A Wise Investment
Now that we have convinced you to study a foreign language, let's consider studying German. There are many good reasons why learning German is a wise investment of your time. Here are just a few:
German is not as hard as you think and you will make quick progress.
German and English are related languages and they share similarities in vocabulary and grammar. You may already recognize such words as Fahrvergnügen, Bratwurst, Angst, Kindergarten, Autobahn, gemütlich und Schadenfreude. But even these sentences Ich bin Student an der Northwestern Universität, Ich studiere Biology und Ökonomie, Meine Hobbies sind Musik, Sport, und Photographieren will be easy for you to understand.
There is a large German presence on the Internet and you will be able to read up on the newest information.
The Germans maintain a dominant Internet presence. Germany's country domain .de is more popular than .net, .org. .info. or .biz and second behind the extension .com.
German is the most widely spoken native language in Europe and you I will be able to practice and use German almost anywhere.
German is not only spoken in Germany but also in Austria, Switzerland, Belgium, Luxembourg and Lichtenstein in addition to other smaller regions throughout Europe. There are about 120 Million native German speakers around the globe.
The German Academic Exchange Service supports research and study in Germany.
The German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) supports foreign students who want to do research or study abroad in Germany to experience the culture and practice the language. In addition, foreign students, like German students can directly enroll in German universities without having to pay any tuition fees.
Knowing German improves your chances for employment.
Openness to global trade and investment is the reason why Germany has become one of the world’s most competitive and flexible economies. Knowing German can help you with employment. German companies that have American subsidiaries account for 700,00 jobs in the US. American companies have created an equal number of jobs in Germany. Many companies in the United States have said they would hire someone with German literacy over an equally qualified candidate.
The Lifetime Earnings bonus for knowing German is $128,000
As reported in the Economist in the article What is a foreign language worth?, the MIT economist Albert Saiz calculated that the average lifetime earnings bonus for an American college graduate who learns German is actually $128,000. Not bad for investing a few hours a week in learning German!