Other careers for languages graduates
The application of linguistics and related disciplines can be increasingly found in other career paths as well. No longer does a qualification in linguistics denote one’s propensity to sit in high-backed armchairs with a pipe discussing Wittgenstein and Chomsky. Some of the more popular job descriptions can be found below.
Computational linguist
Computational linguistics studies the modelling of natural language using computers. Industrial and professional application of this field of study can be seen in the development of better word processing software, voice recognition software, information retrieval software and translation software. You will either add new natural language processing (NLP) capabilities to existing software to extract greater functionality, or build new software incorporating NLP. Other job descriptions would include computational linguist, language engineer, search engineer and content technologist.
Masters’ and PhDs in computational linguistics are available in Malaysia. For a Master’s, students must have a first degree of high quality from any recognised local/foreign university with a minimum CGPA of 3.0 (applicants with relevant working experience may also apply). They should have also obtained a minimum IELTS score of 5.5 or its equivalent. The course may take up to 3 years of study.
When seeking to progress down this career path, a Master’s is a huge advantage. 2-3 years of hands-on experience is necessary. Knowledge of at least another major language other than English is a great advantage, and is at times necessary. Excellent project management skills is also another must. Your most likely potential employers will be software developers.
Translator and interpreter
Translators are needed in most publishing houses and news organisations, and a career in the government or the diplomatic corps could be an option. At times, a translator (or language analyst) will be called upon to provide background and context to accompany the plain words. Therefore, not only is native-level fluency in a language a given, it is also necessary to have at least working knowledge of the culture and history of the specific geographic region. Excellent communication skills and experience of a wide variety of texts is also necessary.
Speech-language pathologist (SLPs)
SLPs work with people who cannot produce speech sounds or cannot produce them clearly. They assist people with speech rhythm and fluency problems such as stuttering and people with voice disorders, such as inappropriate pitch. They also assist those with problems understanding and producing language.
With a formal study of linguistics, SLPs may be able to break down the essence of communication to baby steps that people with speech problems can follow. A study of phonology and phonetics would help SLPs assist in the imitation of the sounds that compose words, while a study of biolinguistics and language acquisition would provide an SLP with insights as to how language is learned and processed in the brain.
Best-selling author and screenwriter
The author of the best-selling fantasy epic ‘Lord of the Rings’, J.R.R. Tolkien, was a famed linguist, philologist and polyglot. In his childhood, he learnt Latin, French and German from his mother, and while at school picked up Middle English, Old English, Finnish, Greek, Italian, Spanish, Old Norse, Welsh and Medieval Welsh. He was also familiar with German, Danish, Dutch, Norwegian, Icelandic, Russian, Swedish and Lithuanian, and had a deep linguistic knowledge of related Germanic languages.
In the mythos of the Middle Earth universe, Tolkien created entire languages with accompanying history, mythology and even etymology. While devising the Elvish languages of Quenya and Sindarin, Tolkien relied heavily on his studies into Finnish, Welsh, Latin and Greek vocabulary and grammar to construct a completely functional, yet entirely fictional, language. All in all, he constructed more than twenty languages, each with a grammar, a vocabulary, and in some cases, a visual script.
Other authors have famously invented languages to convey certain dramatic effects; for example Anthony Burgess in ‘A Clockwork Orange’, Lewis Carroll in ‘The Jabberwocky’ and George Orwell in ‘Nineteen Eighty-Four’. Burgess in particular had a formidable gift for comparative linguistics. While a teacher in Malay College Kuala Kangsar in the mid-50s, he applied his prowess to learning Malay, Jawi and Arabic which he demonstrated to great comic effect in his so-called ‘Malayan Trilogy’, alternatively titled ‘The Long Day Wanes’. ‘Nadsat’, the youth slang he invented in ‘A Clockwork Orange’, was loosely based on Russian colloquialism.
No university qualifications are required to be a best-selling author, although it goes without saying that formal training is an added advantage. A flair for language(s), an imagination screaming to be let loose and a solid work ethic to hone your craft are some of the key attributes you need to produce a best-selling work of literature that will earn you admirers, fan cults, and even a lucrative movie deal if you are lucky.
Speaking of the movies, there have been many invented languages adapted for the small and silver screen. Paul Frommer created the Na’vi language for the Oscar-winning film ‘Avatar’. He had the unenviable job of devising an entire language for the film, including grammar and syntax, and then teaching it to the actors.
Marc Okrand, a linguistics lecturer, created one of the most enduring fictional languages in movies and theatre: Klingon. Spoken by the Klingon race in the ‘Star Trek’ universe, Klingon was developed among hardcore Trekkies, the Klingon Language Institute, and Okrand himself to become an evolving, genuine, fully-fledged language. The Klingon Language Institute boasts many famed and respected linguists among its ranks.
There are also other extended roles for linguists in the movie-making industry, especially if your director is Mel Gibson. In his movies ‘Passion of the Christ’ and ‘Apocalypto’, Gibson used linguists and professional translators to write dialogue and train actors in Hebrew, Aramaic and Latin for the former, and Yucatec Maya in the latter. Linguists can also work as dialogue and accent coaches for actors who wish to adapt a different accent or language for a particular role.
