A French CV is not an English one translated. It has its own sections, its own order, and — in France — its own expectations about what personal information belongs on it. The lettre de motivation that accompanies it has an even more fixed shape. This lesson gives you both, in the two conventions the course covers.
| French | Pronunciation | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| l'Ă©tat civil | lay-tah see-VEEL | personal details |
| un titre / un accroche | uhn TEETR | headline / personal statement |
| la formation | lah for-mah-SYOHN | education and training |
| l'expérience professionnelle | lex-pay-ree-ahns pro-fes-yo-NEL | work experience |
| les compétences | lay kohn-pay-TAHNS | skills |
| les langues | lay LAHNG | languages |
| les centres d'intérêt | lay sahntr dan-tay-RAY | interests |
| les références | lay ray-fay-RAHNS | references |
Order and conventions: one page unless you have fifteen years of experience; reverse chronological within each section; no full sentences — fragments and verbs do the work.
It means education and training. And une expérience on a CV means a job or placement, not a feeling. Add these to your Lesson 19 faux-amis list.
A weak CV lists nouns. A strong one uses verbs — usually as infinitives or past participles heading each bullet.
| French | Pronunciation | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| gérer | zhay-RAY | to manage |
| encadrer une Ă©quipe | ahn-kah-dray ĂĽn ay-KEEP | to lead a team |
| mettre en place | metr ahn PLAHS | to set up, to implement |
| assurer le suivi de | ah-sĂĽ-ray luh swee-VEE duh | to follow up on |
| développer | day-vuh-lo-PAY | to develop |
| coordonner | ko-or-do-NAY | to coordinate |
| optimiser | op-tee-mee-ZAY | to optimise |
| rédiger | ray-dee-ZHAY | to write, to draft |
| animer une réunion | ah-nee-may ün ray-ü-NYOHN | to run a meeting |
| maîtriser | may-tree-ZAY | to have a good command of |
| French | Means |
|---|---|
| langue maternelle | native |
| bilingue | bilingual (claim only if true) |
| courant | fluent — roughly C1 |
| bonne maîtrise | good command — roughly B2 |
| niveau intermédiaire | intermediate — B1 |
| notions | basic — A1/A2 |
Best practice is to give the CEFR band directly — Français : B2 (DELF) — which is unambiguous and verifiable. Overclaiming here is quickly exposed in the interview.
The structure French recruiters expect, in three short paragraphs.
| Paragraph | Focus | Content |
|---|---|---|
| Vous | the employer | Show you understand their organisation and the role. |
| Moi | you | Two or three concrete pieces of evidence that you fit it. |
| Nous | together | What you'd bring, plus a request for an interview. |
Starting with vous rather than je is the whole trick. A letter that opens Je suis Ă©tudiant et je cherche un stage has already failed; one that opens with what the company does has not.
Madame, Monsieur,
[vous] Votre agence s'est imposée ces dernières années comme une référence en communication culturelle, et le poste de chargé de communication que vous proposez correspond précisément au type de mission qui m'intéresse.
[moi] Titulaire d'un master en communication, j'ai assuré pendant deux ans le suivi éditorial d'un festival régional, où j'ai encadré une équipe de quatre personnes et mis en place une stratégie de contenus qui a doublé notre audience en ligne.
[nous] Je serais ravi de mettre cette expérience au service de vos projets et me tiens à votre disposition pour un entretien.
Je vous prie d'agréer, Madame, Monsieur, l'expression de mes salutations distinguées.
This is the one place where the two conventions genuinely diverge, and getting it wrong is costly.
| Item | France | Québec |
|---|---|---|
| Photo | Still common, though declining | Never — seen as inviting discrimination |
| Age / date of birth | Often included | Never |
| Marital status | Sometimes included | Never |
| Nationality | Sometimes | Only work authorisation, if relevant |
| Length | One page | Two pages is normal |
| References | "disponibles sur demande" | Often listed in full |
If you are applying in Québec with a France-style CV, strip the photo, age and marital status first. Québec's employment-equity rules make those fields actively unwelcome.
| French | Pronunciation | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| Parlez-moi de vous. | par-lay mwah duh VOO | Tell me about yourself. |
| Quelles sont vos qualités et vos défauts ? | kel sohn voh kah-lee-TAY | Strengths and weaknesses? |
| Pourquoi notre entreprise ? | poor-kwah notr ahn-truh-PREEZ | Why our company? |
| OĂą vous voyez-vous dans cinq ans ? | oo voo vwah-yay VOO | Where do you see yourself in five years? |
| Quelles sont vos prétentions salariales ? | kel sohn voh pray-tahn-SYOHN | What salary are you looking for? |
| Avez-vous des questions ? | ah-vay voo day kes-TYOHN | Do you have any questions? |
Prétentions salariales is another faux ami — it means salary expectations, nothing to do with pretending. And always have a question ready for the last one; having none reads as lack of interest.
The lettre de motivation remains genuinely important in France and is often read before the CV. Diplomas carry real weight — the institution you attended is named and noticed. Interviews tend to be formal, with vous throughout, and discussing salary too early is considered poor form.
Québec leans North American: the CV does most of the work, the cover letter is shorter, and experience outranks the prestige of your school. Interviews are friendlier and may switch to tu quickly. Vocabulary differs too — you will see une job (feminine in Québec), un emploi d'été, le salaire horaire, and postuler sur un poste alongside France's postuler à .
Where would a CV carrying each item be normal?
Write vous, moi or nous.
1. On a CV, la formation means:
2. A lettre de motivation should open with:
3. You're applying for a job in Montréal. Your CV should: