FRENCH AMERICAN
BACCALAUREAT
What is the French-American Baccalauréat (BFA)?
The French-American Baccalauréat is the synthesis of the best that American secondary education has to offer: the AP program (see further on “What is the Advanced Placement program”) , and the best the French school system has to offer: the Baccalauréat (see further on “What is the French Baccalauréat”) .
The College Board, the American organization recognized for the excellence of its tests and its Advanced Placement (AP) program, and theMinistry of National Education decided to collaborate as partners on this project.
The idea is the following: students who want to take the BFA have tobe enrolled in schools with a French program leading to the Baccalauréat in the United States. In première (11th grade) and terminale (12th grade), these students take 3 APs instead of the three corresponding French classes for theBaccalauréat.
AP classes are taken in these high schools, which offer this Baccalauréat, after acceptance of the syllabiby the College Board.
Students take the AP exams in May of their 11th or 12th grade, depending on the AP course, and sit the French Baccalauréat exams according to the normal calendar for the Baccalauréat.
What courses of study are offered?
Interested students have the possibility of taking one of the three following courses of study (Literature –L-, Economics –ES- or Science –S-), based on the selection available in their respective schools :
NB - Most of the exams are essays or problems solving.
BFA Exams - Series L (Literature)
Tests during the première(11th grade)French and literature - written - (weight3)
French and literature -oral- (weight2)
Scientific Instruction (weight 2)
Mathematics (weight 2)
Research & application tutorial (weight 2)
AP English Language (weight4)
Tests during the terminale (12th grade)
AP English Literature (weight 5)
Literature (weight 4)
AP History (US or European or World) (weight5)
Philosophy (weight 7)
Foreign Language (other than English or French) (weight 4)
Physical Education (weight 2)
Speciality Tests: English - oral supplement (weight 4)
BFA Exams - Series ES (Economics)
Tests during the première (11th grade)French Literature - written - (weight 2)
French Literature -oral- (weight 2)
Scientific instruction (weight 2)
Research & application tutorial (weight 2)
AP History (US or European or World) (weight5)
Tests during the terminale (12th grade)
Choice 1 / Choice 2
AP English Literature (weight 5)
Foreign Language (other than English or French) (weight 3)
Philosophy (weight 4)
Physical Education (weight 2)
AP Micro & AP Macro Economics (weight 7)
Mathematics ...... (weight 5)
Choice of Specialty Tests:
Foreign Language (other than English or French) (weight 2)
Mathematics (weight 2) / AP English Literature (weight 5)
Foreign Language (other than English or French) (weight 3)
Philosophy (weight 4)
Physical Education (weight 2)
AP Statistics (weight 5)
Economics (weight 7)
Choice of Speciality Tests:
Foreign Language (other than English or French) (2)
Economics (2)
BFA Exams - Series S
Tests during the première (11th grade)French Literature - written (weight 2)
French Literature -oral - (weight 2)
Research & application tutorial (weight 2)
AP History (US or European or World) (weight3)
Tests during the terminale (12th grade)
Choice 1 / Choice 2
AP English Literature (weight. 5)
Foreign Language (other than English or French) (weight 2)
Philosophy (weight 3)
Physical Education (weight 2)
AP Biology (weight 6)
Mathematics (weight 7)
Physics and Chemistry (weight 6)
Choice of Speciality Tests:
Mathematics (weight 2)
Physics and Chemistry (weight 2) / AP English Literature (weight 5)
Foreign Language (other than English or French) (weight 2)
Philosophy (weight 3)
Physical Education (weight 2)
AP Calculus AB (weight 7)
Biology (weight 6)
Physics-Chemistry (weight 6)
Choice of Speciality Tests:
Biology (weight 2)
Physics and Chemistry (weight 2)
What are the advantages of the French-American Bac?
-For students, studying for and passing the BFA means:
Having the guarantee of a general education of recognized excellence that is provided by the French Baccalauréat.
Earning the French Baccalauréat,thereby gaining access to university, in France and in Europe, as well as the possibility to apply for the selective French courses of study (such as the preparatory classes for grandes écoles). N.B.: The International Baccalaureate (IB) does not offer this possibility.
Experiencing instruction methods pertaining to American higher education since APs are college-level courses (offered in high schools), and thus being better prepared for American universitiesshould that be the candidate’s choice.
Recognizing an excellent mastery of the French language and culture as well as of the English language and American culture; and, at the same time, demonstrating true bi-cultural abilities, which is extremely important in an increasingly open world.
Accruing the possibility of academic course credit in English-speaking universities.
-For universities, accepting a student with a BFA means:
Being assured that the student was educated in schools which satisfy double requirements each year: those of American educational authorities and of the French Ministry of National Education.
Relying onreliable academic results, guaranteed by the French educational authorities and the requirements of the College Board.
Being certain that the student has a mastery of the English language and American culture and that s/he is ready to be competitive in college.
Recruiting a student who has proved to have an above-average ability to work because s/he will have already made the significant effort demanded by the two academic systems.
Choosing a student educated in the requirements of writing essays and problem solving, who will have already proved his or herability at analysis, synthesis and extrapolation; these skills are essential in the academic environment.
Diversifying the profiles of students present on campus by accepting a student with an international and multicultural background.
What is the Advanced Placement Program?
The Advanced Placement Programis a rigorous academic program designed to offer college-level courses to highly motivated secondary school students.
Created in 1955 by the College Board, the AP program is the result of cooperation between secondary schools and American universities.
Each year, secondary schools request authorization to offer AP courses in particular subjects to their students: the College Board, through the AP Audit process, ensures that the courses meet their standards before accepting the syllabus for each course.
The work load in AP courses is heavy and at the end of each academic year in May, students take rigorous examinations.
The scores that students achieve on the AP exams (evaluated on a scale between 1 and 5, with 5 being the highest possible score)reflect their degree of mastery of the subjects studied.
The AP is recognized as a criterion of excellence, and, in 2009,nearly 1.7million high school students from 16,500 high schools took 2.9 million AP examinations in 32 different academic subjects.
Most American universities will give students college credits and/or placement into advanced courses in consideration of qualifying scores on the relevant AP exam.
AP courses and exam scores are used by admission offices in some 600 universities in 56 countries.
For more information:
What is the French Baccalauréat?
The French Baccalauréat is a national diploma, which is the culmination of a pre-university-level program taken in secondary school.
It was created in 1808 and is administered and managed entirely by the French Ministry of Education. The Ministry defines the programs (curricula) and develops and administers the exam.The exam copies are corrected by teachers accredited by theMinistry of National Education, which thereby guarantees the reliability of the results achieved by the candidates.
The program ensures both a broad general cultural knowledgeby the number and variety of required subjects, and aspecialization in a particular subject. In the United States, French high schools prepare their students for the baccalauréat in the following series: L (languages and literature), ES (economic and social sciences) and S (mathematics and experimental sciences).
The preparation for this exam takes place during the last two years of secondary education (that is, the premièreand terminale in French terminology, or 11th and 12th grades in the American system). Students have to take exams at the end of each of these two academic years.
InFrance, the Baccalauréat is considered the first diploma in higher education and therefore it grants its holder the right to enter any French university.
Elsewhere, particularly in the United States, the exam is able to be used as a tool to precisely identify the value of candidates because of its rigor and grading system.
The academic schedule of secondary school students is very full: between 8 and 12 courses are taken per year, i.e. 32 to 40 hours of class per week.
TheBaccalauréat encourages the construction and demonstration of reasoning both in writing and orally.
All of the parts of the exam (which generally last 3-4 hours each) require an essay which allows the candidate to demonstrate his or her in-depth knowledge in the subject matter tested but also his or her skills in analysis, synthesis and extrapolation.
In France in 2007, 524,000 students passed the Baccalauréat. In the network of French schools throughout the world, more than10,000 students took the French Baccalauréat.
It is widely recognized throughout the world, including by numerous universities in North America.
For more information:
Click on the tab “exams offered in North America” on the site