In the interest of diversifying their resumes for a competitive job market, many Binghamton University business students are looking to achieve fluency in more than just their class subjects, and have decided to study various foreign languages.

While the School of Management does not recommend any specific language program, they encourage students to think about the specific area of business they see themselves working in and decide what languages would be useful to know.

According to Brian Perry, an undergraduate advisor for management, Asian languages are becoming the most prominent in the business world. Chinese is the most popular now, as the focus shifts from Japanese, which was most popular in the 1980s and 1990s. German and Russian are also becoming widely spoken.

Vincent Pasquale, the assistant dean of the School of Management, added that Spanish and French will still remain important to know. Many students arrive at Binghamton with some basic knowledge of Spanish and French from high school, making it easier for them to continue learning in college. Both the Spanish and French departments offer a variety of courses for students of various proficiency levels.

Several language departments also offer business-focused courses. The Chinese department offers Business Chinese (CHIN 305), which focuses on the communication necessary in commerce and economics. The Italian department offers a similar class in Business Italian (ITAL 380B), which includes analyzing office documents and resumes in Italian.

The Languages Across the Curriculum program is also a valuable resource for business majors learning a new language. The department allows students to take a course in another language.

“We are trying to create opportunities for students to make meaningful use of their language and show them how to use it in a real situation,” said Suronda Gonzalez, the program’s director. This past semester, the department cooperated with 16 different courses to form 48 study groups in Spanish, Cantonese, Mandarin, Korean, French, Hebrew, Japanese and English.

Although “knowing more than one language seems like a major accomplishment for many Americans, for many people outside the United States it is the norm,” said Professor Arieh Ullmann.

According to a recent article in The New York Times, business students who are proficient in multiple languages will gain an edge in the international business world. “We are a multinational company, so when we bring in talent it has to be global. We want to make sure they are mobile,” said Vildan Stidham, a senior manager for the Abbott Laboratories Corp.

Ullman added that there are additional benefits to learning a new language. It gives businessmen and -women a broader perspective, and allows them to realize there are multiple ways to express their ideas. It is also essential in helping foreign businesses to relate to each other culturally.

Gonzalez also added that having broader linguistic skills is beneficial to students of any major. Being able to relate to foreign cultures would be advantageous in virtually every career.