Across languages

An expression of thoughts, language is a vital tool for conveying ideas and managing daily affairs.

An expression of thoughts and an embodiment of culture, language is a vital tool for conveying ideas and managing daily affairs. Apart from the essential mastership over Urdu, as a nation we are highly conscious about keeping our English up to the mark. In spite of being one of the leading languages of the world, acquiring skills only in English is not enough anymore, particularly not for someone with high aspirations.

For people going abroad in search of greener pastures, learning a foreign language can be the key between success and failure. Being equipped with essential knowledge of a foreign language helps the society assimilate the person better, stripping misunderstandings and providing greater job prospects.

“For anyone who intends to go abroad for study purposes, work or settle down, learning one of the leading foreign languages is an absolute necessity. It can benefit in countless ways from helping the immigrant convey themselves better to improving their quality of work,” says Lt Col (retd) Tanvir Zia, Director National University of Modern Languages (NUML) Karachi.

With four campuses throughout Pakistan, NUML is the only university in the country offering courses in 23 languages, both regional and foreign. Apart from English, the Karachi campus teaches Arabic, German and French. Their courses, both certificate and diploma, concentrate on four principles — spoken, written, reading and listening.

“People take up the courses in two counts. Most of them learn the language before going abroad while some do it out of sheer interest. Many students also come here when they find out about specific opportunities where learning the native language is a must. For example, when Germany announced free education for students who had learnt German, many aspiring students came to us and took courses in German,” adds Zia.

It’s never too late for learning a language. Seventy-year-old Anwar Ghani Khan, who has completed his MBA, LLB, and courses in mind sciences, is currently taking French classes at NUML so that it helps him in Canada. “I love reading and learning new things and since I want to set up my business in Canada, I thought it was wise to take up the course so I can communicate with my customers better and thereby improve the chances of my business prospering there,” says Khan.

Learning a second language can have countless boons and for people intending on going abroad, it is a necessity, says Mubeen Esmail, Director Education, Inspire Education and Information Systems. At Inspire, courses in Arabic, Spanish, Italian, French and German are designed in a way that by the end of the course the student can easily communicate with a vocabulary of 1,000 most commonly used words and speak the most common sentences of that particular language fluently.  “Depending upon the destination it is essential for every person going abroad to learn at least the basics of a widely spoken language there, before they leave. It helps them alleviate their immigration process, manoeuvre themselves better in the society, ease their job hunt, get higher pay scales, extra credits at schools and gain appreciation from the locals,” adds Esmail.

The benefits of being bilingual are not restricted to people going abroad; rather one can reap its benefits staying in Pakistan as well. Nations are no more bound by time or space for growing their affiliations and expanding their businesses internationally but the only hindrance faced by companies or people is the language barrier. Therefore, several multinational companies that intend on spreading their arteries throughout the world seek to employ people who can help them overcome this obstacle.

An employee who can communicate with foreign clients in their native language is an asset for a company. Additionally, expertise in languages can open career avenues in the travel and tourism industries, hotels, and call centres in Pakistan. Moreover, at places where the competition is tough it can give you an edge over other people and help you stand out amongst others for a position. Multilingual Dr Mohammad Mutal Siddiqui can speak six languages including English, French, German, Arabic and Persian. For him his skills have aided him throughout his vast experiences and travels in life. He says that on multiple occasions his language abilities have provided him with special attention from foreigners and preference as a candidate for a job here and abroad.  “Every language you learn widens your influence on people and you keep adding personalities within yourself, by connecting yourself with more cultures and helping you choose the best of other cultures and avoiding their mistakes,” says Siddiqui.

Currently, educationists put French as the second most preferred language and say that it can come in handy throughout the world. It can help people cash job opportunities in many countries where French is widely spoken as at present 28 countries have French as their official language. Additionally, Spanish, German and Italian are the leading languages that can broaden a person’s career horizon tremendously. Though one can hardly think of any disadvantage of learning any language but making a choice for a particular language should be made meticulously and factors such as language’s applicability and advantages of learning it should be kept in mind.

Published in The Express Tribune, December 19^th, 2010.