About the Department of European Languages
You may think that learning a European language in Australia is becoming a thing of the past - but think again: with a population of more than half a billion people, Europe has an immense impact on a global scale. The European Union is the largest trading unit in the world and has a greater economic potential than any other domestic market. The development is towards a single European economy, the objective: Europe without frontiers. The introduction of a European currency, the "Euro", in 1999 was a move in this direction and already euro countries account for 20% of the world's exports.
How does all this impact on Australia? Today, Europe is Australia's major trading partner, even ahead of the USA and Japan. But business is of course not the only link - to trade means to be in contact, in contact with the varied cultures of the European countries. Being able to speak one or more European languages enables you to share these contacts and opens up new and exciting job opportunities. Studying a European language could help you find a career in the following areas:
- business organizations with international interests
- foreign and ethnic affairs
- translating and interpreting
- journalism
- banking
- defence
- trade
- social services
- teaching
- public relations