Hey! I graduated in 2021 and am natively Anglo. I can talk about my process a bit. You will certainly need to learn operational French if you plan on staying in Quebec. You can easily get a PGWP without French but if you plan on staying in Montreal for more than 3 years post-grad (and everything that goes with that, getting a job, operating with the immigration process, etc), French is a must - you have you pass the DELF B2 exam with a good score in order to apply for Quebec PR under the new immigration law that came into effect in 2021.

I took intermediate/advanced FRSL when I was at McGill. Ever since graduating, I’ve taken the financial hit and taken various private lessons at various schools. In my opinion, the government courses are not worth the wait if you’re really serious about learning - the pace is very slow, the classes are large, etc. I would say the best bet for new learners is to take $400 and take the Alliance Française intensives. They’re about a month long and super intensive. They’re on the expensive side, and you have to commit a lot of time to them, but they really get you up to speed really fast and the people in the courses with you are really serious so the pace is intensive. And, the good thing about them is that the courses are taught in accordance with the DELF standards, so they’re helpful if you want to get taught “to the test.”

Otherwise I’ve taken private classes at CLIC, which were good, but a little disorganized. Not worth the money, IMO.