English is "the business" language of the world. English is the third most spoken language and the most commonly studied language (which means there is one new speaker for every three native speakers).
Being a native English speaker is a huge advantage in your professional life, but it is not enough. Today, it is necessary to be at least fluent in two languages if you want to grow up in your career and earn more money.
You can think I am exaggerating. Maybe, I am. However, the US is a country full of immigrant families, full of people who speak English since forever at the school and another language at home (yes, I envy them too), full of first generations of immigrants who are native in another language, but they speak English (yes, with an accent, with errors, but they speak English). Also, there is a world full of countries where people are learning English. Yes, the competition is immense.
I want to add that studying another language can make the difference in getting your dream job. And, don't forget there are several good universities in other countries where you can get your graduate degree and have a "one time in life" experience.
The good news is you can learn a second language. I am not talking about taking two courses at college; it is to speak, read and speak fluently another language. I am saying you have to spend time learning a new code of words and new phonetic sounds.
I have some suggestions about which new language you can learn.
1. Spanish.
It is the second most spoken language in the US. Each day, there are more companies demanding bilingual Spanish-English professionals. It is easy to find classes in Spanish everywhere and people who can practice with us. Also, it is an excellent excuse to travel and discover amazing countries (starting with Spain).
2. French.
I think French is so sophisticated and beautiful. Everything sounds better in French or with a French accent. There are 55 countries in the world where French is the formal language (even more than Spanish with 33). And, it is the best excuse to use if you want to stay in Paris for a while.
3. Mandarin.
We called it Chinese, but there is no Chinese language. Inside China, people speak more than language; Mandarin is the most spoken in China and the world (1.39 billion of people). However, the point of learning Mandarin is not the number of speakers; it is the fact China is an economic power. Then, there will be more jobs asking for bilingual Mandarin-English. And, I think it is funny to learn a language where the letters, words, and sounds are so different than ours.
4. Japanese.
The reasons to study Japanese are the same than learning Mandarin: the economic growth of these countries. Also, the host town of the next Summer Olympic Games is Tokyo in 2020; it will be amazing to go, support our teams and speak Japanese for the occasion. I want to add that Japan has good programs for international graduate students.
5. Korean.Â
Several of the tech companies in the world are from South Korea. If you want to work with the most important brands of smartphones, computers, tablets or TVs, you should learn Korean. Another important piece of information is South Korea has excellent universities for your graduate degrees.
6. PortugueseÂ
Learning Portuguese is a good option if you research how important Brazil is in our region. Brazil is the second economy of America and the first one in Latin America. Also, in Florida, there are many jobs offers requesting Portuguese speakers.
7. Italian.
Studying Italian is the best excuse to go to Italy and have the best time of your lives (yes, Italy is like all the movies showed us).
These seven are some of my suggestions, but if you want to learn another language is perfect. The objective is to understand how important is for our careers to study a second language.
