Oui je peux!

Can I learn French? Oui je peux! (Yes I can!)

As I've been looking more and more at my future (with only a semester left of college, it's coming quicker and quicker) I made sure to sign up for a course this semester called "Carreiras Internacionais" (International Careers). The course is designed to help students look at what they have studied at PUC in International Relations and begin to prepare them to think about their own careers and how to market themselves to obtain a job position they want. It's a perfect class for what I need right now!

Well, during the month of April, my professor had to do research abroad and wasn't able to teach classes. Instead, we were assigned several papers and other assignments to do on our own time to help develop a career plan and allow us to better look at our personal goals, competencies and qualities.

During one of the assignments, I had to look up UN job openings online, find one that interested me and begin to reflect on the qualities I have that would help me obtain the job and what I need to work on. To my surprise, almost all of the jobs required French! I had always been so against French, considering it ugly and without much value. I never realized that it was one of the five UN languages and that French and English were the two main UN languages, required for many international positions in Europe.

So there it is. For an international career, I should know French. That is one of my weaknesses I need to work on. So I made a deal. My host sister teaches French while I teach English. About three weeks ago we began our trade. I teach her English and she teaches me French. And in three little weeks my ideas about French have completely changed. What was once ugly is now beautiful. What was worthless is now useful.

My host sister, as a fluent speaker of both French and Portuguese now has a job as an executive bilingual secretary for a French company in Brazil as well as a job translating for the wedding of a famous French actor and model who is getting married in Brazil to a Brazilian. Almost every business person in Brazil speaks Portuguese and English and/or Spanish. But those who also speak French have something special to offer. My hope is that I can continue my studies so that I, too, will have something special to offer.

Can I learn French? Oui je peux!