Postby mthornt1 » Sat Jan 01, 2022 7:06 am
So I'm super late to this conversation, but this interests me. Really it depends on the role. I've been a recruiter for a couple large, multi-national corporations, and currently work for one founded in Sweden that probably everyone on this thread is familiar with...
The language component sometimes just comes down to the market you're in. Someone living in Spain, Belgium, Canada, USA, etc... where there is more than 1 official language, or a strong presence of a 2nd language, and sometimes 3rd language is a definite tie-breaker even if that specific role doesn't require it. However not once in my career so far has anyone decided the language ability of someone based on an exam result on their resume (however just being able to add proficiency in a relevant language to that market will help in landing an interview). If the role requires a certain language, we ALWAYS have a native speaker or speakers who currently work for the company give us their evaluation of the candidate's language ability and include them in the interview process to insure the candidate can perform to the level they describe. Most recruiters, unless interested in language learning themselves, will simply go by what the candidate says they're capable of on their resume (at least Spanish for USA, and French for Canada) and won't necessarily be familiar with DELE, DALF, etc... I've even recruited for candidates that were required to speak 3 languages, or 4! For example, English, French, Mandarin, and Cantonese, along with financial certifications and experience, lots of fun! Almost none of them had any certifications, exams, etc... proving proficiency, it was just based on whether existing employees felt they "sounded good" or not.
Anyway, it doesn't hurt to have the proof via exam, but unless a role specifically calls for that exam result, it doesn't matter (at least in the roles I've hired for which are mostly corporate and/or leadership). It simply comes down to can you deliver at the desired level in that language or not. Having the ability even if the role doesn't call for it is certainly a tie-breaker. That said, I'm still going to pursue a DELE C1, and a DALF C1 simply for the personal satisfaction of having achieved them. Who knows, maybe they'll be relevant for me in the future in terms of a career opportunity or some immigration situation (I'd love to get a 3rd passport someday). For me it's been either that route, or to pursue an MA in Romance/Modern Languages and shell out waaaayyyy more money unnecessarily. I know they're not the same though, and if money weren't an issue I'd totally do the MA for other reasons. However at the end of the day, just being comfortable in my 2nd and 3rd languages and being able to use them at work and personal life on a regular basis would do the trick for me.
Last edited by
mthornt1 on Mon Jan 03, 2022 8:24 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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