Foreign language learning trend catches up in Jaipur as companies hike salary packages

Jaipur: Lucrative career options and a hefty salary have led to a spurt in foreign language learning in Jaipur. Several of the city’s youths are learning languages like Spanish and Chinese to chart a new career path.

The PinkCity Post spoke to several language experts to understand the opportunities in foreign languages.

Career opportunities & scope in foreign languages

According to Mayank, a resident of the city who an expert in Spanish, the career opportunities in tourism, BPO, translation, hospitality and publishing are immense. Several multi-national companies are facing a dearth of qualified translators. There are also job prospects in areas such as public relations, communication, education and media. “If you have a command over English along with a foreign language, then sky is the limit. Proficient language experts can earn up to 12 lakhs annually. Companies are always hunting for those who have archived high competence in the area,” he said.

Another growing area is export and import industry where language translators are always in high-demand.

Foreign language career in Jaipur

Many students who learnt foreign languages like Spanish, French and Russian join tourism industry. They often visit abroad to give presentations and seminars on tourism. Major tourist companies in India have their offices across Rajasthan where they hire language experts. Also, BPO companies have their sublets in Jaipur that work for engineering and telecom companies.

Languages with growing career opportunities

Chinese

There are over a billion people who speak Chinese or Mandarin, which is according to one estimate is 16 percent of the world’s population that speaks Chinese.  China itself is emerging as a new world power, which is estimated to take over the USA in the economic fray. A manufacturing powerhouse, the country has several companies across India which require translators. According to Sakshi Sharma, an expert in Mandarin, the demand for Chinese speakers is growing steadily in the country. “Learning Mandarin is not easy, it is a very sprawling language and may take years to grasp in its full totality,” she said.

Spanish

With over 500 million speakers across 20 countries, it is the second most spoken language in the world. Recent reports suggest that Spanish has now become a major global language. Several linguistics believe that Spanish is very easy for Indians to learn due to syntax and easy grammar rules. Apart from ever-growing demands in BPO and KPO, there is a huge demand for Spanish speakers in engineering, export, import, pharmaceutical, and telecom industries. Spanish is also the second most spoken language in the USA, not to mention India’s increasing ties with countries of South America like Brazil and Mexico have forged new business and industry relations.

German

 Germany is a major economic leader in Europe. The country’s influence in engineering and automobile remains unrivalled. Opportunities for translators are galore in areas like automobile, aviation, engineering, textile, and IT. According to experts, the German investment in India has increased manifold in the past several years, thereby several German companies investing in the country pay German expert hefty salaries, especially if you are very proficient in it.

French

French is one of the most widely taught foreign languages in India. Several schools offer French as an optional as early as 9^th standard. France along with Germany, UK, and the USA remain the favorite student destinations for India. French is also widely spoken in Canada where several Indians go every year for employment and education. According to experts, it is also one of the most competitive languages in India due to the increasing number of students who are trained in the language every year in schools and colleges. Therefore, a very high proficiency is requisite to carve a career in French in India. The best French speakers in India tend to venture into teaching, while also giving freelance translation services in tourism and hospitality, especially in Jaipur where French tourists visit every year.

Russian

India’s relation with Russia is also intertwined due to a strong nostalgia for former Soviet days. Russian magazines and books, translated in Hindi were widely popular, writers like Gorky and Tolstoy are household names in India. After Russia’s decline in the 1990s due to the disintegration of the USSR, its language also lost much of its sheen. However, in the past decade, Russian has rekindled a new wave of affection in India. Apart from areas like Engineer and oil and gas, the Russian language offers a career in translation and tourism. The business ties are increasing between the two countries, export and imports is improving and Russian tourists in India visit cities like Pushkar every year. A career in Russian can give new wings to your career, partly because it is less completive in terms of foreign language learning in India.