Multilingualism is seen by many companies in Switzerland as a basic requirement when it comes to hiring new employees, especially in senior positions. This means that in addition to the regional national language, at least one foreign language should be spoken well to very well. Which language this is depends heavily on the location of the company, its business and trading partners and the industry. Anyone thinking about attending an Italian course to refresh their language skills or even build up completely new ones is not badly advised. After all, Italian is the sixth most spoken language in Europe and is understood and spoken by more than 70 million people worldwide. With a good knowledge of Italian, e.g. from an Italian course, coupled with a very good knowledge of German, and at best a good knowledge of English or French, many new career opportunities open up in German-speaking Switzerland, Ticino or abroad.
But are the Swiss even interested in an Italian course? Are Italian language courses actually sought after and in demand in Switzerland? If you take a look at the average monthly search queries in this area, you can clearly see that the Swiss are interested in this topic. Up to 10,000 search queries per month can be found for the term "learn Italian" and the terms "Italian course" and "Italian course", but also "Apprendre l'italien" and "learn italien" are searched for up to 1,000 times a month on Google. These figures clearly show that people with different language backgrounds would like to learn Italian and are looking for suitable courses.
The language most commonly used in everyday working life varies depending on the language region. In German-speaking Switzerland, for example, German and Swiss German are mainly spoken, in Ticino mainly Italian and in French-speaking Switzerland mainly French. However, none of the language regions can manage entirely without foreign language skills. More than 40% of all employees in Switzerland need to speak another language at their workplace at least once a week, according to aSurvey by the Federal Statistical Office FSOfrom 2014, which was published in 2018. But which languages are most needed in the professional world? Throughout Switzerland, High German and Swiss German dominate the job market, with 68% and 60% of the workforce using them regularly respectively. 36% of all employees regularly need to speak French, 32% English and just under 10% Italian.
Anyone who would like to attend an Italian course to improve their Italian language skills therefore has a good chance of getting ahead professionally in Switzerland. As the survey also showed, in German-speaking Switzerland alone, 7% of employees regularly use Italian in their everyday work, while in Italian-speaking Switzerland - unsurprisingly - as many as 96% of employees do so. In Switzerland as a whole, 8.7% of people in employment would therefore like to learn Italian for their job, in German-speaking Switzerland the figure is as high as 14.1%.
The language skills acquired in an Italian course can be extremely useful in a wide variety of areas and sectors in Switzerland. First and foremost, of course, in tourism, the hotel industry and gastronomy. Anyone looking for a job in Ticino in one of these sectors with a good knowledge of Italian, who also speaks excellent German and sometimes also good English, will certainly soon find what they are looking for, as language skills are indispensable, especially in tourism and the hotel industry. The financial sector is also an important economic sector in Ticino, but industry (chemicals, pharmaceuticals, electromechanics, electronics, clothing) and energy supply and distribution are also important employers.
But not everyone who has attended an Italian course and now has a good command of Italian wants to go to Ticino to find a new career. And that's not even necessary. After all, as the above-mentioned study showed, 7% of professionals in German-speaking Switzerland also use Italian at work, and do so regularly. Here, too, it is mainly tourism and the hotel industry where knowledge of Italian is of great benefit, but trading companies, transport companies, insurance companies and clinics, communications companies and banks also often give preference to applicants with a good knowledge of Italian. Above all as a clerk, whether import/export, internal sales, order processing, accounts payable processing or administration, as a sales manager or sales consultant, receptionist, guest advisor, hotel and catering tourism clerk HGT, tourism specialist, as a hotel specialist, in technical customer service or customer service, in telephone marketing, as a tour guide, in purchasing, nursing and legal advice, you can often score points with Italian language skills that you have built up or deepened in an Italian course, as well as in numerous other professions.
Good to very good foreign language skills, which can be acquired in an Italian course, have been proven to contribute to a higher salary, according to Professor Grin from the University of Geneva. According to his study, employees can receive up to 25% more pay if they have a good to very good command of a foreign language. Knowledge of Italian can also have a positive effect on salary, provided it is required or desired for a job or position. An Italian course can therefore pay off for you. Professionally and financially, however, mainly if you can actually use your Italian language skills in your job. A few things that speak in favor of an Italian course.
Linda, deine Weiterbildungsfinderin
