The Huffington Post – Douglas D. Baker
“Universities looking to ensure their students have the skills to succeed in a 21st century workforce should take a look at their foreign language departments as one means of accomplishing this objective. Our first NIU Dialogue on Global Competitiveness, released this month, highlights the emphasis employers in the Northern Illinois region place on a college graduate’s ability to communicate in a language other than English — and how this emphasis will change in the future. Graduates who are truly bilingual may ultimately have a leg up on those who communicate only in English. In fact, in five years, almost half of our regional employers (49 percent) say they will actively seek employees with bilingual backgrounds, up from roughly one-third today. Over half — 54.2 percent — of the 143 not-for-profit organizations that participated in the survey indicated they would actively seek bilingual applicants, as well. While this is only one region in one state, the Northern Illinois region encompasses Chicago and is one of the most vibrant economies in the United States. Further, almost nine out of 10 respondents (89.3 percent) see benefits that bilingual employees can deliver today.”(more)