Everyone Knows About French Now. That’s the Problem

My First TEF Class Cost $10

Ten dollars. That is what my very first TEF class cost.

It was not a discount. Almost nobody believed back then that learning French could actually get you Canadian PR.

I would explain the pathway, tell people it often cost far less than the student visa route, and still hear the same reaction: "Really? French can do that?"

Some students asked me why nobody had told them this before. That stayed with me.

French is no longer a hidden pathway.
It has become an industry.

Classes now run anywhere from CAD 25 to CAD 60 an hour, with institutes, crash courses, recorded programs, and three-month and six-month promises everywhere you look.

CAD 25 — CAD 60

Per Hour, And Rising

Much of that growth is good. More people know about French, and more students have real access to teachers.

But more choice creates a new problem.

How does a student know what is actually worth paying for?

TEF and TCF students are not ordinary language learners. Many are working against expiring permits, CRS pressure, and major life decisions. When the stakes are that high, people do not always choose rationally. They choose whoever offers the most hope.

"You are starting from zero. Give it eight or nine months."

"Three months. CLB 7."

Which one sounds better when your time feels like it is running out?

Years ago, students had an awareness problem. Today, they have a discernment problem. They know French has value. They just do not always know how to judge the value of the course or promise sitting in front of them.

✕ A higher price does not mean better teaching.

✕ A cheaper class is not automatically a bargain.

✕ A large following does not guarantee results.

✕ A confident timeline does not make it a realistic one.

When I charged $10, students did not know the value of what they were buying. Today, students know the value of French, but not always the value of what they are buying.

So the real question is no longer just, can French help me? We already know it can. The bigger question is this:

"When someone is selling you the future you want, are they handing you a roadmap, or are they simply selling you hope?"

In the News

IRCC's latest French language draw on July 22 issued 5,000 invitations at a CRS cutoff of 399, down sharply from 420 on July 9.

If your score has been sitting just under a recent cutoff, this is exactly the kind of dip that rewards patience.

If you are stuck somewhere in your journey and would like to talk it through, I'm happy to chat.

Talk to Ankita

✦ This Week's Practical Tip

If you are early in your French journey, do not wait to feel ready before you start speaking.

Pick one small habit. Every morning, before you check your phone, say one sentence out loud in French about your day.

Small and daily beats big and occasional every time.

Whenever you are ready for the kind of attention a big classroom can never give you, you know where to find us.

He was running on 1% battery. I was running on 100% mom photographer mode. 📷😂

You are not behind. You are just getting started.

Ankita

Learn French With Anks

Everyone Knows About French Now. That’s the Problem

✦ This Week's Practical Tip

I want to share something with y’all

I wasted a year learning the wrong French

the hardest part of Canada PR isn’t the TEF exam