<p>Would this land me a good, high-paying job? What type of job opportunities would I have? I thought about government jobs, but I have no idea what they will offer.</p>
<p>a major by itself isn't going to determine much of your future employment.
....internships/experience, school, gpa, personality...after taking into account even some of these factors the resulting answer could be much much much different.</p>
<p>but generally I would believe that would be a useful double major. there are plenty of top-flight jobs forming in china that require american-trained businessmen to oversee emerging market growth for their US based companeis (a trend towards younger expats). If government jobs interest you Im sure there are opportunities there as well. </p>
<p>Choose a major carefully though. If you suck at foreign languages like I do then forcing yourself through it for a career that is far from guaranteed (see above factors) might not bode well in the end (i.e. you have a crappy gpa and an unacceptable level of chinese proficiency).</p>
<p>Unless you're chinese and already have a reasonable knowledge of your mother tongue?</p>
<p>I actually love the Chinese language and would not mind majoring in it. I am currently studying it. As for economics, I would only use that to strengthen my pathway to international relations, if I choose to attempt that masters program. I am still skeptical about it though. If I could talk to UCLAri, maybe he could answer a few questions. Also, I have never taken an economics course before so I have no idea if I would even like it. Some people say it is very boring. I have always loved the pure sciences, but would a degree in a pure science give me better options that economics? I think it would be great to live in China (though I have never been there, I plan to go there asap to see if I would truly enjoy it or not). What type of expat opportunities are there?</p>
<p>Tak,</p>
<p>Are you a US citizen? If so, Chinese language skills are in high demand in the US governent. I'm always a fan of more econ, as it never hurts to have it on your resume, but what exactly are you looking for in employment?</p>
<p>Yes, I am a US citizen. I am not sure what type of employment I would be looking for, but anything from the private sector (such as large international corporations) to intelligence agencies.</p>
<p>The thing is that non-natives have to be THAT MUCH BETTER than native speakers to really sell language skills. While it's okay to try to sell yourself as a regional expert, you'll need to really really work hard to get to a level that most companies and agencies want.</p>
<p>However, some is always better than none, so I wouldn't stress too much. If you're interested in a variety of things, try to do internships. Find out what you like early and focus on it.</p>
<p>I'm going to give my standard Chinese language disclaimer. </p>
<p>Don't start Chinese unless you are prepared to dedicate at least four years of classes and a semester abroad to it. Chinese is the sort of language where some people just don't take to it and never become conversational. Even if you do have the aptitude, you will never get your Chinese to a marketable level without spending time in China. If you are unsure about whether it's for you, go study a romance language. Of course, if you can stick it out and are interested in intelligence, the payoff is huge.</p>
<p>samonite16: I have already began studying Mandarin Chinese. This year I am taking third-year Chinese at my high school. I really do love the language and I would love to spend some time abroad.</p>
<p>
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there are plenty of top-flight jobs forming in china that require american-trained businessmen to oversee emerging market growth for their US based companeis (a trend towards younger expats).
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</p>
<p>Can you elaborate on this? I always got the impression that the Americans being sent abroad are middle/upper management, not entry-level. If they can hire an English-proficient Chinese person to do the same thing, then there's no use for them to pay for your relocation abroad and continue paying for you on an American salary.</p>
<p>Yes, the State Department defines Mandarin as a special needs language, meaning you get a boost on your foreign service exam if you are proficient, and if you are, you will almost certainly be sent to China.</p>
<p>Majoring in chinese would likely involve taking courses like Classical Chinese. There's no real point in that, unless you are really interested in the subject. If I were you I'd study Chinese in college and try to go to China at least for a summer to study the language there, better yet a semester or year, if you really want to master the language. The major in Chinese won't get you anything, it's the language skill you want to develop.</p>
<p>If you are fluent in Chinese, just put that on your resume. No need to major in it.</p>