Global Engagement, and the Importance of Foreign Languages

As the world reaches a critical juncture in policy and global exchange, I am thankful that I am facing it prepared with the education I got at UC San Diego's School of Global Policy and Strategy.  I am glad for the focus on quantitative data, and for the in-depth background I have on the Asian theater. But I am especially grateful for the advanced language classes tailored for economic and political policy that I took -  a scarce commodity in the US.

Simon Kupor wrote in the Financial Times[1] that primarily monolingual English speakers in the US and UK are at a fundamental disadvantage precisely because English is the language of international exchange. He likens living in an English speaking country to “living in a glass house… foreigners know us much better than we know them.”  He speculates that this imbalanced communication made the US elections an easy target for Russian hackers, and give the UK a much weaker hand in negotiating Brexit. 

The implication is clear. For regional experts and international affairs professionals, language proficiency is not optional.

Before arriving at GPS, I studied Japanese for a number of years. I could maintain basic conversations and function in daily life.  But I did not have the language skills to be competent in a professional setting.  At GPS Japanese classes, I learned the expressions and style needed in giving business presentations, and I learned how to formally debate political topics – both of which were an immense asset during my summer internship during which I presented policy analysis to Japanese bureaucrats.  My language classes also taught me how to write professional correspondence to colleagues, which I do now daily in my current job.

Beyond being able to use language in my job, I am now able to get my news from foreign publications.  Reading about the American healthcare system and the internment of Japanese Americans in Japanese magazines has been a sobering experience.  Reading government policy papers from the Japanese government has given me a great deal of clarity on what is going on in Japanese society now.

Language has given me a grounded perspective on America’s role in the world, greater capacity as a researcher, and the ability to be taken seriously by colleagues. I would not have been able to reach this level had I not taken classes at GPS.

When deciding whether to move back to the US to complete my Masters degree, I was concerned about whether I would have to sacrifice my language skills that I had worked so hard for. At GPS, my skills didn’t suffer but expanded.

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[1] Kuper, Simon. “The problem with English.” The Financial Times Magazine, January 12, 2017
https://www.ft.com/content/223af71a-d853-11e6-944b-e7eb37a6aa8e