5 Reasons why you should learn French to boost your career

French is not really considered an asset in business, but this is an unfortunate misconception.
Discover 5 reasons why speaking French should definitely be in your toolkit

1- French is a world language
With 321 million speakers, French is the 5th most spoken language in the world after English, Chinese, Hindi and Spanish.

You can read the latest report “La France dans le monde” 2022

2- Speaking French increases your employability

Plurilingualism is always beneficial, however French is the 5th most requested language on the job market.

In fact, speaking French is extremely needed for the tourism industry (hotels, activities, tour guides etc) as well as the hospitality industry, logistic, call centre… The local companies would prefer recruiting locals but as the language is barely spoken by South Africans, they need to recruit from French speaking countries. By getting this additional skill, local applicants would have the opportunity to compete directly with foreign applicants.

3-Speaking French increases your salary

It is estimated that South Africans who are able to speak German, French, or Swahili, along with English can earn up to R30,000 per month on average (R450,000 a year).

The salary does not apply only to high-skilled jobs. You can see on Adzuna that a Housekeeper French Speaking can get a salary between 25,000 and 30,000 Rands with benefits.

4-The ability to speak French increases your mobility: it is easier for you to move and study or work abroad.

> You can access renowned MBA programs (there are 7 top French MBA programs in the global ranking). You can also enroll and study at the university in France and benefit from local student fees (average R9,000 for a year).

>You will benefit from more job opportunities. You can apply for jobs in French-speaking countries or in French-speaking organizations.

5-Make new connections and benefit from new opportunities as a business owner

>Speaking French opens up new business development opportunities by accessing new markets and/or new suppliers.

>Access a new community and boost your network!
The French Chamber of Commerce counts up to 33,000 companies in 95 countries

5 Reasons why you should learn French to boost your career