Language Skills and Employability

Foreign language skills make you more employable

Did you know that more people around the world speak English at this moment than have ever spoken any language before? Quite an incredible statistic, and the number of English speakers is increasing. As a native English speaker, you may think that this can only be an advantage – after all, it’s your language. But more than half of those people speak English as a second language, or a third, or fourth. As the world becomes increasingly mobile, these people will be your competition for jobs.

According to research published by Cardiff University Business School (see PDF) British companies are already losing out on around £21 billion each year in lost contracts due to poor language skills. Obviously, this is a major incentive for employers to look for staff who can speak foreign languages.

Speaking another language will give you an important head start in the British employment market, and not just in the traditional jobs that you associate with languages, such as translating, interpreting and teaching; you will have an advantage in any business that deals with overseas clients or suppliers. And that is a huge number of companies.

If you are looking internationally for work, the advantages are even greater.

Working in an international organisation like the United Nations or European Union, you will be expected to speak at least one foreign language. Indeed, the EU has a policy of interviewing candidates in one of the three official languages of the organisation (English, German and French)... that isn’t the candidate’s first language. This is ok for people who speak good English as a foreign language, but not good news for monolingual Brits.

Remember that universities also like to see foreign languages in your personal statement. And while saying you have studied a language to GCSE level is good, showing that you have dedicated some of your precious free time to study is much stronger.

There are fun ways to learn a language. Young people all over the world take language courses each summer as a major part of the summer holidays. Tens of thousands of language students come to Britain each summer to learn English (lots travel with ESL – Language Travel) and many visit language schools across Europe. Studying in language immersion abroad is a great social experience and lets you make faster progress than you ever could at home, where you are surrounded with English all day. It will also give you a taste of other cultures and introduce you to young people from all over the world. Again, these are positive additions to your personal statement.

Our courses are suitable whatever your current language level. On the first day of the course, you will be placed in a group of students at a similar level, so don’t worry about being out of your depth. Even if you don’t think you are “good at languages”, immersion is a really different way of learning that puts language in its context. After all, you learned English in immersion!

The first few days abroad can be tough... you probably won’t know anyone and the language will be a challenge. But get over them and you will develop much more than just your grammar and vocabulary when you are away.

Employers see plenty of CVs of “dedicated, hard-working team players” but the skills you gain learning a language abroad will make you really stand out.  

Find out more about a language course with ESL – Language Travel.

Source: Alex Wolfson - ESL Language Travel