Why should students be bilingual in French?

French is the native language of over 75 million people around the world. Over 51 million speak it in France, 6 million in Canada, 4 million in Belgium, 1.3 million in Switzerland and 1 million in the United States. It remains the language of all the arts and of international diplomacy. French is the second most popular foreign language studied in the United States due to the proximity of Canada and other influences such as the North American Free Trade Agreement. A reading knowledge of French or German remains a requirement of many graduate school programs at major universities.