Lucrative jobs for multilingual professionals
NIVEDITA GANGULY
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Proficiency in a foreign language has become an increasingly important asset in an interdependent world economy
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With cross-border networking and business alliances becoming commonplace, there are several lucrative career opportunities for qualified multilingual professionals.
Proficiency in a foreign language has become an increasingly important asset in an interdependent world economy where different cultures are intricately interconnected via technology.
Diverse areas
A lot of language experts now use their language skills in areas as diverse as international business, journalism, environmental studies, or public affairs and are also studying foreign languages with an eye on careers as translators, interpreters or teachers.
Thorough training
For the foreign language specialist, thorough training in a foreign language is indispensable. He or she translates, interprets, or teaches in one or more foreign languages.
“In many other professions, knowledge of one or more foreign languages greatly enhances job qualifications. Social services, health and medical services, business and trade, travel industry, legal profession and law enforcement are just a few examples of professions in which foreign language skills are actively sought by employers,” says Michael Detha, Director of Institute of Foreign Languages (Academie De Langues Etrangeres) in Visakhapatnam. The institute offers certificate courses in French and German and will shortly start courses in Spanish and Japanese.
German in demand
One of the foreign languages, which are gaining increasing importance, is German. Germany being Europe’s most populous and economically strongest nation with which India’s trade is expanding, offers plenty of career opportunities.
Most of the major universities in the country offer diploma, degree or certificate courses in foreign languages. Admission conditions differ from university to university, but most degree courses are open to graduates of any discipline. Those who have acquired graduate-level proficiency in foreign languages can go for the Master’s programmes at selected universities. The English and Foreign Languages University (Hyderabad) offers courses in foreign languages from zero-level to Ph.D programmes. The thrust areas covered in the MA and Post-MA Courses are Language, Literature, Methodology, Culture and Civilizations, Linguistics, and Translation.
At the Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) School of Languages, New Delhi, a five-year integrated MA programme in foreign languages like German, French, Russian, Spanish, Chinese and Japanese is offered for Plus-Two level students. This is one of the most comprehensive courses in foreign languages available in the country. Other reputed universities and schools offering graduate and postgraduate study programmes are: School of Foreign Languages, Delhi University, Viswa Bharati University, Shantiniketan, Goethe Institute, New Delhi, Foreign Language Studies, Pune University.
Alliance Francaise offers basic level courses, two intermediate levels and two advanced level courses in French. The best institute for learning German is, however, the Max Mueller Bhavan (MMB) which has branches in Mumbai, Pune, Bangalore, Kolkata, Chennai, Hyderabad and New Delhi. MMB offers three elementary level courses and intermediate level courses.
“There is a rising demand for secretary linguists who can do secretarial work in English and one or more languages,” says Michael.
There is a lot of money in translation jobs even after passing the higher intermediate level.
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