Languages open doors to opportunities

Hospitals are in constant need of interpreters to connect
patients to doctors. The U.S. Department of Justice revealed in
2004 that the FBI had accumulated 120,000 hours of untranslated
recordings potentially related to terrorism. Multinational
corporations are looking to increase market share in China and
other countries.

With employers in the private and public sectors exploring
operations on a global scale, gaining fluency in a second language
or preserving a native language can provide countless opportunities
to graduates.

“As we have many more bilingual consumers and individuals
who make up our society … multiple languages make sense,”
said Kathy Sims, director of the UCLA Career Center.

Sims said as long as students do not embellish their skills to
employers, learning a second language can only help with job
prospects.

Not all languages lead to the same opportunities, however.

Arabic, Korean, Russian, Persian and Chinese speakers are sought
after by the U.S. government, said Olga Kagan, director of
UCLA’s Center for World Languages.

Though it takes years and dedication to develop superior
abilities, particularly with tongues such as Arabic and Russian
that are very different from English, “the payoffs are
there,” Kagan said.

In the wake of Sept. 11, U.S. officials, realizing how few
Americans were capable of filling vital roles in translation, made
plans to encourage the study of certain languages by funding new
advanced programs.

Besides offering programs for new learners, UCLA and other
universities provide courses to native speakers who use the
language at home but lack the vocabulary and expertise to translate
at a higher level or in technical settings.

Phil Han, associate director at the UCLA Anderson School of
Management’s Parker Career Management Center, said many
companies are willing to hire native speakers and help them acquire
the vocabulary necessary to work in a business environment.

Speaking is often prized over reading and writing, but all
skills are useful, he said. Understanding local culture can also be
key.

Han said languages valuable to the government may not always
correspond with those sought after in other sectors.

Arabic may be less interesting to corporate employers, many of
whom are seeking to expand sales in South America, where Spanish is
the desired skill, he said.

Mandarin is even more attractive, with companies noting the
consistent growth and stability of China’s economy, Han
said.

It is difficult to get hired by institutions outside the U.S.
because of visa and immigration barriers, but many American
companies send their workers overseas. Graduates working in foreign
countries may be paid less than what they would be paid in the
U.S., but generally they are compensated enough to live well
abroad, Han said.

He added that a common misconception in today’s world is
that English will serve anyone anywhere.

“It’s not just where there’s this universal
language,” Han said.

“Companies these days do value a second-language skill.
… Everybody has an aspiration to be global,” he said.

Knowledge of languages can help graduates make contributions to
fields outside their expertise. Health care often requires the use
of interpreters who link caregivers to patients.

Doctors and nurses who speak second languages can comfort
patients, but usually do not act as translators for colleagues at
the expense of time spent on medical duties, said Gerald Kominski,
associate dean for academic programs at the UCLA School of Public
Health.

Full-time translators hired by insurers, hospitals or doctors in
medical groups work on-site or over the phone.

Besides Spanish and Chinese, California health plans also tend
to provide interpretations in Russian, Vietnamese, Tagalog, Hmong,
Persian, Armenian, Korean, Arabic and Khmer, Kominski said.

For people without public health training, taking a job in
translation is a way to provide valuable services and acquire more
information about the field. Many who choose this line of work
pursue a degree in public health later, Kominski added.

Listings on Craigslist.org give a glimpse into the varied
opportunities language can provide.

A government agency in Los Angeles is seeking bilingual
paralegals to do case research in Spanish.

A travel agency in Boston has an opening for Russian and
Ukrainian speakers.

A Chicago firm is looking for a financial auditor, preferably
one who knows Chinese.