Best Third Language to learn

College Majors Business Major
1

<p>Hello good people of CC,</p>

<p>I'm currently pursuing a double major in international business and international studies and taking French on the side. I will be picking up a third language next year and wanted to know what the most marketable would be. Before anyone says it, I don't want to learn Mandarin or Japanese because in the time it takes to master it I could be learning two European languages. I also will not be pursuing Arabic because the only jobs in that field are with the government. </p>

<p>My main question is would it be better to jump into a widely spoken language (Spanish, German) or into a lesser spoken one (Swedish, Russian, Portuguese) in terms of how much they would increase my marketability for a job in international business. Also detailed reasoning or personal experiences would be appreciated, I've done research but the results seem to be ambiguous.</p>

<p>Thanks guys!</p>

2

<p>The most important language for int’l business is ENGLISH. In the instances when an interpreter is needed, they are easily (and cheaply) hired.</p>

3

<p>Obviously you’re fluent in English. Spanish is a useful language to know in The United States. There are plenty of Hispanics and Latinos here. Since you are majoring in international business however, it would really depend on where you see yourself working. English is a widely spoken language though; it’s the most used language in Europe, German is second. With that said, its really up to you, but English and German would be the most practical to take in my opinion.</p>

4

<p>No one really needs to use German outside of Germany/Austria. In Germany, int’l business is conducted in English. </p>

<p>Spanish (Latin America), French (Africa) & Russian (ex-Eastern bloc) have the most expansive geographic footprint because of historical empire building.</p>

<p>Since you already know some French, Spanish would be the most likely language for you to become proficient in, as it is another Romance language. The key thing is to be PROFICIENT. It doesn’t help you to know another language w only a shallow grasp. I think you will get more out of your time in a shorter amount of time pursuing Spanish.</p>

5

<p>Spanish would be the easiest to learn for a native English speaker.</p>

6

<p>GMT; I wouldn’t know. I researched it a little and sources say that 16% of Europeans speak German, and 51% speak English. Isn’t Spanish mostly spoken in North and South America?</p>

7

<p>That is probably because Germany is the most populous country in Europe.</p>

8

<p>I would say Spanish and Russian would be the best. Almost half of Asia and some European countries have Russian speakers because of the former Soviet Union. I came from there myself, and I do speak Russian too, and I would say that Russian is more complicated than either English, Spanish, or German.</p>

9

<p>Chinese is your best option. Learning Chinese will allow you to work in Hong Kong and Shanghai, two of the largest business hubs in the world. In addition, most top companies are tying to expand in China so your knowledge of Chinese would prove valuable in business transactions.</p>

10

<p>Best 3rd language to learn? A programming language. </p>

<p>Sent from my DROID RAZR using CC</p>

11

<p>^ There’s no need to learn programming in international business. I think that everyone should know how to program, but its not necessary in the OP’s case.</p>

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<p>Thanks for all your responses guys,</p>

<p>@Fate I’m not going to learn Chinese because like I said in the OP the amount of time it takes for an English speaker to pick up on it is not worth it. The sheer classroom hours necessary would be better spent for me picking up two similar European languages. </p>

<p>Just as a follow up set of questions, why do you guys think Spanish? I feel like speaking Spanish in the United States isn’t anything special, (something like 1/5th of US residents speak it), so it’s not marketable for an application. On top of that there doesn’t appear to be much money in Spanish speaking countries right now. </p>

<p>Any opinions on small market languages (Portuguese, Italian, Swedish)? Would this add diversity to an int’l business application or would it be pointless to learn?</p>

13

<p>@KyleTwenty,</p>

<p>Is your goal to work abroad? Have you an idea of what career arena you want to pursue with a double major in international business and international studies? Private sector? Diplomatic? NGO? You are aware that, generally, you will need at least 10 years work experience in your field to qualify for a work visa in a foreign country. Just like the U.S., other countries don’t want foreigners coming in to take jobs away from citizens, unless there is justification to bring them in (i.e. a critical expertise is in short supply domestically).</p>

<p>This is what I have observed from living/working abroad in number of countries for over a decade, and having expatriate friends working in all different arenas. You land an int’l job based primarily on your skills/experience, not based on what foreign language you already speak. If an organization wants you badly enough in a particular country, they will provide intense language coaching. It is easier/quicker/cheaper to give someone a month-long crash course in a language, then to force-feed them a decade of professional experience in engineering, economics, medicine, nursing, finance in the same amount of time. </p>

<p>Most int’l job vacancies list language skill as a nice-to-have, but not essential. In fact, not a single one of us (private sector, embassy, U.N., NGO) spoke the local language before getting any of our present & past assignments. And once there, all business is conducted in English. Our most frequent use of the local language is to hail a taxi, order a restaurant meal and read utility bills. </p>

<p>The lingua franca of int’l business is ENGLISH. Even in Vienna, the headquarters of OPEC, business is conducted in English. Ironically, in instances where English is not used (negotiations with the Chinese gov’t comes to mind), it is advantageous not to speak the local language and to use an interpreter, because it buys you extra time to think about your answer. You realize that in all our years of diplomatic ties with China, Jon Huntsman was the 1st U.S. ambassador who could speak any Mandarin.</p>

<p>Learning a small market language isn’t worth it for your marketabiltiy. If the small market country wants to engage in int’l trade/negotiations, then it will do so in ENGLISH. Even if you got diplomatic job in one of these small countries, you would be rotated out to another country after 2-3 years.</p>

<p>If you want to invest the time to learn another language, do it for the love of learning.</p>

14

<p>@OP, my bad. I apologize for not reading your entire post.</p>