The International Schools Review Forum

Hello,

Do you think it is something we would want to highlight if my spouse is fluent in Hindi and several other Indian languages when we are applying for jobs in India? Is this something that would be seen as making us better candidates for a school there? Should we highlight this on his resume or keep it off?

Namaste! [I speak Punjabi but some Hindi as well]

I don't know why you would keep it off? it cannot do any harm and surely being able to communicate in a native language is a bonus.

I am thinking the same as you….it could be a huge asset to have a native speaker on staff. My only concern is that I have heard from some people that "American" schools such as ASB and AES want staff that "look" American. My husband has absolutely no accent so I thought we should highlight his fluency because it would make adapting to living there easier and isn't that a concern when hiring Americans to go live in India???

I would say that if your husband is bilingual in the host language he may find himself called on by both admins and staff to be the designated translator. I often had that problem in Japan, and is part of the reason i really felt overworked there.