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It in itself would probably not help that much getting a job unless you wanted to be an interpreter. It combined with other desired skills would probably help as long as the language was appropriate for the company and industry you wanted to work in. Of the languages you mentioned in your first post Chinese and Spanish are probably the most desirable, Russian third and Arabic would be last. Spanish is probably the easiest to learn and certainly the most beneficial if you wanted a job in the United States, Chinese is probably the hardest but very marketable with Chinese markets opening to the world.
Would being fluent in a valuable language like Arabic, Chinese, Russian or Spanish be enough alone to get into the door of a decent paying job?
No, at least not alone without other skills! Second language skills are a dime a dozen, as long as you know English you are set. The language of business is English, even the Chinese are learning English like crazy (just got back last week). Take this advice from someone that works for a corporate multinational company and travels world-wide. I know of no position in my company called "interpreter". The only reason we would need an engineer that speaks Russian for instance is if we have a vacany in our Russian office, and naturally we will hire one there (with the requirement that he speak English).
Let's put it this way - second language skills are more valuable in the service industry in depressed ethnic neigborhoods. So yeah knowing Spanish might help you in getting a job at the McDonalds in inner city LA. That's about it.
Now, I would tell someone that lives in another country. Portugal for instance, that being fluent in English is absolutely essential to get any type of high paying job in his or her native country.
I found from my experience of living in Miami that speaking Spanish doesn't really open job doors for you if you are Anglo as many Spanish speakers call Americans. I found a form of reverse discrimination in Miami where friends and I applied at restaurants where the wait staff could barely speak any English but we were told we needed to be "Bi-lingual" to get a job, even when the majority of the tourists on South Beach that went to these restaurants were primarily English speaking.
I also found out from Latins I became friends with while living in Miami that it was also very difficult to find a job at certain places if you weren't a Latin from the predominate country the staff was from. A Venezuelan man told me he could find jobs where other Venezuelans were the bosses but he couldn't get a job where Cubans were the bosses.
Apparently, there's not only discrimination against Anglos in the Miami area but also against any group that isn't from your homeland.
Depends on the use really. There's also a difference between translating and interpreting. Translation is easy as even websites can do that. But in many cases interpreting means what does it actually. In French to lick the windows doesn't really mean they are licking windows. It means window shopping. That's just a small one.
Spanish is nice don't get me wrong but it is so common in the USA now that frankly it does not stand out nearly as say Arabic or Mandarin. With government the CIA looks for languages and I think so does the FBI.
fluency in more than one language is a huge asset coupled with other hard skills. spanish and a degree in political science will get you an entry level job at starbucks. if you want to do better learn a trade a traditional blue collar trade and a 2nd language. then buy a ticket to dubai or saudi arabia and make some real money. message for the young stop scheming and dreaming and start living.
No, at least not alone without other skills! Second language skills are a dime a dozen, as long as you know English you are set. The language of business is English, even the Chinese are learning English like crazy (just got back last week). Take this advice from someone that works for a corporate multinational company and travels world-wide. I know of no position in my company called "interpreter". The only reason we would need an engineer that speaks Russian for instance is if we have a vacany in our Russian office, and naturally we will hire one there (with the requirement that he speak English).
Let's put it this way - second language skills are more valuable in the service industry in depressed ethnic neigborhoods. So yeah knowing Spanish might help you in getting a job at the McDonalds in inner city LA. That's about it.
Now, I would tell someone that lives in another country. Portugal for instance, that being fluent in English is absolutely essential to get any type of high paying job in his or her native country.
Mod cut. It depends on the company. I am fluent in Portuguese and Spanish. When the company decided to open offices in Brazil, Argentina, Colombia, Panama and Mexico, guess who go hired? Perhaps per a typical domestic job it's not as practical, but for major global brands, be it General Motors, Nike, Coca Cola, etc, knowing languages of countries where you company is takes you leaps in bounds over people who have the same skill set as you but only know one language.
Last edited by PJSaturn; 09-29-2014 at 08:49 AM..
Reason: Personal attack; baiting.
I see jobs for call centers and whatnot advertised pretty frequently that call for bilingual candidates, but in general I'd say figure out what you want to do and whether learning a certain language will facilitate that -- for example, are you looking to work with immigrants, refugees, exchange students, people studying English as a second language, etc.? If so I would imagine speaking the language would be a marketable skill, but I have no idea how many such jobs there are, how well they pay, etc.
I have a niece that studied Chinese in high school. She is a natural, and was so good at it, when she went to a school job fair she was hired her senior year to work for a major international operation company. They paid for her college and part time work. When she got out of college, she was full time. She takes care of a lot of the correspondence with Chinese sources, both on phone and by letter. She has traveled with delegations to China, etc., as a member of the delegation. She was sent over to China for months on one project.
Top executive pay and a life time job with outstanding benefits, due to her speaking and writing Chinese in several dialects.
Not factoring any of your other skills, yes, it may be easier to get a job in customer or social services. No, these are not "good paying" entry-level positions.
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