For those of you who want to gain those additional juicy 50 points for French language skills, I would like to share my experience with you as I went through this journey recently. Often people wonder whether they should go for TEF Canada or TCF Canada. Since I went through both exams, I think I can offer my opinion. Obviously if you’re weak in French, then both exams will be difficult for you but I would like to give my opinion nonetheless. Let’s start with my overall perception of two exams.
I did TEF Canada and then TCF Canada. In general, I found that TEF was much more difficult for reading and writing whereas TCF Canada can be difficult for those who are weak in listening. In my TEF exam I got a B1 in writing C1 in speaking, C1 in listening and inferior B2 in reading. This implied that since I got an inferior B2 and B1, I would not get additional 50 points for FSW.
Then I looked at the methodology of TCF and I found that it is a tiny bit similar to DELF. In fact, it is organized by the same company that conducts DELF examinations. Therefore, if you’re someone who learned French the traditional way (doing DELF and then preparing for your immigration exams), you will find that TCF Canada might be a little bit more suited to you since there is lot of focus on the methodology. Also, one very important thing: TCF Canada does not have a B2 inferior. This means that if you get a B2 in TCF Canada, let’s say for example by scoring 10/20, you will still get your 50 points. Whereas in TEF there is a B2 inferior (0 points) and then B2 superior (50 points).
Now let’s look at the individual parts of the two tests:
Writing part
I find that the writing part for TEF was particularly hard. In the first task, you’re supposed to write a “fait divers”, and for those of you who do not know- a fait divers is a type of story that often appears in the newspapers in France- they’re supposed to be a bit controversial and at times provocative. This task requires a certain level of creativity and a good level of vocabulary at the same time. I found it particularly hard because I was not able to properly translate my ideas into French. The second part is a formal letter (often to an editor of a magazine). This task is much easier and if you learn the methodology then you can write a good letter.
In my case I think I messed up big time in the first part and hence my grade was only a B1.
In TCF, you have three different tasks. One short letter, one blog post or a slightly longer letter and then for the third task, you have to make a resume of two documents and express your point of view on it. Even though it might sound a bit complicated, I personally believe that it is a bit easier because they’re not asking you to do something very different or out of your comfort range. Therefore, if you practice then you should be able to get a B2 level.
Speaking
In TEF, the speaking part is slightly easy, you only have two tasks. You have to do a roleplay in both of the tasks and if you can have a conversation in French, then you can easily get a B2.
In TCF, you have three tasks and the first task is ALWAYS the same. It’s basically presenting yourself. So, if you can prepare yourself in advance for that task, you can start off really well. The second task is a roleplay and unlike TEF, you get 2 minutes to prepare for the roleplay so you can quickly jot down all the questions that you may ask. The third task is a bit complicated because you have to speak on a subject or a statement for more than 4 minutes WITHOUT any preparations. However, if you do well in your first two tasks and mess up a bit in the third one, you’d still get your B2.
Listening
There is not much difference in the two exams. In this one, I would say TEF is slightly easier because they allow you to read the questions for a bit before the recordings start. In TCF, they just line up one after another with almost no time to read the multiple-choice answers. Although if you are someone who listens to French radio and practices, you should be fine.
Reading
This is where TCF Canada is clearly and undeniably easier than TEF Canada. First of all, you have 39 questions in 60 minutes. In TEF you have 50 questions in 60 minutes. One of the main reasons I personally performed so poorly in this section when I did TEF was the time limit.
In TEF, the first 10-15 questions are relatively easy and then the difficulty immediately increases where you have extremely long and very complicated articles from French literature. Once you get through those, then it becomes easy again. So basically, the first 10-20 questions are easy, the next 20-35 questions are extremely hard and long and then the last 15 questions become easy again.
I was scratching my head thinking who was the person responsible for creating this part of the TEF Canada. Overall, it is a massive time game and to finish all questions on time, you will have to rush through the easy questions like crazy.
In TCF, the questions get progressively difficult and yet I found that although they did become quite hard towards the end, they were not quite as challenging as the questions in TEF. Not to mention that I still had 15 minutes left after I completed all the questions and I was able to revise some other difficult questions in my spare time.
Conclusion
Obviously, everyone has an opinion but for me personally- I found that TCF Canada was much more practical and if I may say- easier. In TCF Canada, I scored a C1 in listening and reading and B2 in writing and speaking. After I finished TEF and got an unsatisfactory score, I was quite worried that I will potentially need to spend many more months to get a decent score to get over the reading and the writing hurdle.
However, when I got to know more about TCF Canada, I felt that it was something doable with my current level and although I did practice to hone up my skills, I did not feel like it was a massive challenge. For your information, I’ve been learning French in the last 3 years.
At the end, I must say that TCF Canada does not get a lot of publicity and there were less resources available online to prepare for it. However, for myself, I found clear advantages in regards to TCF Canada over TEF Canada.
Disclaimer: your opinion may be completely different and I respect that.
I wrote this article post because even though I often see some questions here and there on this form about this subject, there is rarely ever a through perspective on the two exams. As someone who went through both exams, I feel like I am qualified to opine on the advantages and the problems that one may face. Obviously, I hope that you will do your own research and due diligence before reserving any exams but if my post can give you some insights then I’d be happy.
Please feel free to like and share this post with your friends if you found it helpful! Good luck getting your bonus points!
I did TEF Canada and then TCF Canada. In general, I found that TEF was much more difficult for reading and writing whereas TCF Canada can be difficult for those who are weak in listening. In my TEF exam I got a B1 in writing C1 in speaking, C1 in listening and inferior B2 in reading. This implied that since I got an inferior B2 and B1, I would not get additional 50 points for FSW.
Then I looked at the methodology of TCF and I found that it is a tiny bit similar to DELF. In fact, it is organized by the same company that conducts DELF examinations. Therefore, if you’re someone who learned French the traditional way (doing DELF and then preparing for your immigration exams), you will find that TCF Canada might be a little bit more suited to you since there is lot of focus on the methodology. Also, one very important thing: TCF Canada does not have a B2 inferior. This means that if you get a B2 in TCF Canada, let’s say for example by scoring 10/20, you will still get your 50 points. Whereas in TEF there is a B2 inferior (0 points) and then B2 superior (50 points).
Now let’s look at the individual parts of the two tests:
Writing part
I find that the writing part for TEF was particularly hard. In the first task, you’re supposed to write a “fait divers”, and for those of you who do not know- a fait divers is a type of story that often appears in the newspapers in France- they’re supposed to be a bit controversial and at times provocative. This task requires a certain level of creativity and a good level of vocabulary at the same time. I found it particularly hard because I was not able to properly translate my ideas into French. The second part is a formal letter (often to an editor of a magazine). This task is much easier and if you learn the methodology then you can write a good letter.
In my case I think I messed up big time in the first part and hence my grade was only a B1.
In TCF, you have three different tasks. One short letter, one blog post or a slightly longer letter and then for the third task, you have to make a resume of two documents and express your point of view on it. Even though it might sound a bit complicated, I personally believe that it is a bit easier because they’re not asking you to do something very different or out of your comfort range. Therefore, if you practice then you should be able to get a B2 level.
Speaking
In TEF, the speaking part is slightly easy, you only have two tasks. You have to do a roleplay in both of the tasks and if you can have a conversation in French, then you can easily get a B2.
In TCF, you have three tasks and the first task is ALWAYS the same. It’s basically presenting yourself. So, if you can prepare yourself in advance for that task, you can start off really well. The second task is a roleplay and unlike TEF, you get 2 minutes to prepare for the roleplay so you can quickly jot down all the questions that you may ask. The third task is a bit complicated because you have to speak on a subject or a statement for more than 4 minutes WITHOUT any preparations. However, if you do well in your first two tasks and mess up a bit in the third one, you’d still get your B2.
Listening
There is not much difference in the two exams. In this one, I would say TEF is slightly easier because they allow you to read the questions for a bit before the recordings start. In TCF, they just line up one after another with almost no time to read the multiple-choice answers. Although if you are someone who listens to French radio and practices, you should be fine.
Reading
This is where TCF Canada is clearly and undeniably easier than TEF Canada. First of all, you have 39 questions in 60 minutes. In TEF you have 50 questions in 60 minutes. One of the main reasons I personally performed so poorly in this section when I did TEF was the time limit.
In TEF, the first 10-15 questions are relatively easy and then the difficulty immediately increases where you have extremely long and very complicated articles from French literature. Once you get through those, then it becomes easy again. So basically, the first 10-20 questions are easy, the next 20-35 questions are extremely hard and long and then the last 15 questions become easy again.
I was scratching my head thinking who was the person responsible for creating this part of the TEF Canada. Overall, it is a massive time game and to finish all questions on time, you will have to rush through the easy questions like crazy.
In TCF, the questions get progressively difficult and yet I found that although they did become quite hard towards the end, they were not quite as challenging as the questions in TEF. Not to mention that I still had 15 minutes left after I completed all the questions and I was able to revise some other difficult questions in my spare time.
Conclusion
Obviously, everyone has an opinion but for me personally- I found that TCF Canada was much more practical and if I may say- easier. In TCF Canada, I scored a C1 in listening and reading and B2 in writing and speaking. After I finished TEF and got an unsatisfactory score, I was quite worried that I will potentially need to spend many more months to get a decent score to get over the reading and the writing hurdle.
However, when I got to know more about TCF Canada, I felt that it was something doable with my current level and although I did practice to hone up my skills, I did not feel like it was a massive challenge. For your information, I’ve been learning French in the last 3 years.
At the end, I must say that TCF Canada does not get a lot of publicity and there were less resources available online to prepare for it. However, for myself, I found clear advantages in regards to TCF Canada over TEF Canada.
Disclaimer: your opinion may be completely different and I respect that.
I wrote this article post because even though I often see some questions here and there on this form about this subject, there is rarely ever a through perspective on the two exams. As someone who went through both exams, I feel like I am qualified to opine on the advantages and the problems that one may face. Obviously, I hope that you will do your own research and due diligence before reserving any exams but if my post can give you some insights then I’d be happy.
Please feel free to like and share this post with your friends if you found it helpful! Good luck getting your bonus points!
