Score: Listening: C1 | Reading: C1 | Writing: B2 | Speaking: B2

Before commencing my French journey, I spent the first week skimming through Reddit posts to understand the complexity and feasibility of this journey. The forum has been very helpful and now it’s time to give back to the community!

Background:

• No prior exposure to French or any Romance language.
• No formal paid courses.
• Near-native proficiency in English.
• Dedicated 2-3 hours per day - every single day.
• Working full-time, with a very supportive family.

Journey:

Research Phase (Month 1)                                                                                                        

• Assessed the possibility of accomplishing B2 with limited time and budget.
• Explored several resources, shortlisted ones that would work for me. This took considerable time but was essential to avoid wasting time with resource hopping during the learning journey.
• Evaluated TEF Vs TCF and decided to target the TCF.

Foundation & Comprehension Phase (Months 2 – 5)

• Focused on developing comprehension skills and learning the language.
• Resources:
  • Busuu – To learn basics in a structured manner.
  • Anki – To jump-start vocab learning in the initial days. This was only needed until I learnt enough to start reading French content.
  • LingQ – To read stories and absorb the language naturally.
  • Others: Coffee Break French, Inner French, story books and grammar books.

Expression Phase (Month 6)

• It would have been good to start speaking/writing earlier, but I didn’t feel ready to express myself in French until this phase.
• Used ChatGPT to practice translation exercises, write simple sentences, and practice speaking.
• Continued immersion through podcasts and books.

Exam Preparation Phase (Months 7 – 10)

• Practiced with mock tests for Listening and Reading (F*ckTCF/FreeTCF).
• Found a native tutor on Preply to practice speaking twice a week. We practised recent EO topics from Reussir TCF.
• Practiced Writing mocks with ChatGPT and Gemini. AI tools were incredibly useful in Writing practice to identify and fix recurring grammar mistakes.

Overall, it was a challenging yet satisfying journey. Looking back, consistency played the biggest role in achieving the target. While the TCF chapter is closed now, I will continue integrating the language into my daily life.

For those of you wondering if achieving CLB 7 is possible without formal courses or a French background, I want to assure you that YES – it’s definitely possible! Bon courage to everyone on their journey!

Score: Listening: C1 | Reading: C1 | Writing: B2 | Speaking: B2

Before commencing my French journey, I spent the first week skimming through Reddit posts to understand the complexity and feasibility of this journey. The forum has been very helpful and now it’s time to give back to the community!

Background:

• No prior exposure to French or any Romance language.
• No formal paid courses.
• Near-native proficiency in English.
• Dedicated 2-3 hours per day - every single day.
• Working full-time, with a very supportive family.

Journey:

Research Phase (Month 1)                                                                                                        

• Assessed the possibility of accomplishing B2 with limited time and budget.
• Explored several resources, shortlisted ones that would work for me. This took considerable time but was essential to avoid wasting time with resource hopping during the learning journey.
• Evaluated TEF Vs TCF and decided to target the TCF.

Foundation & Comprehension Phase (Months 2 – 5)

• Focused on developing comprehension skills and learning the language.
• Resources:
  • Busuu – To learn basics in a structured manner.
  • Anki – To jump-start vocab learning in the initial days. This was only needed until I learnt enough to start reading French content.
  • LingQ – To read stories and absorb the language naturally.
  • Others: Coffee Break French, Inner French, story books and grammar books.

Expression Phase (Month 6)

• It would have been good to start speaking/writing earlier, but I didn’t feel ready to express myself in French until this phase.
• Used ChatGPT to practice translation exercises, write simple sentences, and practice speaking.
• Continued immersion through podcasts and books.

Exam Preparation Phase (Months 7 – 10)

• Practiced with mock tests for Listening and Reading (F*ckTCF/FreeTCF).
• Found a native tutor on Preply to practice speaking twice a week. We practised recent EO topics from Reussir TCF.
• Practiced Writing mocks with ChatGPT and Gemini. AI tools were incredibly useful in Writing practice to identify and fix recurring grammar mistakes.

Overall, it was a challenging yet satisfying journey. Looking back, consistency played the biggest role in achieving the target. While the TCF chapter is closed now, I will continue integrating the language into my daily life.

For those of you wondering if achieving CLB 7 is possible without formal courses or a French background, I want to assure you that YES – it’s definitely possible! Bon courage to everyone on their journey!