Career prospects for language students

Career prospects for language students

A knowledge of one or more foreign languages can be useful in a wide range of careers. For some jobs, such as translating, interpreting and language teaching, language skills are one of the main requirements. For other jobs a combination of languages and other qualifications, knowledge or skills may be needed. For example, people with languages plus IT, law, finance or sales skills are much sought-after. Skills in foreign languages like French, German, Russian, Chinese and more recently Japanese, Spanish and Korean are in great demand.

Working as a translator, interpreter, language teacher you'll need an in-depth knowledge of one or more foreign languages. Freelancers don't necessarily need to speak foreign languages, but such knowledge can be useful for them.

Teaching is the most common of all the available career options in foreign language. As a teacher, a person gets enough opportunities to increase the skills. As far as teaching jobs are concerned, many institutions are offering courses in foreign languages and so jobs exist at all levels. Those reluctant to engage themselves in a full-time profession, can take private tuition as well.

Interpreters and translators both need to have a good command over two or more languages. Interpreters job relates to interpreting spoken words of one language into another, therefore needs to have not only a good command over the language but have excellent verbal communication skills.

The job of an interpreter can be of different types. Sometimes they are engaged in simultaneous interpretation, which is used for meetings, conferences, speeches.  Consecutive interpreting goes on during formal speeches where the speaker halts for a while when the interpreter interprets the spoken statements to the audience.  Interpreters accompany business groups and official delegations on overseas trips and they are in great demand for technical translation.

Translation work can be related to a variety of fields like technical, scientific literary or business. Translators work on books, scripts, articles and translate them into specified languages. Apart from having linguistic skills, a translator must possess adequate knowledge in the area of the work so as to maintain the style and essence of the original text.

Often, after pursuing courses in foreign languages, people like to work as freelancers. These people get work in translation bureaus, research organisations, international organisations like UNO, FAO, foreign companies. Expertise in foreign language coupled with other additional qualifications in areas like management, tourism, hospitality industry, airlines can be even fruitful and better the chances for employment opportunities.

To my mind all these professions are very interesting, but I am dying to work as either interpreter or freelancer. And for example, I wouldn’t mind working in a travel agency. I’m a kind of person who finds it boring to stay too long in one place, I begin to get itchy feet.  I’m very much into travelling and enjoy talking challenges and meeting a lot of people. Every time it’s like new experience. End it would help me to update my knowledge of the languages. So I’m still in two minds what career to choose. But there is some time left to make up my mind