So you want to study language and linguistics but you’re not sure what career you could end up with. Don’t fret – your career options don’t stop at teacher and translator. As a language major or graduate, you’ll be equipped with skills that come in handy particularly in global relationships. Your analytical and cross-cultural skills will also be in demand across many sectors of business and industry.
Here are 10 sectors you can explore.
| Industry | Brief Description |
|---|---|
| Advertising and PR | The communications skills that modern language students will gain are particularly valuable for marketing, advertising and PR careers. You creativity and communication skills will help you in marketing a product, service, organization or individual to the world. |
| Consultancy | Linguists can provide a better understanding of language use, pronunciation and practice. You could train actors in pronunciation, intonation, and different elements of grammar in order to sound like real speakers of a language or dialect; or advise news presenters on how to pronounce foreign names. Consultants are also sought to provide historical accuracy in language use, for example when filming historical TV programmes. |
| Education | Share your love of language with others! There are opportunities not just as a teacher—you can also get involved in curriculum development, research, assessment, education policy, and more. |
| Information technology | Are you a language lover who is also an IT geek? You can pursue your interests in natural language processing, speech recognition, speech synthesis, language data analysis, speech technology, automatic translation, computer-mediated language learning, and more. |
| International relations | With the knowledge of another language, you’ll be able to work in international relations—a field that deals with the complexities of relationships between different countries. |
| Journalism and publishing | Whether you work as a reporter for your local paper or a foreign correspondent, the skills you gained in learning an additional language will help you investigate and write your stories with a more critical eye. Don’t like reporting? You can still work in publishing as a writer or editor. |
| Public service | A multilingual proficiency may be especially useful in the foreign and home office (diplomatic service, immigration, border control, national security and police). |
| Retail or trade | Whether working as a buyer or seller, your language and cultural skills give you an edge when it comes to communicating with customers. Also, the ability to speak a foreign language is always a plus! |
| Translation | Skilled translators and interpreters are needed everywhere, from government to entertainment to courts of law. |
| Travel, tourism and hospitality | As one of the fastest growing industries around the world, there is plenty of opportunity in travel and tourism. Your expertise will give you a better understanding of not just a language but of other cultures as well. |
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