Usefulness of Chinese as a language for finding placements in ib

Hi guys,

I am a second generation Australian-Chinese immigrant and at home, I speak a dialect of Chinese seperate to Cantonese/Mandarin (but I have a basic ability in Mandarin). 

I know that finding work in APAC is impossible without knowing knowing local languages, and while everyone I know who works in finance works in the APAC region my main goal is to work in London. Even if I leveraged my connections, I still cannot speak Chinese so it would not land me placements in sg/hk

I am applying to a UK target next year, but if I get rejected, I will be studying in an Australian target (UNSW/USYD). I just wanted to ask:

1. How useful is Chinese as a language when applying for ib in London/Sydney? In what situations may someone need another language other than english?

2. Are there any expectations of me as someone with a Chinese background to speak Chinese in these places?

3. If I manage to learn Chinese and speak it fluently (many of my friends can speak Chinese so no problem finding people happy to help me practice), will hk/sg be realistic? 

Thanks

2 Comments
 

there is little to no use for chinese in london IB. why would there be? as a better use of your time, polish your technical / interviewing skills instead.

as for hk, it is indeed correct that having proficient chinese is a req, but you'll also need to be able to write well since most of the time spent as an intern / junior will be working on deliverables in chinese.

 

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