"French is my second mother tongue"

André, 27 years old, is Philippine and is studying in Sciences Po Paris (second year of Master). He has discovered the French language at about 9 years old and never stopped speaking it. Since then, French has become his second mother tongue.

How did you learn French?

I didn't speak French when I've been registered, at nine years old, in the French School of Delhi. This is when I developed my first bonds with France. After that, I've had classes in the French high school in Berlin, then Manila, where I passed my international Baccalaureate. Then, I studied LEA (for Langues étrangères appliquées, Foreign Languages applied to economy and law) and LLCE (for Langues, littératures et civilisations étrangères, Foreign Languages, Literature and Civilizations) in Lille.

Does the French language still has a place in your personal or professional life?

When I was working in HSBC Philippines, I used to speak French about 4 hours a day. Obviously, speaking French, and particularly Business French, was compulsory for this job. Today, I consider French as my second mother tongue. I even speak it better than Tagalog, the official language of the Philippines!

What are you projects for the future?

I want to create a society for Philippine students and former students of France who currently live there or went back to their home country. The aim is to facilitate communication, exchange on professional life, but also share events, news, etc. The France Alumni Website can really become a powerful tool for this society.