What are the advantages of being bilingual in today´s society?

 

What are the advantages of being bilingual in today´s society?

Nowadays, if you want to be part of what is happening in the world, you have to speak more than one language. Globalization gives us the impression that the world has become a small place, and communicating with people from other countries has become so much easier with the internet fever. That´s why there are many advantages to being bilingual in today´s society.

First of all, when you speak another language, a new world opens up to you. Whichever the language of your choice is, you will to be able to receive and share information about a different culture, which is fascinating and shows that you are an informed person. You will be able to watch or read the news and actually understand what you´re watching or reading; to write, to talk to people; to summarize, to communicate in another language. In today´s word, it´s extremely important to be able to express yourself in a different language.

Second, it has become cheaper to travel to other countries, which can be a real challenge, sometimes not such a pleasant one, if you don´t speak a second language. That bad feeling of being out of context and “illiterate” may accompany you throughout your whole trip if you can only communicate in your own language. We hear so many stories of people who traveled abroad and went through embarrassing situations when trying to communicate in another language but couldn’t do it. For example, I have an aunt who is crazy about her dog, a Yorkshire. She went to New York on vacation and, while walking on the street, she saw this beautiful, huge pet shop and decided to get in. She wanted to buy her dog a collar, but she couldn´t speak a word of English, so she started miming to the salesclerk what she needed. He had no idea of what she was trying to show, so she started imitating a dog, using gestures and barking! Everybody at the store stopped to look at her! She said it was funny, but rather embarrassing. Would you risk being one of those people? Would you want that for your dream vacation? I don’t think so.

Third, if you intend to study abroad as a way of improving your curriculum, be sure that speaking a second language is a pre-requisite for it. If you are bilingual, there is a big possibility that you´ll have access to the best universities in the world. Besides that, if you´re applying for a job spot, you´ll be one step ahead of other candidates. Government departments and companies need people who can communicate well not only in their own language, but in a foreign language, too. That´s why, when looking at your curriculum and seeing that you are bilingual, the recruiter is going to choose you over someone who isn´t.

In conclusion, being bilingual is crucial in today´s world. Those who are not able to speak more than one language are missing numerous opportunities of communicating with people from all over the world, studying in top notch universities, having better jobs, taking better trips and, most importantly, seeing the world from a wider point of view.