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afpa formation?


shimble
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i am wondering if anyone has completed a training scheme with afpa and whether they have found it beneficial. after an initial reendezvous i have a chance of getting on a years training course. before i do this i have to do a three month preprofessionilisation couse and advance my level of written french. this basically means i will have to work for three months without pay, travelling to work and my expenses, food and diesel, will i think come from my own pocket, i may be elligeable for between 200 - 400euros per month in assistance. after that i may have a chance of a years training again with minimum income. Yes i want to do the training but living for a year on virtually no money will be difficult. i have a french friend who recently got a job again through afpa, he has no prior experience apart from beeing french and has a six month trial contract. the training i want to do will be difficult and at the end of it i may not get the qualification but i would like to take the risk, having no income for a year is however an important bad point, when i do think i could get at least a paying job for the same period. anyway not sure how it will all pan out. just wondered if any one has had any experience with these couses, and whether they benefiitted or did the language barrier prove too much of a problem, how did they cope with the financial implications of earning next to nothing for  a year. anyway if youve got any thoughts........
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I have used the AFPA system twice,it was the best thing workwise that I did.The first time was in 1991 and I used the system to gain french equivalents for my english city and guilds ,the written side was difficult to start with, but the formateurs were excellant and always seemed to be available when I was in difficulty .The course also helped me build up a technical language that would prove invaluable when I started work.Leaving AFPA on the friday I had a job to start on the following monday,the qualifications are recognised nationally as well which for some organisations is not always the case.My finance was similar, not a lot of money but the accomadation and meals were paid for at 100%,I assume that each persons circumstances are taken into account.It can seem like a long road at times ,but it really is worth it. 
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thanks that has helped so you did this 15 years ago wonder how much its changed since then? i think i will be offered the language side of it with an exterior organisation but it seems to be a similar set up. im hoping to be able to come home each night so as far as accommadation goes i only have to pay my normal household bills but i have to travel and obviously feed myself. so my main reservations are purely financial as the information i have been given so far is a little vague as far as the financial side of it goes, so i am hoping to be able to clarify this side of things before i make a definate decision.  before finishing my last job (self employed) i was informed i would be eligeable for assistance however when i finished and applyed for assistance this was refused as i live with my girlfriend who has a salaried job. Another important point that came up during my interview was the fact of my nationality: with the current political situation in france leaning heavily to the far right it was mentioned that if i applied for french nationality this may be a way of protecting myself against what could end up beeing a very nationalist climate. i did make some enquiries three years ago about this but didnt get very far it seemed to be a large can of worms that could take at least three years to complete at the time i was far too busy to get involved in the administartive circus that this would entail. I have a french girlfriend and she lives with me in my house, that i have bought and paid for on my own. it has been discussed that marriage or paix could make it easier to apply for french nationality but i am loath to put myself in the legal situation that this would entail, as well as this i do not believe in marriage and feel more stable in my relationship with my girlfriend as we are with only our own private obligations and commitments. I do not follow politics that much as they all seem a rotten bunch however the fascist tendancies are becoming more and more prevalent and i think it is becoming more and more difficult as a foreigner in an increasingly nationalist environment. i wonder what peoples thoughts on this issue are and how this will progress especially after next months elections.......
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As I mentioned I have used afpa twice the second time was in '98. For this I used a congé individual de formation for the finance which paid for my formation and accommadation plus maintained my salarie at the same level for the duration of the course.Niether time was my nationalty questioned and I too live with my french girlfriend.Maybe the climate has changed or maybe you live in an area with a racist on the desk!!!interpreting the rules to suit there own agenda.Persevere its worth it
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the rascist issue was not directed at me it was merely an observation we both made about the present political climate. and yes thankyou for your positive thoughts as i do hope to continue i do however need to try and organise what little financial assistance i can get, the administration lottery seems to enjoy not beeing responsible i could always chuck my girlfriend out and become celibataire but its not really an option
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I don't mean to be nasty, but if your girlfriend is working, and your formation with afpa is being paid for (with perhaps a little extra on top), why can't you manage financially? Surely if something is worth doing it is worth a small sacrifice?

At the end of the day, the French government is not at fault because you came to France ill equiped to work? (not what I think personally, but what the beurocrats must surely think every time one of us turns up expecting the government to bale us out)

My partner did the basic written French course, then a second higher one along with mathematics (in French). He now has certificates for the equivalent level as the Bac in both subjects.

At the time I was on sick leave for almost 6 months so we had 6oo euros per month to live on for a family of 4, along with various credit commitments I had taken on because I was in a salaried job.

If you want something enough you will go through hell and high water to get it, if not it's just so much hot air.

So you starve for a while, so what?

Sorry, I don't mean to be offensive, but sometimes I get so fed up with people moaning about having "no money"when actually they have a salary coming in. We lived on about 200 euros per  month for 8 months when we arrived (because we were totally ill equiped for work here), almost 6 years later we are still here and I have employment and my partner has his own business.

To be a little lighter ( in pocket as well as in body) is a healthy thing. Or perhaps that's just a Buddhist thing?

Good luck whatever you decide,

Aly

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after beeing here some 15 years and beeing self sufficient all that time i aggree no wonder the french authorities make it diffficult there are far too many people coming from the uk and and living in a dream world expecting immediate assistance from the anpe because they were not prepared for the harsh realities of living in a foreign country. this could well have an affect on the high social charges some of us have been paying while some of the english swan over here and as you say expect to be baled out because they have spent too much time listening to some of the nonsense that is printed encouraging people to come here and set up their often unrealistic business plans.
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