Novel tongues translate into success: leader

There are more job opportunities for students of less-commonly taught languages than for those who major in English, the president of China's leading foreign language university said.

"Students majoring in those less-commonly used languages, such as Spanish and Portuguese, almost all have found jobs this year," said Han Zhen, president of Beijing Foreign Studies University.

"This year, often described as 'the hardest year to find a job', more than 90 percent of our students have jobs, and students in those two majors have all been given work. It's not only because of the popularity of Spain and Portugal, but of Latin America and Africa," Han said.

According to statistics from BFSU, up to July 1, 92.77 percent of graduates from the university have landed jobs. Students majoring in French, Polish, Hungarian and Japan are also attracting employers.

Founded in Yan'an in 1941, the BFSU was China's first institution specializing in foreign languages.

Dubbed the "diplomat's cradle", the university has seen more than 400 graduates become ambassadors.

There are 58 languages taught in the university with four just approved by the Ministry of Education.

"Up to now, the languages taught in BFSU have covered all the official languages in Europe and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations," Han told China Daily. "This year, we are preparing to start courses in Amharic, Pushtu, Sanskrit, Pali and Kirghiz. Our next goal is to cover all the languages in Asia and Africa."

By 2020, BFSU plans to teach 70 languages, with the ultimate goal of 90.

"As China opens more and more to the world, more and more young people in China can speak foreign languages, especially English. So, we have to seek new advantages," said Han, who took the position of president about one year ago.

"Therefore, we are aiming at bringing up students with multi-language skills and multiple-skills other than languages. Mastering a foreign language better is only a basic requirement for students right now. We require the students to learn at least three languages. We also have schools or departments of international politics, international law, economy, finance and media."

Han believed that the internationalization of the campus is another point for his university to be proud of.

"We are always making an effort to create an international atmosphere for the students on campus, since internationalization is the reason why BFSU exists," Han said.

"We have more than 7,000 students here, some 1,000 are foreign. Of the more than 600 teachers, about 140 are foreigners. Students who major in those less-commonly used languages all have a chance to study in countries where the language is spoken, for up to a year."