What former students have to say about the French course:

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"When I began Celia Brickman's French Intensive course, I had no background in French, and I was under enormous pressure to pass the language exam for my PhD in English at the University of Chicago. Dr. Brickman's course was extraordinary in all respects, six weeks of rigor and enjoyment combined in a breathtakingly efficient program. I emerged with a "High Pass" on my exam and an extremely solid grasp of French grammar and syntax, which stood me in excellent stead some 14 years later when I lived in Paris for four months. As hundreds if not thousands of Dr. Brickman's former students can attest, this course delivers the goods, and it does so in a miraculously pleasurable way. Dr. Brickman is a fantastic teacher, engaging, acute, amusing, erudite, accessible, attuned to her students' strengths and weaknesses, excellent at fostering class community even as she marched us all toward our individual exams or goals. Indeed Dr. Brickman has created her own coursebook, an index of her pedagogical commitment and expertise. Having taken introductory courses in Spanish, Hebrew, and German, at Harvard and the University of Chicago (in addition to Dr. Brickman's French), I cannot recommend Dr. Brickman or her course more highly: it was by far the best, most successful language-learning experience I have had. After this course, many students find that not only have they aced their exams, they have made a friend."

Maureen McLane
Associate Professor of English
New York University

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"This is an ideal course for scholars learning how to read and translate French for academic research. The course provides a logical framework for understanding the written French language as a code that can be deciphered and understood. Dr. Brickman's course book is specially designed to avoid unnecessary detours into the spoken language. Instead, one efficiently but seriously concentrates one's memorization upon a limited menu of irregular verbs, verb forms, "false friends," and interesting features of French expression. At the end of the course, one is able to negotiate the French language as a serious scholar.

When I attended an orientation workshop for graduate work in biblical theology, faculty members advised us on how to fulfill a degree requirement that we show competence in translating three foreign languages. When it came to French, they made only one recommendation: take the Hyde Park Language Program's French course. I am happy I took that advice."

Gerald E. Nora

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"As one of those people that was not exposed to a foreign language at a young age, I have always found learning one a major challenge. The simple fact is that Celia Brickman's reading French course was the best and most effective encounter I have ever had with language learning. It lead to a high pass first time around and a genuine interest in the French language. Her teaching style is extremely effective and practical, and while I dreaded responding in class, it was a very satisfying and ultimately acculturating experience. When I have moved on to translating texts for my research, her materials have proved invaluable aids and I have developed a sense of competency that lets me tackle difficult texts. Taking her course is an exciting and intellectually stimulating way to acquire French."

W. Sterner
Conceptual and Historical Studies of Science
University of Chicago

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"I am happy to add my voice to a chorus of praise for Celia Brickman's intensive summer course in French for reading. From start to finish, the course is packed with precisely what you need to learn how to read French. I have had a lot of experience in working on languages (prior studies include several years of Greek, Latin, and German), and to date this was easily the most efficiently-run course I have taken. Dr. Brickman is serious and expects serious work, and she will get you precisely where you need to go - whether that means passing an intense reading exam or bettering your knowledge for research purposes. In addition to helping me pass a reading exam at Notre Dame, Dr. Brickman's course provided me with notes and a textbook that are still very useful as I use French for my research. I highly recommend the investment of your time and money in this course."

Kellen Plaxco
Ph. D. Student
Marquette University

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"After three unsuccessful attempts to high-pass the German language exam, I decided during the last quarter of my Master's program that I better switch gears and try the French exam. I had zero background in French and couldn't afford to miss again, so I took Celia's Brickman's prep course and, wahoo! I high-passed the French exam on the first try. She told me when I began that if I followed all the steps in her book and did all the homework, that I would most likely high pass, and she was right. If you follow what she tells you to do (and don't skip anything) – you too will most likely make it. I am sooooooooooo glad I took her prep course; it was worth every penny and I hope she will continue to offer it for other students for many years to come. Celia is very supportive and helpful to all her students, her classes and the book are organized in just the right way to step you along in learning only what you need to know, and the course moves at a reasonable pace. And to add sprinkles on the icing, after it was all said and done, I found that I had learned to enjoy reading French in the process of trying to pass the exam. So after the exam, I went out and bought a used copy of Candide and am (very slowly) continuing to read French, not because I have to, but because it's fun and it's now within my reach. I think it's a pretty good testimonial that I went from language-impaired to language-empowered in 12 weeks.

Thanks again for opening up to me the wonderful world of French!"

Jeannette Darcy
MA student
Divinity School
University of Chicago

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"When I began Ms. Brickman's French Intensive, I had absolutely no prior French language training. The class, tailored to graduate students with numerous demands on their time, is scrupulously designed with highly-constructive exercises, which are meticulously graded and reviewed in class. Drawing from years of experience, Ms. Brickman's elegant style of instruction is creative, orderly, and clear. She goes to great lengths to attend to all students varying needs with both personability and accessibility. Like the vast majority of those students who complete Ms. Brickman's lesson plan, not only did the class culminate in my receiving a "High Pass" on the University of Chicago French Exam, but the process itself, which could very well be overwhelming and stressful, was made pleasant, methodical and edifying. I have recommended Ms. Brickman's class with confidence to many a daunted student."

Elizabeth Lazar Muir
University of Chicago Divinity School, second year MA

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"I recommend the intensive French course without reservation. It was very apparent from week one till the conclusion that exceptional planning went into strategizing how to prepare students to pass the translation exam. Everything from the pace of instruction, the order and depth of coverage of vocabulary and grammar of the French language, as well as numerous mnemonic devices for quick and comprehensible translation were critically imparted by the instructor in one of the most professionally prepared curriculums that I have experienced in my several years as a graduate student."

Christopher S. Barkan
Ph.D. student
History of Consciousness Department
University of California, Santa Cruz

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"Dear Celia,
I am glad to write and tell you how valuable the French intensive course was for me! I am a PhD student in theology at Chicago Theological Seminary and we do not have resources for language instruction in the seminary, so the Hyde Park Language Program was an invaluable resource! The real jewel in the crown of the resource is your teaching ability. You structured the French class in a way that built our knowledge of French steadily and your willingness to pour over our homework gave us the feedback we needed to learn. You had said at the outset, if you come to every class and do the homework diligently, you will pass the translation exam. And that is absolutely true in my experience! I have encouraged many of my fellow students to take your class and will continue to do so."

Julianne Buenting
PhD student
Chicago Theological Seminary

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"Simply put, I would not have passed the French Reading Exam on the first attempt if it weren't for this class, even though I had formally studied French for most of my childhood until high school. The course is rigorous and highly effective not only for passing the exam, but also to remind people how to learn languages with a scholarly goal in mind. Now instead of shirking away from an article written in French, I approach it with confidence knowing that all I need is a dictionary and some time to render it into comprehensible English."

Saud Al-Zaid
3rd year PhD Student

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"I took the French exam several times before I heard about Celia's course. I have no doubts I would have passed the first time if I'd taken her course right at the beginning. She is tough, but the effort is well worth it. Take the course. Pass the test. Get on with your life."

Former PhD student in History

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"Dear Celia,

Your French course was very important for my graduate work in Literature. Your class was fun but highly rigorous. You expected a lot from your students which pushed us along to learning we did not necessarily think we could achieve. You are an excellent teacher, and this course fulfilled my language requirement at the University of Illinois at Chicago requirement for my PhD course work. I cannot thank you enough.

Best,"

Marla Weeg
PhD Candidate, UIC

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"Dr. Brickman's intensive French language training course is ideal for the student with little to no background in French. The course is very rigorous and systematic - no student is left behind. There is a lot of homework, but it is based on guided exercises that build on each other, beginning with grammar basics. You won't be dropped into a complex translating situation cold. But you should be prepared to devote alot of time to this course - because by the end of it you will have the same amount of preparation for the language exam as someone who already has many years of formal French training - and you will pass it. Dr. Brickman teaches specifically towards the requirements of the exam and is also concerned to teach from the needs and learning perspectives of the English-speaking student of French as a second language."

Shannon Foskett
University of Western Ontario

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"This French course is a wonderful, disciplined way for graduate students with no previous French language knowledge to acquire a reading competency which will serve them well in a wide variety of research contexts. Although my program did not require any foreign language competency, this course was extremely helpful simply in increasing my appreciation of the humanities and French culture. I took the course for fun, and in addition to really enjoying the course, I increased my capacity for cross-cultural and international research."

Steve McMillin
PhD student, School of Social Service Administration
University of Chicago

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"I really appreciated the service this class provided me when I began my grad studies. Celia is an excellent instructor and has a wealth of teaching experience. Under her tutelage and completing the work she assigned, I easily high passed the university's French language exam the summer I entered my PhD program. Since the class is geared toward the French exam, I think it's the most efficient way to prepare or review for it. As grad students, we don't have a lot of extra time on our hands, so an intensive course specifically tailored to reading competency and exam preparation definitely fills a niche. Celia is great at what she does, and this class delivers what it promises!"

PhD student
Humanities Division
University of Chicago

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"If you need to learn to read French, and you need to learn quickly and efficiently, Celia Brickman's course is the course for you. I was very pleased to discover what I was able to read after only ten weeks."

Former MA student
Divinity School, University of Chicago

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