Comprehensible Posted January 30, 2018 Report Share Posted January 30, 2018 So I'm wondering what they mean about "voluntarily declaring bilingualism." I said I spoke both languages on the citizenship and language application section of my overall OMSAS, but I didn't explicitly say I wanted to be considered for the bilingual stream anywhere with regards to Ottawa. I went to a bilingual school for like 5 years and did Extended French in high school, so I'm fairly comfortable having a regular conversation in French, but haven't practiced since graduating high school and I don't know any medical terminology...... I'm a little concerned about the level of difficulty of the assessment of fluency. If I fail that, does my application get totally thrown out, or do I just move into the regular pool? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LUUO Posted January 30, 2018 Report Share Posted January 30, 2018 I will let @Donald_Duck answer as he will most likely know the specifics. But to my understanding voluntarily declaring bilingualism simply means you will receive bilingual interview questions. There isn't a bilingual stream to say, as I believe its either full French or English in terms of the actual MD program. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
j17f Posted January 30, 2018 Report Share Posted January 30, 2018 There is no bilingual stream. It's just if you and I were ranked equal, you would be offered a spot because you are bilingual, and I am not. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Comprehensible Posted January 30, 2018 Author Report Share Posted January 30, 2018 17 minutes ago, LUUO said: I will let @Donald_Duck answer as he will most likely know the specifics. But to my understanding voluntarily declaring bilingualism simply means you will receive bilingual interview questions. There isn't a bilingual stream to say, as I believe its either full French or English in terms of the actual MD program. Is it like 1 MMI will be in French? Had I known this was a thing/had they explicitly asked if I was bilingual, I might not have said yes. I speak both languages, but can struggle with unusual accents/technical terms. I used to be almost fully bilingual, but I'm not sure if I still am. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LUUO Posted January 30, 2018 Report Share Posted January 30, 2018 3 minutes ago, Comprehensible said: Is it like 1 MMI will be in French? Had I known this was a thing/had they explicitly asked if I was bilingual, I might not have said yes. I speak both languages, but can struggle with unusual accents/technical terms. I used to be almost fully bilingual, but I'm not sure if I still am. uOttawa is a panel interview, not MMI, just a clarification. They might ask one question in French, another in English. I don't believe you would have much difficulty, as long as you have a good grasp of everyday language in both French and English. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Comprehensible Posted January 30, 2018 Author Report Share Posted January 30, 2018 1 minute ago, LUUO said: uOttawa is a panel interview, not MMI, just a clarification. They might ask one question in French, another in English. I don't believe you would have much difficulty, as long as you have a good grasp of everyday language in both French and English. Wow ok sorry I've gotten confused between schools. Thanks! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EthicsForBreakfast Posted January 30, 2018 Report Share Posted January 30, 2018 In my interview they asked if I had any questions and then if I did, they requested I ask in French. It was awesome because the ball was entirely in my court! Not that I couldn’t handle a French question but I could control it more in this case Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Comprehensible Posted January 30, 2018 Author Report Share Posted January 30, 2018 17 minutes ago, EthicsForBreakfast said: In my interview they asked if I had any questions and then if I did, they requested I ask in French. It was awesome because the ball was entirely in my court! Not that I couldn’t handle a French question but I could control it more in this case Oh ok that sounds more manageable. Going to seek out some practice in the next month. Thanks guys I'm a bit more confident. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Donald_Duck Posted January 30, 2018 Report Share Posted January 30, 2018 As others have mentioned theres no bilingual stream, they will most of the time ask 1 question in French to assess your French. If it is not up to par, you do not lose any points, its just a tick of the box if you meet the requirements to be considered bilingual or not. It will only be considered as others have said as a differentiator if all other values are identical. Good luck! Mr Duck Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FlameGrilledChicken Posted January 30, 2018 Report Share Posted January 30, 2018 19 hours ago, Donald_Duck said: As others have mentioned theres no bilingual stream, they will most of the time ask 1 question in French to assess your French. If it is not up to par, you do not lose any points, its just a tick of the box if you meet the requirements to be considered bilingual or not. It will only be considered as others have said as a differentiator if all other values are identical. Good luck! Mr Duck I see, that makes me feel way more comfortable. I'd possibly struggle a lot with a few questions. I haven't spoken any french for 4 years and my existing french knowledge comes from french immersion which I stopped in grade 9. I could conceivably pass as bilingual and technically can speak some french but I've been really incredibly stressed and worried that I'd lose points if I can't answer a french question. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vendar Posted January 31, 2018 Report Share Posted January 31, 2018 @Donald_Duck Could you describe what is up to par? For example, I can hold a conversation because I was in a French Immersion high school, but I do not know any scientific or medical terms in french. During the answer, is it okay to use one or two English words? Would you say it is okay to tell them "je ne sais pas le mot en francais" and tell them what word you do not know or just use the English word w/o telling "je ne sais pas..." and continue your answer? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Donald_Duck Posted January 31, 2018 Report Share Posted January 31, 2018 Of course, the point is not to be advanced in French its to test if you have basic communication skills. Once in medical school there is also a lot of FLS classes offered to us if you wish to perfect your French. Mr Duck Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PD23 Posted February 2, 2018 Report Share Posted February 2, 2018 deleted. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.