Between 2017 and 2018 the number of job offers requiring knowledge of a foreign language decreased and the average salary of these offers increased. Recruiters looking for candidates with knowledge of Japanese offer the most advantageous remuneration and the majority of vacancies are in English, German and Spanish.
Based on the 850,000 job vacancies in the international job search engine Adzuna.fr, the study examines the salary of job vacancies for polyglots in France. Conducted in September 2018, the study also analyzes the evolution of the demand for foreign language skills in job vacancies.
Japanese: the language that offers the best salary in France
Of all the languages tested, Japanese offers the highest salary. Job offers offer an average of € 43,928 gross per year, but the number of vacancies is limited (around 350). Knowledge of Japanese is mainly desired in the areas of international trade, tourism and education.
Between September 2017 and September 2018, wages increased for the majority of languages, particularly for Chinese, Italian and Japanese. Salary increases are 24% for Japanese, 23% for Chinese and 13% for Italian.
English remains a good option for those who are looking for both a job with a higher salary and a large number of job offers. The average job vacancy in France today is € 36,100 and English-speaking job seekers can expect a salary 12% higher than this average.
4.9% decrease in job offers for polyglots.
The demand for other languages on the job market fell mainly between 2017 and 2018. The languages of our European neighbors are strongly affected: -5.12% for German, -29.44% for Italian and -8.30% for l ‘Spanish. The biggest decrease was in Asian languages, with a third less announcements requiring knowledge of Japanese or Chinese.
Russian, on the other hand, is more and more in demand by recruiters, the number of job openings increased by 5% between 2017 and 2018.
European linguists still have most of the vacancies. 85% of job offers that require a second language require English, followed by German (7.8% of offers) and Spanish (3.8% of offers). Less than 10% of job offers in France require knowledge of a second language, including 0.6% for bilingual. And the number of jobs seeking English speakers fell by 22.16% between September 2017 and September 2018.
English is gaining ground in the school curriculum. According to the official website Trouvermonmaster.gouv.fr, in 2018, 7% of masters in France are today taught entirely in English. And the number of universities offering training in English is constantly increasing.
Francophones in the United Kingdom
Conversely, the opportunities for Francophones abroad continue to grow. Adzuna UK carried out a study on job offers for French speakers in the United Kingdom, they increased by 78.6% between June 2017 and September 2018.
Doug, Co-founder of Adzuna comments:
“Two years after the announcement of Brexit, employers are preparing for their international development. Since 2016, a very strong trend for European languages has been visible. This may be a sign that companies are increasingly looking for growth opportunities. “
source: https://www.adzuna.fr/