6.2 Other skills

Week 7 will introduce you to more language-related skills developed by learners of French, such as translation and intercultural communication skills. However, through your studies you will also learn a range of skills that are not specifically related to languages.

Linguists are highly skilled individuals and professionals, whether or not they use their language skills in their daily life or work. This course so far has stressed that learning a language involves much more than just learning new words. By progressively getting used to different sounds, different structures, and different cultural references, linguists develop problem-solving skills, agile thinking, flexibility, openness, and many more attributes which are highly sought after by employers. They also develop academic skills (e.g. citing sources), digital skills (e.g. using online forums or digital dictionaries) and general communication skills which make them well-rounded learners.

At The Open University, for example, language courses incorporate the development of a broad range of skills, represented visually by Figure 10.

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Figure 10 Skills developed by French language learners

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This diagram shows the skills developed by French language learners at the Open University. At the centre is ‘Language studies curriculum’. Numerous boxes encircle the centre, with arrows pointing in to show that these skills feed into the curriculum. These skills are: Themes, lexical competence, grammatical competence, phonological competence, language skills, intercultural communication competence, knowledge of the world, text types, academic skills, digital and information literacy skills, employability and professional skills, translation skills.

Figure 10 Skills developed by French language learners

To hear about some personal examples of transferable skills developed by language learners, watch the video below in which languages graduates talk about acquiring these skills and how they’ve benefited their careers, which span many different fields.

Download this video clip.Video player: Video 1 How languages can take your career further

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Transcript: Video 1 How languages can take your career further

[PHONE RINGING]

JULIAN SMITH

(occupation: Recruitment Consultant)

I studied French and Italian at university, and have self-taught Spanish and Portuguese. The interesting thing is I don’t actually get to use my language skills at work, but I do feel they have contributed overall to both my sales skills, and also made me into a more confident communicator. It’s probably for this reason that I look for the ability to speak a second language whenever I’m recruiting staff for my own business. It makes for a well-rounded employee.

ON-SCREEN TEXT

There is a shortage of language skills in the UK.

[PHONE RINGING]

CAROLINE RAULT

(occupation: Artist)

Knowing French and knowing Italian and Russian Creole has really helped me be a better artist in a lot of ways. So I tend to paint, or make prints, about things that I imagine. And I wonder if knowing lots of languages means that you have a wider range of metaphors or visual symbols to draw on. Languages have really, really, really formed me as a person. I just think it changed my brain. It did something to it. It changed my neural pathways.

ON-SCREEN TEXT

70% of business owners have no foreign language skills. (Source: British Chamber of Commerce)

[PHONE RINGING]

DAVID GARRIDO

(occupation: Sky Sports News Presenter)

There are so many advantages to speaking languages. In my job, we use it to speak to foreign clubs, foreign players, check on transfer news, check if stories in the papers are true. Sometimes I even have to translate live on air, if the club releases a press statement.

ON-SCREEN TEXT

Language graduates are in high demand.

[PHONE RINGING]

KEEN POON

(occupation: Management Consultant)

Speaking Mandarin has made work life a lot easier. The most recent meeting I had in Hong Kong, I was able to use it to great effect. The majority of the attendees were Chinese, and the fact that I offered Mandarin as a secondary option for them to explain themselves and explain their ideas made the meeting go a lot smoother, and enabled everyone to be a lot more comfortable during the meeting.

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77% of firms identify the need for foreign language skills. (Source: CBI/Pearson Education and Skills survey 2015)

[PHONE RINGING]

RACHEL BLEETMAN

(occupation: Graduate Intern, Foreign and Commonwealth Office)

Being able to speak Arabic definitely helped me get into this internship at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office. My language skills were especially important when I was working for an NGO, where I was required to translate documents from Hebrew into Arabic. This specific task illustrated to me that language learning isn’t just about communication, but it also helps with other capabilities, such as problem-solving.

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Language graduates are highly employable.

[PHONE RINGING]

SIR MICHAEL BRADY

(occupation: Professor of Oncological Imaging)

I started learning French again at the age of 49. The difference it’s made has been really quite remarkable. I started talking to a lot of people in French industry that I wouldn’t have been able to speak to before. And that meant that not only were we beginning to get research collaborations, we are starting to see top quality French students come and work in my company, on my labs.

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88% of language graduates are in employment or training 6 months after graduation. (Source: Higher Education Statistics Agency)

[PHONE RINGING]

ETIENNE LAMY-SMITH

(occupation: AFP Journalist)

I started learning Mandarin in order to do a job that I was already doing, but in a different country. And having learnt the language to a level where I could be conversational, I was then able to get exactly the job I wanted. As a journalist, it’s very important to be able to understand as much as possible by yourself. It’s useful having a translator, but there's only so much they can translate. And if you can understand the language, you can have a closer connection to the person you’re interviewing, to make the story stronger.

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60% of employers are concerned about school-leavers’ foreign language skills. (Source: Higher Education Statistics Agency)

[PHONE RINGING]

MORGAN PHILLIPS

(occupation: Educational Materials Producer)

I think the other thing with having a language is, it helps you think outside the box, because when you’re trying to translate something – whether it’s grammar or even just a sense of humour thing which doesn’t translate literally – you have to find another way to approach the situation.

ON-SCREEN TEXT

Language graduates develop core skills highly prized by employers.

End transcript: Video 1 How languages can take your career further

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Video 1 How languages can take your career further