Better English, better future

Yu Minhong (left), chief executive officer of New Oriental Education and Technology Group, talks with students who plan to sit the Test of English as a Foreign Language in this file photo. [Photo / Provided to China Daily]

Professionals should view language as 'investment in their prospects'

A new study claims that young Chinese professionals with higher levels of English proficiency can expect better chances of career development.

The study, jointly conducted by Switzerland-based English training organization EF Education First and leading Chinese human resources service provider, 51Job.com, found that half of the 300 respondents, from all walks of life, thought a solid grasp of English meant a higher chance of promotion. That rises to 55 percent for those with an English degree.

It also found that people born in the 1980s, now the pillar of the jobs market, had the strongest English, four percentage points higher on average than people born in other generations.

Even though people born in the 1970s were relatively weaker in English in general, their chances of getting better jobs if they do have strong language skill are 4 percent higher than in other generations.

The report said that a lack of language proficiency is now becoming a significant barrier for promotion, especially for those born after 1970.

EF said there had been a growing demand for overseas study courses from Chinese professionals assuming management positions, indicating that the ability to communicate fluently in English will become even more important, not only for multinational companies with offices in China, but also for Chinese companies expanding abroad.

It emphasized, too, that improving one's English should be considered an important investment in any young professional's career.

Hou Yinjie, an interior designer at a French design firm who attended a course to improve his English, said he seldom used English in his previous job and as a result his dream of working for an international company was becoming increasingly unlikely.

"But now I have grown from a beginner to an advanced English learner who can talk confidently with expats. My salary has increased by 40 percent as a result," said Hou.

Hu Peikang, a Shanghai resident, said he could previously say just a few words in English.

But after nine months of hard study, he was fluent.

"I was soon offered an interview with Gameloft, one of the world's largest mobile gaming companies. The fact I could talk fluently in English during the job interview was one of the reasons I was offered a job as a programmer," he said.

For employers, putting up language requirements is one of the very first steps to screen candidates. Take a quick look at the job advertisements posted on 51job.com for example, basic requirements set up by the leading multinational companies for fresh graduates is always something like "fluent English and good communication skills".

If it is with more senior positions, such as a department manager, the requirement will come higher to "excellent spoken and written English". Undoubtedly, these positions are usually better paid, most of which offer at least 10,000 yuan ($1,639) a month.

According to recruitment service provider BRecruit, candidates with higher English proficiency are always in demand. It highlights changes in the fast-moving consumers goods industry, particularly, as being vastly improved if the candidate can speak English, despite general entry requirements for the sector being low,

It said that ever since the world's leading luxury brands slowed down their growth in China's first-tier cities, the industry has been facing with a brain-drain especially for those with good language and management skills. As a result, luxury brand companies are having to poach staff from the hotel industry, a sector traditionally rich with English-speaking young staff.

According to the 2014 China Salary Report compiled by human resources service provider Randstad, professionals with both Chinese and English proficiency are in big demand in the financial services industry; while another report released last month by global recruitment specialist Hays found a surge in demand for bilingual staff by the information technology industry also.

Interestingly, the EF report noted that average English proficiency declined among Hong Kong adults between 2007 and 2013, although they are still above that of Chinese mainland adults, which have been improving, largely as a result of increased spending on language courses by the expanding middle class.

The English language skills of the average Shanghai adults, however, were found to have overtaken those in Hong Kong, with people from Beijing and Tianjin now scoring the same as their Hong Kong counterparts.

Simon Lance, the regional director of Hays in the Chinese mainland, says that despite their catching up, Hong Kong candidates still run a better chance of landing jobs which require English skills, because of their English proficiency.