7 reasons you need to learn a language in 2016

1. Increase Your Salary
Better pay – learning a second language gives you a competitive edge. According to recent research bilinguals earn between 5% and 20% per hour more than the base rate.

2. Foreign Trade Needs Foreign Language Speakers
Four out of five new jobs in the US are created as a result of foreign trade.

3. Get a Job?
In the U.K for example in 2011 over 27% of administration and clerical jobs went unfilled because of the language deficit, according to the all-party parliamentary group.

4. Multi-lingual Multi-Taskers
Multi-linguals are proficient at slipping from one language to another, and according to the Pennsylvania State University, this makes them a great multitaskers.

5. Improved Cognitive Performance
Students who study foreign languages tend to score better on standardized tests than their monolingual peers. According to Dr. Thomas Bak, from the University of Edinburgh, multilingualism leads to improved cognitive abilities.

6. Fine Tune Your Mind
Researchers from Northwestern University say bilingualism is a form of brain training – a mental “work out” that fine-tunes the mind. Further research has shown that multilingualism can delay the onset of Alzheimer’s Disease.

7. Experience the World
The ability to speak another language translates into more confidence when traveling, making the experience richer and more meaningful.