How to Highlight Your Language Skills to Get Noticed

If you are proficient in more than one language, you possess a highly marketable skill. Do you know which languages are most marketable? According to Preply, the three most frequently requested languages in job postings are Spanish, Chinese (Mandarin and Cantonese), and French.

Consider this: As of May 15, 2022, Indeed has posted over 900 jobs in the U.S. with the keywords multilingual speaker. Just over a year ago, Indeed also posted an article on the 13 Best Careers for Multilingual Professionals.

Learning another language is a skill that requires dedication and commitment. In addition, those who are bilingual and multilingual are known to be better multitaskers and problem solvers—qualities you want to make known while job hunting.

Achieving a level of expertise in another language is impressive and should definitely be highlighted even if you’re not looking for a job where a second language is required.

Here are three suggestions for how to highlight and showcase your language skills to get noticed.

Certify Your Language Skills Here

Make your language skills visible everywhere

Your resume is the first place where you should put your language skills. To make sure that these special skills are noticed, consider including them both in the skills section and the summary. As recruiters often only skim resumes, including your language skills on top of your resume will increase your chances of getting noticed. LinkedIn is another place where you should highlight your language skills. If a job application process also requires a cover letter, be sure you mention your language skills in there, too. Many companies are looking to expand globally in the near future, so even if language skills aren’t required for the job, being proficient will certainly make you a stronger candidate.

Be clear about your language proficiency

Many candidates include phrases such as “Fluent in . . .,” “Conversant in . . .”, or “Working knowledge of . . .” on resumes. Language fluency is hard to gauge, and your perception of your proficiency might not match what your true proficiency is when measured with a language proficiency assessment. It’s easy to overstate one’s proficiency. A recent survey has shown that nearly 60% of job applicants overstate their abilities on their resumes, including their language proficiency.

If you possess language skills, consider obtaining an official language proficiency certificate by taking a language assessment, such as the ACTFL language proficiency tests. An ACTFL test not only tells you exactly what your proficiency level is, but it also comes with an official certification that lets your prospective employer know exactly how well you can communicate in another language. The ACTFL assessments also come with digital badges issued by Credly, which makes showcasing your language skills on your resume and professional networking sites easier.

Be specific with your examples

Have you used your language skills in professional settings before? Talk about it! Instead of simply stating that you command another language, give specific examples of how you used them. Having a few concrete examples of how you incorporated your language skills into your work shows the hiring manager a level of ability in addition to just showing them your proficiency level. Another idea: post videos of yourself speaking or presenting in another language on your professional network such as LinkedIn. Recruiters searching for candidates will immediately notice them… and your language skills, too!

You might be proficient, but be prepared for a test

According to a recent ACTFL report titled, “Making Languages Our Business: Addressing Foreign Language Demands Among U.S. Employers,” 9 out 10 employers rely on language skills other than English to conduct their business, and this demand is expected to increase by 56% in the next 5 years. Client- and community-facing departments, such as Customer Services, Sales, Marketing, Management, and IT have the greatest need. Therefore, employers who rely on bilingual and multilingual employees need to have a reliable and validated method of checking job candidates’ language abilities. Validated and certified language proficiency testing offers an accurate measurement of language level, so more and more employers include language assessment as part of their recruitment process. If you haven’t taken a language proficiency assessment and don’t have a language proficiency certificate, you might be asked to sit for a test as part of your interview process.

Want to get certified? You can start here.