Will my concentration in business matter if I can speak Mandarin?

College Majors Business Major
1

<p>I'm currently a undergrad student, and I'm torn about what I should do with the rest of my time in university. I am a Business Administration - dual-concentration in International Business & Human Resources with an Asian Studies minor. </p>

<p>I am currently taking Mandarin Chinese classes and was contemplating pursuing a minor in Chinese as well. However, doing this would mean I would have to drop my Human Resources concentration, as otherwise I would not be able to graduate on time. The Asian Studies minor is only one course away from being finished so I will finish that up in this upcoming Fall.</p>

<p>However, I am curious to see what people think is more valuable in the market, or at least a more impressive looking degree. I know that International Business isn't exactly an eye-opening business concentration, so I wanted to add HR to it to make myself more well-rounded, however, I've heard some people say that Chinese knowledge is more important and that I would be able find a job easier, even in HR without the HR background, if only because I am proficient in Mandarin.</p>

<p>I have a strong interest in working in Asia (Preferably Singapore (I know they all speak English there) or somewhere in China), and personally feel that continuing my study of Mandarin in the school and getting the 'stamp' of approval in the form of a minor would be beneficial to my career, however, would it be unnecessary since I am already an Asian Studies minor? At my university the Asian Studies minor comprises of both history and language classes. So a Chinese minor may be a little bit of overkill.</p>

<p>As you can see from the disorganization of this post, I am very flustered about what I should spend my time in university to study. I hope some of the expatriates or other business professionals who frequent these forums could guide me in the right direction.</p>

<p>Also, I am Caucasian, and an American citizen. If I was not to work abroad, I would prefer to stay in the NYC area. </p>

<p>Here's what I am torn between making my degree:</p>

<p>Business Administration BS - dual-concentration in International Business and Human Resources, Minor in Asian Studies</p>

<p>Or</p>

<p>Business Administration BS - International Business, double-Minor in Asian Studies and Chinese</p>

<p>Thanks again, any help is appreciated.</p>

2

<p>I’m no expert, but in my personal opinion, a human resources concentration is not going to add anything to your resume, seeing as you already are majoring in business and getting a concentration in intl business. Furthermore, a Mandarin minor is not going to add anything to your resume seeing as how you’re already getting an Asian Studies minor. The Asian Studies minor is already you “stamp of approval” (not to mention that, in my opinion, minors are generally useless).</p>

<p>Seriously, though, if I could speak a language fluently, I wouldn’t need to get a minor just to “prove” I could speak it fluently. I would say on my resume: “Fluent in ______.” Done. Simple. Within 30 seconds of speaking to me in that language, it’s going to be pretty obvious whether I’m fluent or not.</p>

<p>I would ditch the HR concentration AND ditch the Mandarin minor. Both are not going to add anything to your resume. You would be better off watching Chinese soap operas, reading a newspaper in Chinese every day, taking extra language classes (if they coincide with getting a minor, fine, but don’t take classes just to get that minor), etc.</p>

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<p>The HR concentration wouldn’t add anything even if my other concentration is only International Business? I understand what you are saying about the Chinese minor now, however I still think that the second concentration could be more helpful. However, I don’t know exactly what employers are looking for so you may know better than me.</p>

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<p>I do think HR is a good choice- not for its name value, per se, but the course experience, the familiarity with practices and principles. (That can broaden your job opps, within business or intl business.) As an American, just how fluent in Chinese are you today? If you are thinking you would get a bennie from studying it from scratch, chances are you are going to end up far from the level of true commercial and technical proficiency you’d need in business or the sort of background reading/writing skills expected. Take the classes, sure, but if you find yourself driven to master the language, find one of the intensive, serious, summer programs.</p>

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<p>I started taking Chinese classes at my university last Fall, and I am actually in Beijing right now on a study abroad program taking pretty intensive courses - a ‘full academic year’ of university Chinese done in 8-weeks. My Chinese has definitely gotten all around better, but my vocabulary is still lacking, and I need to work on my speaking and listening too. There’s still a lot of work to be done, but I think I can be business-proficient by the time I graduate if I am dedicated to my studies, which at this point I believe I am.</p>

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<p>Beautiful. You need to be sure you get an intensive, at some point, in business vocab, which is different from ordinary fluency or even university level skills. (There may also be a way to do that as self-study.) You may be able to go back on a business internship. Like your commitment. Good job.</p>

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<p>When you say ‘business vocab’ what kind of words/phrases do you exactly mean?</p>

<p>I do plan on doing my own study as well, especially if I stop taking classes at the university. An internship to come back would be great. Would need to get a lot better, and fast though for that to be doable.</p>

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<p>Business vocab, the words, phrases, style, etc, used in those transactions. In actual business, it’s more than greetings, conversations, commentary, reading prose or even the newspaper. It’s the lingo used in, say, financial news reporting. Eg, overnight interest rate fluctuations and the projections on business lending. It can be a discussion about the costs of hiring additional staff. (Imagine the material and vocab used in your US business classes.) Not everyone will know all the words and phrases- there’s a certan amount of "work around’ you do in any language (even English.) But to sell your skills, you need that familiarity. If you do work in that environment, it’s highly likely a native speaker would take over for the most important work, assist you or proof you. But, this is “practical,” versus, eg, those upper level college classes where you read great lit.</p>