INSTEP is located near Chartres, in Mainvilliers, in the middle of an industrial zone in a nearly unmarked building. I feel so bad for those coming from outside of Chartres without a car. For instance, from where I live in the countryside to this place. For me, it would take three buses and two hours of travel time (and is worse during school vacation). I do not understand how there is not a more convenient location for those outside of Chartres.

We were about twelve and the courses were held from 9:15 to 4:30 with two 10-minute breaks. We also had 1 hour for lunch; the meal was a kebab (or vegetarian option) accompanied by a dessert and a drink. At this time, we were not allowed to eat inside due to COVID. You can bring your own meal if you wish, but the OFII pays for your meal each of the four days.

Overall, it reminded me of high school, with the people who genuinely did not want to be there. This is a shame because people did not take the class seriously even though it is something quite important.

Although I feel the parts including the values of the republic, geography and history of France were valid, it was much too late in our first year of the visa. We have accomplished most of these steps already. I feel as though most people in the class had already been in France for some time. We all would have benefited from this much earlier in the process. As well, I personally would prefer to cover each topic separately, dividing each theme into the four days.

This part focuses on four main themes concerning healthcare, employment, housing and parenting. I imagined one day per theme, hence four days of courses. I was wrong; as previously stated, they were all mixed together.

Housing in France is tricky. We learned about what is illegal, how much you should be paying for housing (1/3 of your salary) as well as how to get access to housing. This is a vicious circle as you need a job (typically a CDI) to rent as well as a deposit (and sometimes a guarantor) and, of course, a bank account- which you need an address to open.

As well, the attestations of presence you receive at the end of each class are essential to finish your CIR. You cannot receive your next carte de sjour without them. Therefore, this hinders you in your pursuit of French nationality (if you choose to do so).

The topics discussed in the French history and culture section are especially important if you want to obtain naturalization by decree or nationality by marriage. During this process, you undergo an interview in which they will ask questions pertaining to this section. Again, all of the information is available in the Livret du Citoyen (in French).

You attend an integration programme when it is convenient for you within the deadline for programme completion. You can choose the timetable that is most convenient for you, during the day or evening, depending on the course times available.

Stage one is the initial reception. You will be welcomed individually by a member of staff who will issue you with a certificate of registration. During this first stage you will be given:

You will then receive an initial stage one certificate of attendance attendance and you will be asked to sign an agreement that sets out your support and training needs.

As part of the OFII (French Immigration and Integration Office) public contract, International House Nice teaches foreigners who do not master the French language. We provide French as a language for integration (FLI) courses enabling learners to master French in their everyday life. We offer courses for levels A1 to B1 of the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR).

When the CIR is signed at the OFII, the public takes a placement test in oral and written French. Depending on the result obtained, the applicant is given a summons to follow either a compulsory course (A1) or an optional (A2 / B1) course.

My interactions with OFII have spanned over the course of two years due to my change of status, but most people will only deal with OFII in their first year. For example, if you arrived on the spouse (vie prive et familiale) visa, you would fulfill all obligations in your first year (medical exam, integration contract, language test and French classes if needed, and civics classes).

After passing through a security metal detector, I was directed down the hall to a large room with awkward full length mirrors along one wall. (Who is in charge of the decorating, honestly?!) When I entered the room, my convocation and ID were checked again, and everyone who was in line before me was sitting and waiting. It took 15 minutes for everyone to enter the building and go through security. At 1:30PM, I took my seat.

We waited a bit longer and then they started sending people up to the second floor in groups of four and five. They worked from the front of the room to the back corner, where I was sitting since I arrived last. I was in the final group to be moved upstairs.

We entered another room where the convocation and ID were checked AGAIN. (Could this process be any more inefficient?) At this stage, my name was highlighted on a sheet which verified if we were actually supposed to be there. The woman checking us in asked if I had been to OFII previously to sign the contract, if I had attended a French university, and a few other basic questions before directing me to sit in the next room. There were 25 of us in a classroom. It was not the most Covid-respectful situation.

A man explained in French what we were going to do and gave instructions for each part of the test. He spoke slowly and very clearly. At no point in time did I hear anyone from OFII speak in English, although it was obvious that not everyone in the classroom knew what was going on and some people probably would have benefited from instructions in English or another language.

You have 20 minutes to finish the test which consists of about five or six progressively difficult exercises. There are a variety of exercises: fill in the blank, multiple choice, short readings, and written responses. The tasks are fairly realistic and authentic. For example, one of the exercises was to look at a job announcement from the Unemployment Office website and answer multiple choice questions about the job offer.

If, however, you have any questions, this is the time to ask them. They are there to help and provide you with resources and information that are relevant to your situation. This interview is meant to last 15-20 minutes.

During the interview, you will find out if you will be required to take French classes. The need for French classes is determined based on your written score combined with your interview, which is essentially an oral exam. You may have passed the written test, but are unable to prove a sufficient level during the interview.

If you are in need of French classes (une formation linguistique), you will meet with someone after your interview to discuss the requirements and how they are set up. Classes are obligatory but free if you have not attained level A1. On the other hand, if you passed the test, a certificate indicating that you met level A1 will be mailed to you.

The first two classes are a couple of weeks apart and the next two are a month or so later. You receive the date for the third class after completion of the second class and you receive the date for the fourth class after completion of the third class.

There are four separate days of civics training (la formation civique). In general, you will learn about the values of the Republic and get an overview of helpful resources and associations, as well as, learn about certain administrative procedures.

I arrived about 15 minutes before the class. French administrative buildings can be kind of hard to find and navigate so I wanted to make sure I had plenty of time. At the check in, I had to show my convocation form and ID. In class, the teacher did a roll call, collected our convocations, and we had to sign a sheet indicating our presence, once in the morning and a second time in the afternoon.

The rest of the time consisted of zipping through a powerpoint presentation. We covered several broad themes: geography, French history, healthcare, employment, parenting, and housing. It was more of an overview of resources and procedures without many details. If you have any specific questions about certain administrative procedures, be sure to ask them.

The first two classes were in the same building with the same teacher. On the third day, we met in a different building and had a different teacher, organized through AFCI (Agence de Formation et de Conseil en Insertion). My classmates were mostly the same people who came to the first two sessions. This teacher was very structured and organized which I appreciated. There was not much downtime during the class, as she had tons of information to share with us. However, she did give us a morning break, an hour-long lunch, and an afternoon break.

I would have loved to sign up for the cooking class, but there were only six spots. We were called in alphabetical order to introduce ourselves to the class and to choose our atelier. I missed out by just a couple of names so I ended up picking the culture workshop. The workshops were on different days, but all the dates were about a month in the future.

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