Which language should you learn to boost your career?

There are currently 7,097 known living languages in the world. But which one of these should you learn to boost your career? We give you an example of five beneficial languages – apart from English – which could help you in the business world.

You are asking yourself, why you should learn another language? Apparently you already know English and probably this is not your mother tongue, so you know two languages. But still, you should consider learning at least one of the languages we will mention in this article. Why?

First, it looks great in your CV. Recruiters are always looking for language skills and the more languages you can speak fluently, the more interesting you are for companies nowadays.

Second, you will get a wider view by learning another language. Also, see the language learning process as a kind of “brain exercise”.

Third, a new language will give you access to a new point of view and way of thinking. By getting the chance to communicate without a language barrier with people from another culture, you will learn incredibly much. That way you’ll also learn to understand their way of thinking and get a clear insight in cultural and political aspects from another country.

Now, that we made our point in the importance of foreign languages, let’s take a look at the most beneficial languages to learn in the world:

Spanish

Spanish is the official language in 20 countries of Europe, America and Africa. Apart from that, Spanish is an official language of the United Nations. Also, it is the second most spoken language – after English – in the USA, being understood in wide parts of the nation. In total there are about 570 million of native speakers in the world.

Spanish is a Romance Language, a descendant of Latin. This means: if you already speak another Romance language – like for example French, Italian or Portuguese – it’s easier for you to learn Spanish.

French

This other Western Romance language is the official language in 29 countries in Europe, Africa and on the American continent. French is spoken by 220 million people around the globe. It has a long tradition as a diplomatic language, wherefore French is still a working language of many international organizations, like the UN, UNESCO, NATO, FIFA and WHO. If you want to work in a diplomatic environment (e.g. international relations) or if you plan to work with projects in (northern) Africa, you should learn French. Also, it is the lingua franca of the designer and fashion world.

German

With more than 150 million speakers worldwide German is a widely spoken language. In fact, German speakers are the biggest language group of Europe with the most native speakers. It is the official language of Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Luxembourg, Liechtenstein and parts of Belgium and Italy. Germany itself is one of the strongest economies in the world. So if you are aiming for a career in the business world, German is always a good choice. Also, engineers, scientists and students of the financial sector should consider learning this language, as they will get in touch with its speakers or articles written in German sooner or later in their career.

Mandarin Chinese

Mandarin has almost 200 million native speakers and is spoken in most of northern and southwestern China. Apart from that, it is spoken as a second language in many parts of the world, like e.g. Taiwan, Hong Kong, Thailand, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Mongolia and on the Philippines. China has the second biggest economy worldwide and without a doubt it is beneficial for any B.A. or Economy student to learn this language. Not only will Mandarin open doors to the Chinese culture and economy, also will you be welcomed in all kinds of companies around the world. One should also keep in mind, that the Chinese are a traveler’s nation, which is why likewise Tourism students should consider learning this tonal language from Asia.

Portuguese 

Portuguese – the third Romance language on our list – has 215 million speakers around the globe and is spoken in Portugal, Brazil and in some parts of Africa. In Europe the Portuguese language is of minor importance, whilst on a world scale one shouldn’t underestimate it. The most Portuguese speakers live in Brazil, which is the strongest economy in Latin America. Brazil is part of the BRICS States (Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa), who are known for their significant influence on regional affairs and form part of the G20.

Alternatives

 Languages are not your strongest talent, but you want to boost your CV anyway? Then maybe programming languages are an alternative for you. With the growing importance of the WWW and computer technologies, programming is one of the most wanted skills in the business world. Not only will you be able to design a website, you will also understand how computer processes work.