Login

Welcome, Guest. Please login or register.

March 29, 2024, 05:14:54 pm

Author Topic: Which language?  (Read 3926 times)  Share 

0 Members and 1 Guest are viewing this topic.

Scrono13

  • Guest
Which language?
« on: January 10, 2015, 12:36:44 am »
0
I have been tossing up between 3 languages for a while now, and can't make up my mind. The three are Spanish, German and Arabic. I'd like to learn Spanish purely for the travel side of things, as there are many countries in which it is very useful.
I'd like to learn German because, as of last year, I'm also an italian citizen, meaning I can work in Europe freely. With Germany being a leader of European affairs, job prospects seem most promising there. Ultimately, with Arabic, I feel it'd be really useful for my chosen career (something in the oil industry), hence making it equally as viable as the other two.. What are your opinions? Which to choose?

sarangiya

  • Victorian
  • Forum Obsessive
  • ***
  • Posts: 457
  • 好きこそものの上手なれ ☆ What one likes, one will do well
  • Respect: +383
Re: Which language?
« Reply #1 on: January 10, 2015, 01:12:59 am »
+3
I have been tossing up between 3 languages for a while now, and can't make up my mind. The three are Spanish, German and Arabic. I'd like to learn Spanish purely for the travel side of things, as there are many countries in which it is very useful.
I'd like to learn German because, as of last year, I'm also an italian citizen, meaning I can work in Europe freely. With Germany being a leader of European affairs, job prospects seem most promising there. Ultimately, with Arabic, I feel it'd be really useful for my chosen career (something in the oil industry), hence making it equally as viable as the other two.. What are your opinions? Which to choose?
Which do you like best?
The answer to that question should no doubt be the answer to which you should choose. If you like it, no matter how hard or boring it is, you will work hard to study it and persevere. That's what you want.
What past experience do you have with that language?
If you're fluent in only English, German or Spanish is most likely your best bet. The grammar isn't as hard to grasp, and the words should be fairly easy to remember and pronounce for an English speaker.
If you speak another European (romance) language (Italian?), do Spanish. Grammar is more or less the same.
If you speak a Middle Eastern language or an African language, choose Arabic.
Of course, before all of that -- whichever one you've learnt the most of.
What are you aiming to get out of learning a language?
If it's a high ATAR, you might want nice scaling. In which case, according to the 2013 scaling report, this would be your preference:
  • German
  • Spanish
  • Arabic
If it's travel like you said, do Spanish. If it's job prospects like you said, do German. If it's for your career, do Arabic.

So:
I have taken a few classes in it already or know a Middle Eastern or African language. I want to learn a language I think will help me in my dream job. I'm not fussy about scaling. I like it.
Arabic
I have taken a few classes in it already or know a romance/European language. I want to learn a language I think will help me travel around the world. Scaling is not a priority. I like it.
Spanish
I have taken a few classes in it already or know English or a European langage. I want to learn a language I think will help me broaden my career prospects. Scaling would help me. I like it.
German
Sometimes you make choices, and sometimes choices make you.

♡ Subjects ♡
2015: Japanese SL [42]
2016: Psychology [43] Philosophy [36] Japanese SL [50] [Premier's Award]
2017: UMEP Further Advanced Japanese [4.5]
2018: Methods [24] English Language [41] Chemistry [31] Psychology [41] Cert III in Allied Health Assistance [4.3]
ATAR: 97.45
2019-2024: Bachelor of Medical Science/Doctor of Medicine @ UNSW

Sarangiya's 사랑하는 VCE Journal
Is Repeating a VCE Subject Worth It?

spectroscopy

  • Honorary Moderator
  • Part of the furniture
  • *******
  • Posts: 1966
  • Respect: +373
Re: Which language?
« Reply #2 on: January 10, 2015, 10:16:07 am »
+4
I have been tossing up between 3 languages for a while now, and can't make up my mind. The three are Spanish, German and Arabic. I'd like to learn Spanish purely for the travel side of things, as there are many countries in which it is very useful.
I'd like to learn German because, as of last year, I'm also an italian citizen, meaning I can work in Europe freely. With Germany being a leader of European affairs, job prospects seem most promising there. Ultimately, with Arabic, I feel it'd be really useful for my chosen career (something in the oil industry), hence making it equally as viable as the other two.. What are your opinions? Which to choose?
i could go on for hours about which languages one should learn or why but these are the three you are interested in so ill help you out.
straight away i can say dont learn arabic. it is very dialect heavy and often not mutually intelligible between different regions. ie gulf arabic is different to egyptian arabic. if you really loved it or something (which you havent indicated) i would still be hesitant to pick it because it is a very difficult language, especially for a non background speaker, as so many aspects of it are so different and unfamiliar to english.

i would say if you are deadly serious about moving to europe and working there then german would be the best to learn, because it will take longer to get good at german then it would to get to a comparable level in spanish, so youre better off starting the german earlier + some jobs you will need german, but travelling in hispanic countries often doesnt require speaking the language to get by. spanish is awesome though and ive been learning it myself lmao but german sounds best for your situation. also dont let the speaker numbers fool you, alot of the spanish speaking countries you will never go to or have any meaningful contact with ie; paraguay, uruguay, honduras. and these countries have pretty big populations for their size so alot of the numbers you see when you see spanish as a hugely spoken language dont really matter. unless you are REALLY and particularly interested in that part of the world, in which case follow your dreams haha

Scrono13

  • Guest
Re: Which language?
« Reply #3 on: January 10, 2015, 11:35:59 am »
0
I should have probably specified, I'm finished year 12 so it has nothing to do with ATAR, and yes I have already learned italian. Thanks for your responses, I think I'm going to go with German.

SkiesTheLimit

  • Victorian
  • Forum Regular
  • **
  • Posts: 73
  • I live and breathe to despise Tottenham Hotspur ;)
  • Respect: 0
  • School Grad Year: 2016
Re: Which language?
« Reply #4 on: January 10, 2015, 11:45:31 am »
0
i could go on for hours about which languages one should learn or why but these are the three you are interested in so ill help you out.
straight away i can say dont learn arabic. it is very dialect heavy and often not mutually intelligible between different regions. ie gulf arabic is different to egyptian arabic. if you really loved it or something (which you havent indicated) i would still be hesitant to pick it because it is a very difficult language, especially for a non background speaker, as so many aspects of it are so different and unfamiliar to english.

i would say if you are deadly serious about moving to europe and working there then german would be the best to learn, because it will take longer to get good at german then it would to get to a comparable level in spanish, so youre better off starting the german earlier + some jobs you will need german, but travelling in hispanic countries often doesnt require speaking the language to get by. spanish is awesome though and ive been learning it myself lmao but german sounds best for your situation. also dont let the speaker numbers fool you, alot of the spanish speaking countries you will never go to or have any meaningful contact with ie; paraguay, uruguay, honduras. and these countries have pretty big populations for their size so alot of the numbers you see when you see spanish as a hugely spoken language dont really matter. unless you are REALLY and particularly interested in that part of the world, in which case follow your dreams haha

I can definitely attest to this, from my experience I've come across situations in which several individuals have tried to communicate in arabic to no avail. It's a very broad language as Spectroscopy says, many different dialects and in fact the religious texts written in arabic are completely different to the arabic that is spoken in just about part of the Arabia/North Africa

In the major oil countries in the gulf (predominantly Qatar/UAE) English will suffice. A majority of the population will be able to speak English fluently and at the very least have some sort of proficiency in the language.

Also consider that Arabic doesn't scale well and from personal experience it is quite hard to grasp certain concepts, you would need to be exposed to the language from a more personal point to actually learn it. Arabic doesn't contain many vowels which makes it hard for non-natives (take this from a guy who can read arabic but can't speak it)

But I should once again relay the fact that it isn't required if you're thinking of a career in those countries. You'll only really learn the language if indeed you need to or if you actually move there on a more permanent basis.

With Spanish and German I can't really comment but if you're thinking about any other languages then also consider French. French and English complement each other quite well and it's relatively easy to pick it up.

So you're making the right decision choosing German.

:)

sarangiya

  • Victorian
  • Forum Obsessive
  • ***
  • Posts: 457
  • 好きこそものの上手なれ ☆ What one likes, one will do well
  • Respect: +383
Re: Which language?
« Reply #5 on: January 10, 2015, 02:52:54 pm »
0
I should have probably specified, I'm finished year 12 so it has nothing to do with ATAR, and yes I have already learned italian. Thanks for your responses, I think I'm going to go with German.

Oh hahaha sorry! I should have looked at your profile lol.
I learnt a little German in the past and really enjoyed it.
Sometimes you make choices, and sometimes choices make you.

♡ Subjects ♡
2015: Japanese SL [42]
2016: Psychology [43] Philosophy [36] Japanese SL [50] [Premier's Award]
2017: UMEP Further Advanced Japanese [4.5]
2018: Methods [24] English Language [41] Chemistry [31] Psychology [41] Cert III in Allied Health Assistance [4.3]
ATAR: 97.45
2019-2024: Bachelor of Medical Science/Doctor of Medicine @ UNSW

Sarangiya's 사랑하는 VCE Journal
Is Repeating a VCE Subject Worth It?

vox nihili

  • National Moderator
  • Great Wonder of ATAR Notes
  • *****
  • Posts: 5343
  • Respect: +1447
Re: Which language?
« Reply #6 on: January 10, 2015, 05:03:30 pm »
0
Spanish is a hell of a lot more influential than a lot of people are giving credit.

  • Most widely spoken of the three by a hell of a long shot
  • If you learn one dialect you'll be able to speak to everyone—e.g. if you learn Spanish in Spain, you'll be able to speak Spanish with no troubles in Argentina
  • Spanish is the second language of the US, is growing and gaining a lot more political traction there
  • The extent of Spanish culture is enormous, one look at the Latin music industry confirms that

German's a good option, but it's somewhat of a fallacy that it's a gateway to Europe. If you want a language that will give you the best chance of speaking with locals in as wide a variety of countries as possible in Europe, that language is English, not German. Spanish is also, despite appearances, a relatively complicated language. Its big bonus is that it has a phonetic system of writing, but otherwise, the grammar is actually quite complicated in comparison to most European languages, French included.
2013-15: BBiomed (Biochemistry and Molecular Biology), UniMelb
2016-20: MD, UniMelb
2019-20: MPH, UniMelb
2021-: GDipBiostat, USyd

Scrono13

  • Guest
Re: Which language?
« Reply #7 on: January 10, 2015, 05:17:25 pm »
0
This is just making me more and more indecisive :/

vox nihili

  • National Moderator
  • Great Wonder of ATAR Notes
  • *****
  • Posts: 5343
  • Respect: +1447
Re: Which language?
« Reply #8 on: January 10, 2015, 06:57:21 pm »
0
This is just making me more and more indecisive :/

Just do what excites you the most and what you're most interested in. Languages chosen for strategic reasons always suck. No matter what language you learn, it'll open doors. I mean, I've done French, Spanish and Serbian to a respectable level in each and Serbian is the language I've got the most mileage out of and it's by far the least influential.
2013-15: BBiomed (Biochemistry and Molecular Biology), UniMelb
2016-20: MD, UniMelb
2019-20: MPH, UniMelb
2021-: GDipBiostat, USyd