German: A Difficult Language With Good Job Prospects
The second-most spoken tongue in Europe and the most popular in the EU, German has plenty in its favor. The language of Goethe and the Grimm Brothers has official status in four countries and co-official in another four.
Although only about 100110 million people speak it, German punches well above its weight. Reasons why your language learning goals should include it? Together, the German-speaking countries rank fifth by volume of books published, and a tenth of all books printed worldwide are in Deutsch. Its the worlds second-most popular scientific language and the third-most commonly used on websites, after English and Russian. It is, however, not the easiest language to learn.
While closely related to English with an estimated 60% of words in common, German is harder to learn than others in the same group, such as Dutch or Luxembourgish. The FSI puts it in its second category they recommend a minimum of 900 hours to fluency, alongside Haitian Creole, Bahasa , and Swahili. Pronunciation and grammatical concepts are cited as the biggest obstacles to mastery, as are cases, verb forms, and articles. In other words nearly everything.
Learning A New Language Will Help You Connect With Locals While Traveling And Expand Your Opportunities To Work And Study Abroad But Choosing The Right One Can Be Challenging Here Are The Most Useful Languages To Learn In 2022
Theres no doubt that learning a second language is beneficial. Bilingualism causes the brain to grow grey matter, improving memory, decision-making, and self-control. Beyond the physical benefits, bilingual travelers immerse themselves easier in countries where they speak the language. The benefits are undeniable, but how do you choose which language to study?
When picking a language, its important to look at your interests as well as travel, education, and career goals. If youre still stuck, however, weve got a few ideas as to which are the best languages to learn in 2022.
Read on to learn more about the best languages to learn in 2022!
Languages Of Future Spanish
After Chinese, Spanish is the second most spoken language in our world. The Spanish language is not restricted to Spain only. You will be very amazed to know that majority of the Spanish speakers reside outside Spain.
People from thirty-one countries around the globe use Spanish as their native language. Out of a total of 513 million speakers 38.3 million people speak Spanish in the USA.
These numbers are thought to go up in the coming years. Spanish holds the status of the official language in many different countries other than Spain. These countries include Canada, Argentina, and Mexico to name a few. All these countries are one of the major economies of the world.
Spanish has the potential of becoming the language of the future. If you are an English speaker and considering learning Spanish then I have good news for you. Learning Spanish is comparatively easy for English speakers. As both these languages belong to the same language family.
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What Language Should I Learn For My Future
With the demands of globalization, people plan their future to meet global standards. Many people consider going abroad to explore and find success. Are you one of those people? If you are, you might want to learn other languages that will surely bring you a kickstart for your future success. So ask yourself, Which language should I learn for my future?. This blog will not give you a concrete answer to that question but will help you find the answer to that question by considering the following factors:
The 8 Most Useful Languages For Your Career

The Indeed Editorial Team comprises a diverse and talented team of writers, researchers and subject matter experts equipped with Indeed’s data and insights to deliver useful tips to help guide your career journey.
Being bilingual has many benefits, especially when applying for jobs. When you can communicate in multiple languages, you expand the client, employer and business partner audiences you can work with.
In this article, we explain how learning additional languages can help expand your job opportunities and list some of the top languages for finding jobs.
Related:
Read Also: What Computer Language Should I Learn
Which Language Is Best For Money
This may surprise many people since one would expect a language with a greater GDP such as Mandarin, Japanese, or Spanish to be associated with higher incomes. While this is true in most situations, Germany is an exception because it is one of the three European powerhouses. This implies that the language will be more commercially valuable for an outsider than the language of a country with a largely closed economy.
Italian: The Language Of Heritage History And The Arts
In more than 34 countries, around 75 million people speak Italian including minority communities in a number of countries such as Malta, Libya, Somalia, Slovenia, Croatia, as well as by expatriate communities in the USA, UK, Argentina, and Australia. Italy is known to be a country that is rich in music, theater and literature thus making Italian the main language of many famous art-related pieces. But beyond the world of the arts, Italian is also useful in the business world since Italy is one of the top economies in the world today.
Why Italian? Many employers are seeking out people who speak Italian since over 7,000 American firms do business with Italy and over a thousand US companies have offices in Italy and as do Italian companies have offices in the US. Italy is one of the top economies in the world, and many employers are seeking people who speak both Italian and English. Knowledge of Italian is definitely an advantage as it is one of the official languages of the European Union.
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What Do We Mean When We Say A Language Is Useful
Useful is a variable term. How useful a language really is to learn depends a lot on your circumstances and your personal reasons for wanting to learn a language. There are, however, a few factors that can be used to quantify usefulness.
To determine how useful it would be for you to learn a specific language, ask yourself the following questions.
Which Language Is Best To Learn For Jobs
According to the Institute of Foreign Languages, Mandarin Chinese, French, German, Spanish, and Japanese are the top five foreign languages studied in India. These languages are often considered the most in-demand job prospects, employment possibilities, and immigration options. While English is the most widely spoken foreign language in India, other foreign languages are rising in popularity among Indians both at home and abroad. Russian, Dutch, Portuguese, Arabic, Italian, Persian, Korean, and other languages are supported.
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What Are The Most Commonly Spoken Languages In The World
According to recent data published by Statista , the following languages are the most widely spoken in 2021.
It’s important to note that the numbers shown below reflect the number of native speakers. Just imagine how much these numbers would increase if you started to include second-language learners too!
1. English 1.34 Billion
It’s no surprise that English is one of the most popular languages in the world, spoken by over 75% of the worlds population. Besides countries like the United States, or the United Kingdom, English is also the official language of South Africa, Singapore, Uganda, Kenya and the Bahamas! English is also taught all over the world in schools and operates widely in the global business world.
2. Mandarin Chinese 1.12 billion
If you want to be able to communicate with a huge part of the world’s population, Mandarin Chinese is the language for you! American Express lists Mandarin Chinese are one of the best languages to learn for business, ideal if you’re hoping to learn a language to accelerate your career.
3. Hindi 600 million
Hindi is the main language in India and is spoken widely across Nepal and Mauritius too. Since these countries, especially India, are so densely populated, its no surprise that Hindi makes the list. The Indian subcontinent is a growing economy gaining interest from a lot of international companies, which makes it a great language to consider as your next challenge!
4. Spanish 543 million
5. Arabic 274 million
The Best Languages To Learn
Here are eight different languages and the factors that make each a useful language to learn, from most commonly spoken to those in high demand in growing industries. Not sure which one to pick? No worries. Rosetta Stone offers an unlimited subscription so you can have access to all our languages for a lifetime of learning.
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Career Prospects With German Fluency
Sprechen Sie Deutsch? If so, job prospects are pretty significant. Germany, of course, is also the biggest economy in the EU the country is home to the European Central Bank and 10.6 million foreigners, or about one in eight residents. With its low unemployment rate , a third of non-EU migrants find work in Germany within a year.
Skilled migrants have a much higher chance of employment after the Fachkräftezuwanderungsgesetz immigration law was passed in December 2018. It makes it easier for employers to fill the 1.2 million vacancies that go empty annually with candidates from outside the EU. In-demand professions include engineering , IT, health and social work, as well as several vocational careers. Youll need at least some German to get a job in Germany, even if you want to teach English. Knowing German is also an asset if youre looking for an executive job in Switzerland the situation is more tenuous in Austria.
Expats looking to acquire German citizenship will need to prove their command of the language. Expaticas guide offers a list of language learning centers in Germany.
Learn A New Language In 2022

At the end of the day, the best language to learn is the language that you are most interested inthat will keep you motivated to study and practice no matter what challenges you face along the way. So whether your dream is to close business deals in Mandarin or make friends with the locals in Egypt, know that your hard work will open up a world of opportunities for you. So why not learn a new language in 2022?
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Best Languages To Learn For Jobs
Learning a common language like Spanish or Chinese can help you communicate with people in dozens of countries. Thus, some of the best languages to learn for a job also happen to be some of the most common. Having both English and another common language in your arsenal will make you a prime candidate for a variety of jobs.
However, if you are looking for a job that is specific to language or translation services, learning a less common language could be a better option. For example, with companies looking for candidates who speak English and Farsi , you could be one of a select number of people who qualify. Not only will this help you secure unique jobs, but it could also help you command a much higher salary.
Finally, its important to note that the most common language required by jobs has nothing to do with spoken words. In fact, some of the best languages to learn for the future are not human languages but computer languages. If you want to get a more technical job, learning the most useful programming languages like JavaScript, Python, or C++ can really help you stand out from the competition. In many cases, you will need to know some or all of these languages just to apply! Heres a more comprehensive list of some of the best computer languages to learn:
Whats The Best Language For International Business
The best language for a business depends on what your business specializes in and where your clients, customers, or business partners are located. English tops the list of those to learn for business purposes since its widely spoken as a second language, but Chinese and Spanish are also gaining influence as the economies and consumer bases of Asia and Latin America grow.
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Languages Of Future Russian
With 150 million speakers Russian languages the official language of around 38 territories. Not only that more than 110 million people speak the Russian language as their second language.
The Russian economy is among one of the largest economies. Russia produces and exports a large variety of products. The Russian Federation is still the largest country in the world. Holds this status even after independence.
The growing economy of Russia makes its language one of the languages of the future.
French: The International Language Of Reference
French is currently the second most widely learned language in the world and is one of the working languages of the United Nations as it has a foothold on five continents, namely Africa, America, Asia, Europe, and Oceania. How is it a language of reference? You see, French is the official language of the International Olympic Committee , the sole language used for the deliberations of the Court of Justice of the European Union, and is widely used in global communication channels. So, from diplomatic realms to international media, French is of great importance.
Why French? France has the fifth largest economy in the world, thus a key economic partner and is the third chosen country for foreign investors and Europes foremost investor abroad. French is also a major language of high tech and business as well as in retailing, automotive, luxury goods and aeronautics.
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How To Get Started Learning
If youre all set to learn any of these languages, the first step I recommend is to Grab an app to help you learn the most common words and phrases, and find another resource to start learning the grammar.
Once youve done that, the fastest way to get started in any language is immersive learning . Of course, if you dont currently live in an area where your target language is spoken, thats a lot harder to achieve. Luckily, there are language learning programs that can help you achieve immersion from home.
FluentU is a program that aims to mimic the immersion no matter where you are through authentic videos with learning features. It builds your vocabulary while you absorb the native sounds of the language with interactive captions, flashcards and a video dictionary.
FluentU has programs for many of the useful languages that we covered above, including Mandarin Chinese, Spanish, Japanese, Russian and French.
So if you want to learn a type of magic more practical than herbology and potions combined, look no further than these 10 useful languages!
This blog post is available as a convenient and portable PDF that you can take anywhere.
Best Language: Mandarin Chinese
China is and remains number on the list of the top 10 biggest economies. Its population growth may be slowing down, but its booming economy makes for it just fine.
Mandarin Chinese belongs to a narrow language family, so it wont help pick up another language easily. But with 1.3 billion native speakers, that shouldnt be a problem. And among all Chinese dialects , it’s number 1 in the number of speakers.
Last, China has a low penetration of English as lingua franca, making learning Mandarin Chinese a must if youve set your eyes on the Middle Kingdom.
Mandarin Chinese Best Language to Learn score breakdown
Best Language to Learn Criterion | Score |
Mandarin Chinese learning difficulty rate:
Super-hard: 88 weeks
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Which Programming Language Should You Learn
Some programmers are able to build a career out of being an expert in one language, but many programmers learn new languages frequently, Gorton says. Its not uncommon for a professional programmer to be fluent in three or four different languages, he adds.
The type of software you want to develop is one consideration for which programming languages to learn. While there are no concrete rules for what language is used to write what software, a few trends offer some guidance:
- Web-based startups are more likely to be programming in Python and JavaScript.
- Larger companies tend to develop their internal software applications using C# or Java and their Web applications using PHP.
- Programs for data analytics typically use the R and MATLAB programming languages.
- Embedded devices, such as those in the automotive and healthcare industries, run software written in C, C++, or Rust.
- Applications that run on the cloud are increasingly written in Go or Scala.
- Mobile applications are increasingly written in Swift or Kotlin.
If youre looking to start a career in programming, the Master of Science in Computer Science Align program at Northeastern can help you develop expertise and fluency with the popular programming languages that align with your skills and interests.
About Brian Eastwood
Spanish: The Most Widespread Language

Spanish is one of the most widespread languages with over 470 million native speakers, only second to Mandarin Chinese. Learning Spanish opens doors to not only Latin American countries but also the United States. In fact, many organizations also have Spanish as their language for business. According to the British Council, 34% of UK businesses said that Spanish was useful to their organization. This is because Spanish is a language of high growth markets and other developing countries in Central and South America. As for the US standpoint, Spanish is also of the essence since over 30% of the US population are Hispanics today, and over 60 million Hispanics are projected to live there by 2020. This means that even without going beyond America, Spanish can be very useful in daily life.
Why Spanish? Being able to communicate in Spanish is also highly transferable in learning other languages, such as Portuguese, Italian, and French. Speaking to a more connected language such as Spanish will make it easier to spread your idea, message, or impact. It also opens up more opportunities for travel and immersion, from Central and South America to Europe. Spanish is the third common language on the internet.
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