The Society for French Studies, or SFS, is the oldest learned

association Association may refer to: *Club (organization), an association of two or more people united by a common interest or goal *Trade association, an organization founded and funded by businesses that operate in a specific industry *Voluntary associatio ...

for French Studies in the UK and

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

. It aims to promote teaching and research in French Studies within higher education. the president is Professor Judith Still.

Scholarly activities

The society has a quarterly

journal A journal, from the Old French ''journal'' (meaning "daily"), may refer to: *Bullet journal, a method of personal organization *Diary, a record of what happened over the course of a day or other period *Daybook, also known as a general journal, a ...

published on its behalf called ''

French Studies ''French Studies'' is a quarterly peer-reviewed academic journal published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Society for French Studies. It was established in 1947 and covers all periods of French and francophone literature and culture ...

'' (

Oxford University Press Oxford University Press (OUP) is the university press of the University of Oxford. It is the largest university press in the world, and its printing history dates back to the 1480s. Having been officially granted the legal right to print books ...

), as well as a bulletin for shorter pieces and news called '' The French Studies Bulletin''. The society also produces Research Monographs in French Studies with Legenda (imprint) and

Modern Humanities Research Association The Modern Humanities Research Association (MHRA) is a United Kingdom–based international organisation that aims to encourage and promote advanced study and research of humanities. It is most notable for producing the ''MHRA Style Guide''. His ...

. There is also an annual

conference A conference is a meeting of two or more experts to discuss and exchange opinions or new information about a particular topic. Conferences can be used as a form of group decision-making, although discussion, not always decisions, are the main p ...

. Each year, the society awards the R. Gapper Book Prize, the R. Gapper Postgraduate Essay Prize, and the R. Gapper Undergraduate Essay Prize for the best scholarship produced by scholars at higher education institutions in the UK or Ireland. These prizes are presented to their winners at the annual conference.

Lobbying

The society promotes and defends languages learning and the humanities in general within the national educational agendas of the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...

and

, and also internationally. It pursues these aims through a variety of activities and communications, including collaboration and active lobbying within the policy sphere. It has lobbied and published statements concerning open-access publishing, A-level exam content, and the future of modern language learning in schools and universities in the UK and Ireland. Agencies with which it has engaged since 2014 include

HEFCE The Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE) was a non-departmental public body in the United Kingdom, which was responsible for the distribution of funding for higher education to universities and further education colleges in Engla ...

Ofqual The Office of Qualifications and Examinations Regulation (Ofqual) is a non-ministerial government department that regulates qualifications, exams and tests in England. Colloquially and publicly, Ofqual is often referred to as the exam "watchdog ...

, and the UK

Department for Education The Department for Education (DfE) is a department of His Majesty's Government responsible for child protection, child services, education (compulsory, further and higher education), apprenticeships and wider skills in England. A Department ...

and the

Department for Business, Innovation and Skills , type = Department , logo = Department for Business, Innovation and Skills logo.svg , logo_width = 200px , logo_caption = , picture = File:Лондан. 2014. Жнівень 26.JPG , seal = , se ...

Past Presidents

*2016–2017:

Bill Burgwinkle William E. Burgwinkle is a UK-based American medievalist and French scholar. He is an emeritus professor in medieval French and Occitan literature at King's College, Cambridge, an emeritus fellow at King's College, and a former president of the So ...

*2015–2016: Mairéad Hanrahan *1999: Wendy Ayres-Bennett

References

External links

The Society for French Studies website
French literature Learned societies of the United Kingdom Literary societies {{UK-org-stub