It pays!  Learning a language has practical application: It gives you a skill for living and working in a global society. Knowing a  foreign language can greatly increase your marketability and add flexibility to your career options. Learn now! Commercial language schools currently have waiting lists due to the increased demands of businesses and industries which need employees with strong foreign language skills.

Educational Advantages:

Transfer:  Foreign language courses at RCTC count in the Minnesota Transfer Curriculums: Global Perspectives and/or Humanities.  They transfer easily to all colleges.
Graduation requirements: Many majors require foreign language proficiency for graduation.  Double majors with a  foreign language  are wise choices.
Cognitive and learning skills:  Foreign language students improve cognitive skills and do better academically in other subjects.
Study abroad:  An exciting and meaningful experience!
Learning additional foreign languages:  A future job might require learning another language, which is much easier after learning the  first one.
Cultural Appreciation: Understand and experience another culture from within.  Language opens doors to literature, art, and cultural values, shatters prejudice, and promotes personal growth.

Instructors:

   American Sign Language:  Leroy Deshotel (Plaza Hall 400)
   Arabic:
   Chinese:
   French:     Sharon Nichols, Plaza Hall 410, 289-3453
   German:    Sharon Nichols, Plaza Hall 410, 289-3453
   Spanish:    Lillyam Arroyave, Plaza Hall 407, 385-7109
                    Alice Hidalgo, Plaza Hall 409, 285-7534
                    Nicki Ugalde, Plaza Hall 409, 285-7534

Career Goals: 

Business and International Business, Marketing, Banking:

•  Knowledge of a 2nd language is essential in over 60 occupations.
•  1/3 of all corporations in the US are owned or based abroad.
•  1 in every 6 US production jobs depends on foreign trade.
•  Firms involved in international trade in ROCHESTER:  Mayo Clinic, IBM, Quest, Crenlo, Pemstar,   Rochester Intl. Airport
•  More than 5 million US jobs rely on import or export.  (1988)
•  A major US corporation employs 500–5,000 persons abroad.
•  Language proficiency may result in higher salary schedule. 
  

Small and medium companies are doing well in the international market.  They need personnel with language skills and cultural sensitivity to help them build plants, install/maintain equipment, and transfer technology.

Service Professions:

Tourism        Airlines        Law enforcement
Hotel/Motel    Real Estate    Restaurants
Secretarial    Social Work    Administrative Support
 Medical Professions:  Physicians, Nurses, Support Staff
Teaching:   Pre-school, K-12, College; Teaching a world language, Teaching English as a Second Language; Translator/interpreter in public schools

Government employment:  Armed forces, Intelligence Analyst interpreting and translating, Foreign Service