This foundation year prepares students from non-French-speaking countries for university in France. Over 600 hours you reach B2 — the level French universities ask for — and you sit the DELF...
This foundation year prepares students from non-French-speaking countries for university in France. Over 600 hours you reach B2 — the level French universities ask for — and you sit the DELF B2, the French State diploma awarded by France Éducation international and recognised by universities and employers worldwide. Alongside the language, you build the study habits the French education system expects.
International students will develop and refine the academic skills necessary to succeed in the French education system. They will learn French up to the level required for admission to a French university and will take the DELF test for the B2 level. By the end of the program, students will be prepared to pursue higher studies at a French university and will have achieved the fluency necessary to succeed in their studies.
Additionally, Our foundation program will equip students with the skills necessary to integrate into French social life more smoothly and to find part-time employment more easily. Upon completion of the program, students will have a distinct advantage over other international students from non-French speaking countries when seeking internships or jobs.
Additionally, our foundation program will significantly reduce the cost of studying in France for students from non-French speaking countries. With our foundation program, students will have the opportunity to participate in a work-study program, known as Alternance, once they are comfortable in French, from their second year at university. This allows them to earn a salary while continuing their studies, without needing to pay any tuition fees.
The programme is 600 hours long and runs over 31 weeks, starting on 4 January 2027 and finishing in mid-August. Classes are held 20 hours per week, Monday to Friday, four hours a day. There are two holiday weeks, one at Easter and one at Ascension. Each class will consist of 5 - 12 students. Three Saturdays during the programme are teaching days spent outside the classroom: guided visits to cultural and historic sites, led by your teacher, with the language work that goes with them. They are part of the 600 hours. Tuition for the full 600-hour programme is €7,200. The DELF B2 exam fee of €150 is not included and is paid separately.
Attendance and punctuality will be important. Students who successfully pass the exam will receive a DELF B2 certificate by the end of the programme.
Centre Zenith holds the Label Qualité FLE and is an official DELF–DALF exam centre, so you prepare for your exam and sit it with us.
Apply online — there is no application fee. Applications for the intake of 4 January 2027 close on 31 October 2026.
The exam fee is paid separately, later on, when you register for a session.
If your visa is refused, we refund everything you have paid — in full. Send us the consulate’s written refusal whenever you receive it — there is no deadline on your side — and we refund you within 30 days: the deposit, the balance, and the exam fee if you have already paid it. We keep nothing.
Bank transfer charges are paid by the student, in both directions: please send payments with the charges settled at your end, so that the full amount reaches us.
France is known for offering one of the best work-life balances, a rich historical patrimony and cultural life, stunning architecture, world-renowned gastronomy, an excellent road and public transport system, quality public healthcare and schooling, and a vibrant nightlife with a young population. These features all contribute to the fulfilling and enriching life experience that France has to offer.
France’s world-renowned education system offers advanced technical and managerial studies, attracting international students globally as one of the top four study destinations.
Students benefit from subsidised rates for rent, food and travel, allowing them to fully explore life as a young person in France.
Students can work up to 964 hours per year, enabling them to finance a large part of their life here, if not all of it, themselves.
This foundation year at Centre Zenith is designed to prepare you to pursue higher education at French universities, while also helping you achieve a B2 level in French that will enhance your career prospects and social life in France.
Finding accommodation and a part-time job are two of the hardest things an international student faces here. We help you with both: we explain how the search works in France, we go over your applications with you, and we point you to the channels that actually work. The search stays yours — we cannot promise a result — but you will not be doing it blind.
FOUNDATION YEAR IN FRENCH FOR UNIVERSITY
