Alliance Française in Hong Kong — Diplomas and certificates

Alliance Française de Hong Kong is an official examination centre. Its courses lead to the following certificates and diplomas offered by:

ALLIANCE FRANÇAISE DE PARIS

The diplomas issued by Alliance Française de Paris are certified by the French Ministry of Education and are of the European ALTE (Association of Language Tester in Europe) standard.

Diplôme de Langue Française
Diplôme Supérieur d’Études Françaises Modernes
Certificat Pratique de Traduction

THE PARIS CHAMBER OF COMMERCE AND INDUSTRY (CCIP)

CENTRE INTERNATIONAL D'ETUDES PEDAGOGIQUES
(CIEP/FRENCH MINISTRY OF EDUCATION)

DELF/DALF (for more information, see official website)
TCF (Test de Connaissance du Français) (visit official website)

TCF
(Test de Connaissance du Français)
A Public examination recognised by Continuing Education Fund
for Reimbursable French

The TCF evaluates general French language proficiency levels for people whose native language is not French and people wishing, for professional or personal reasons, to validate their knowledge in French in a simple, fast and reliable way. They obtain some sort of linguistic photography of their level in French at the time the test is taken. The Certificate of Achievement is valid for 2 years. It does not require specific study.

The TCF is a multiple-choice test that consists of 80 items divided into 3 sections:

listening (30 items, 25mn)
grammatical structures (20 items, 20mn)
reading (30 items, 45mn)

All papers are scored in France (CIEP), the answers being read by an optical scanner.The TCF also offers 2 optional tests assessing speaking (a 15' recorded test) and writing (a 1:45' test) skills.

The marks for both oral and written tests are given according to a standardized scale of marking.

The TCF, along with the 2 optional tests, may, under certain conditions, allow direct access to the DELF 2 or the DALF:

For direct access to the DELF 2, one should be positioned at least on the 3rd level (Intermediate) of the TCF and obtain at least a 12/20 mark on each of the written and oral tests.
For direct access to the DALF, one should be positioned at least on the 4th level (intermediate – advanced) and obtain at least a 16/20 mark on each of the written and oral tests.

The TCF allows positioning of candidates on the 6 level scale established by the Council of Europe.

Level 1 – Elementary level: Limited ability. Can understand simple information encountered in everyday situations. Can communicate in a simple way provided the other person talks slowly.
Level 2- Upper elementary level: Basic ability. Can understand sentences on familiar matters. Can communicate in routine situations and describe topics of personal interest in simple terms.
Level 3 – Intermediate level: Limited but effective command of the language. Can understand the main points of clear standard input on familiar matters. Can deal with situations likely to arise while travelling. Can talk about topics of personal interest and briefly explain opinions and plans.
Level 4 – Upper intermediate level: Generally effective and spontaneous command of the language. Can understand the main ideas of complex texts. Can take part in conversations and give the advantages and disadvantages of general or professional matters in a clear and detailed way.
Level 5 – Advanced level: Good operational command of the language. Can understand a wide range of long and demanding texts and can recognize implicit meaning. Can express himself/herself fluently in a well-structured way on his/her social, professional or academic life and on complex topics.
Level 6 – Upper advanced level: Full operational command of the language. Can easily understand almost everything heard or read and can summarise everything in a coherent way. Can express himself/herself very fluently and can adapt his / her expression appropriately to the situation, even on complex topics. Can recognize subtle distinctions of meaning.

Test Sessions 2010
26 March 2010 - 9:30 am	Registration: 1 - 27 February 2010
25 June 2010 - 9:30 am	Registration: 3 - 29 May 2010
30 September 2010 - 9:30 am	Registration: 2 - 28 August 2010
26 November 2010 - 9:30 am	Registration: 4 - 30 October 2010

TCF test fees:
　　TCF (alone): HK$700,
　　Oral test: HK$390, Written test: HK$390

Note: As of September 2003, the CIEP require that each session of TCF must have a minimum of 10 applicants before the test can take place.

Download registration form

TCF- DAP test fee:

Test Session 2010
	Registration:

DELF/DALF
Public examinations recognised by Continuing Education Fund
for Reimbursable French

DELF-DALF : new formula (from 1st September 2005)

• The DELF (Diplôme d'études en langue française) and DALF (Diplôme approfondi en langue française) diplomas are awarded by the French Education Ministry as official certificates of French Language ability for non-native speakers.
Those certificates are now harmonized with the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages from the Council of Europe.

Website : www.ciep.fr/delfdalf/index.htm

Automatic correspondence between the old and the new DELF / DALF
• Any certificate acquired before 1 September 2005 remain valid. The holder is entitled to a certificate based on a table of equivalence established by the National Commission of the DELF and the DALF.

Conditions for registering and sitting the exam
• Registration takes place at the exam centres.
• Candidates may sit the 6 exams in the same country or in different countries.
• The 6 certificates are available for all-non French citizens who wish to prove their French language skills.
• Candidates can apply to several exams at the same time

DELF A1	Between 60 to 100 hrs of French*	Basic user
DELF A2	Between 160 to 220 hrs of French*	Basic user
DELF B1	Between 360 to 420 hrs of French*	Independent user
DELF B2	Between 560 to 670 hrs of French*	Independent user
DALF C1	Between 810 to 970 hrs of French*	Proficient user
DALF C2	From 1060 hrs up of French*	Proficient user

* These number of hours of studying French are just an average.

• Each certificate now corresponds to one of the 6 levels of the Common European Framework of Reference forLanguages from the Council of Europe. Oral / written production and reception are now tested at all levels.
6 independant diplomas

What's new ?
• The unit credit scheme has disappeared.
• Candidates can sit the exam(s) at any level without placement tests.

DELF / DALF Adulte
2010 January Session Examination Dates: 25 January - 3 February Registration: 14 Dec. 2009 - 08 Jan. 2010	25 January	A1	Ecrit = 10:00 am - 11:30 am Oral = 2:00 pm —>	Examination fees: DELF Adulte - A1, A2 : HK$550 DELF Adulte - B1, B2 : HK$600 DALF Adulte - C1, C2 : HK$1,100
	26 January	A2	Ecrit = 10:00 am - 11:40 am Oral = 2:00 pm —>
	28 January	B1	Ecrit = 10:00 am - 11:45 am Oral = 2:00 pm—>
	29 January	B1	Oral = 9h00 à 12h00 Oral = 14h00 à 18h00
	1 February	B2	Ecrit = 9:30 am - 12 noon Oral = 2:00 pm —>
	2 February	C1	Ecrit = 9:00 am - 1:00 pm Oral = 2:30 pm —>
	3 February	C2	Ecrit = 9:00 am - 1:00 pm Oral = 2:30 pm —>

DELF Junior (8 to 17 years old)
2010 April Session Examination Dates: 21- 29 April Registration: 1 - 26 March	21 April	A1 A2	Ecrit = 10:00 am - 11:30 am Ecrit = 2:00 pm - 3:40 pm	Examination fees: DELF Junior - A1, A2 : HK$550 DELF Junior - B1, B2 : HK$600
	22 April	A1	Oral = 10:00 am ─>
	23 April	A2	Oral = 10:00 am ─>
	26 April	B1 B2	Ecrit = 10:00 am - 11:45 am Ecrit = 2:00 pm - 4:30 pm
	27 April	B1	Oral = 10:00 am ─>
	28 April	B2	10:00 am ─>

DELF / DALF Adulte
2010 May Session Examination Dates: 24 May to 4 June Registration: 19 April - 8 May	24 May	A1	Oral = 9:30 am—>	Examination fees: DELF Adulte - A1, A2 : HK$550 DELF Adulte - B1, B2 : HK$600 DALF Adulte - C1, C2 : HK$1,100
	25 May	A1 A2	Ecrit = 10:00 am - 11:30 am Ecrit = 2:00 pm - 3:40 pm
	26 May	A2	Oral = 9:30 am—>
	27 May	B1	Oral = 9:30 am - 3:00 pm Ecrit = 3:30 pm - 5:15 pm
	28 May	B2	Oral = 9:30 am - 2:30 pm Ecrit = 3:00 pm - 5:30 pm
	31 May	C1	Ecrit = 9:30 am - 1:30 pm
	1 June	C1	Oral = 9:30 am—>
	2 June	C2	Ecrit = 9:30 am - 1:00 pm
	3 June	C2	Oral = 9:30 am—>

Download registration form