Bilingual secretary

Bilingual secretaries carry out secretarial duties that involve using one or more foreign languages. This can include dealing with letters and other documents and speaking on the telephone. Some secretaries travel or work abroad. In this post, we explore how to become a bilingual secretary.

Also known as:

• Personal assistant – bilingual

Work activities

Bilingual secretaries use one or more foreign languages. They prepare, read and translate letters and other documents; they make and receive telephone calls and deal with email enquiries and visitors. They might take notes or interpret at meetings and conferences. They also deal with a wide range of other secretarial duties, for example, organising meetings and making travel arrangements for a manager or director. The amount of time a secretary spends using a foreign language depends on the type of company they work for and their position within the company. Assistant secretaries might spend much of their time working in their own language.

General secretarial duties include dealing with routine enquiries, taking messages, word processing, filing, photocopying and keeping an appointments diary. If international clients or colleagues visit the company, the secretary usually greets them and handles arrangements for their stay, including hotel bookings and travel details. Bilingual secretaries might act as interpreters during their visit. They sometimes also look after members of the client’s family during visits to the UK, perhaps accompanying them to events.

Depending on the type of organisation they work for, bilingual secretaries might deal with suppliers across Europe or beyond, working closely with factories, transport and recorded despatch companies, to monitor deliveries and confirm orders. Other secretaries might deal with government departments in other countries. Others could work as bilingual personal assistants, as the executives they work for become more self-sufficient in word processing and the use of computer applications.

Personal qualities and skills

As a bilingual secretary, you’ll need:

• Excellent verbal and written communication skills, both in English and your foreign language(s).
• Good listening skills.
• IT and keyboard skills, and possibly audio transcription or shorthand skills.
• A friendly and professional telephone manner.
• The ability to compose letters on your own initiative.
• Close attention to detail when you translate documents.
• Confidence.
• An understanding of the culture and business practices of the country whose language you speak.
• Strong organisational skills, to plan and prioritise your workload.
• A thorough and methodical approach to your work.
• The ability to decide which letters and phone calls your manager should deal with personally.
• An understanding of how your organisation works, for example, the functions of different departments and the company’s relationship with its clients or customers.

Most businesses look for bilingual secretaries who can speak French, German, Spanish or Italian. Other languages, for example Chinese, Russian, Japanese and Arabic are also growing in demand.

Pay and opportunities

Salaries for bilingual secretaries vary. Bilingual secretaries earn in the range of £18,000 - £22,000 a year, rising to around £40,000 a year.

Bilingual secretaries usually work 37-39 hours, Monday to Friday. Full-time, part-time, temporary and flexible working arrangements might be available.

Where could I work?

Employment is in some sectors of industry and commerce, especially with companies operating internationally, such as import/export firms and foreign-owned companies. Opportunities also occur with university/college language departments, and in public service, for example, with the Foreign and Commonwealth Office. Casual and short-term contract work can be gained from specialist multi/bilingual secretarial and office employment agencies.

Nearly all of the advertised vacancies are in London, although opportunities for bilingual secretaries can sometimes occur in some other towns and cities around the UK (often in the South East). Opportunities for bilingual secretaries occur with employers in other countries, for example, the United Nations, and European Union organisations.

Where are vacancies advertised?

Vacancies are advertised on specialist language recruitment websites, in local/ national newspapers, and on the Government’s Find a Job service. Now let's move on to how to become a bilingual secretary.

How to become a bilingual secretary

Now let's look at how to become a bilingual secretary, exploring the different ways to get there. Many entrants have A-levels or a degree in a modern foreign language, although there are no fixed entry requirements apart from fluency in your specialist language coupled with secretarial skills. Various colleges and training companies offer courses in secretarial studies and also in languages, to prepare students for a career as a bilingual secretary.

Some courses teach people a modern foreign language from scratch; others are diplomas for graduates with a modern foreign language. It might also be possible to gain employment as a secretary and learn a language on a part-time basis.

It might be possible to take a qualification with the Chartered Institute of Linguists (IoL). There are also NVQ Awards, Certificates and Diplomas in Business and Administration (levels 1-4). NVQ Awards and Certificates are also available in Arabic, Chinese, French, German, Italian, Spanish and Welsh.

Bilingual secretaries can progress to bilingual personal assistant and administrator posts. There could be opportunities for graduates to progress into interpreter and translator posts. Some colleges offer part-time courses leading to the IoL postgraduate diploma in translation.

Qualifications

There are no formal academic entry requirements, although many bilingual secretaries have A-levels or a higher-education qualification such as a degree in languages.

A good command of the English language and some basic understanding of a modern foreign language could be sufficient to get on to a relevant introductory course. Secretarial skills might be requested for some courses. In general, employers want to see evidence of fast, accurate typing skills (at about 40 to 50 words per minute). Where an employer wants shorthand skills, they usually ask for speeds of 90 to 100 words per minute.

For entry to a degree course in a modern foreign language, the usual requirement is:

• Two to three A-levels (at least one of these in a modern foreign language).
• GCSEs at grades 9-4 in two to three other subjects, including English.

Alternatives to A-levels include:

• Edexcel (BTEC) level 3 National qualification together with an A level in a relevant modern language.
• International Baccalaureate (IB) diploma.

The languages that you need at A-level are usually those that you are going to study at degree level. However, course requirements vary.

Adult opportunities

Age limits: It is illegal for any organisation to set age limits for entry to employment, education or training, unless they can show there is a real need to have these limits.

Some entrants have a relevant background, for example, in office and administrative work. Some college courses are aimed specifically at people wanting to gain or update their general keyboard, secretarial or language skills. Colleges will usually consider applications from adults who do not meet their usual entry requirements. You should check the admissions policy of individual colleges.

If you don’t have the usual qualifications needed to enter your chosen degree or HND course, a college or university Access course could be the way in. These courses are designed for people who have not followed the usual routes into higher education (HE). No formal qualifications are usually needed, but you should check this with individual colleges.

A large number of centres offer courses in word processing by distance learning. Some higher education institutions offer degrees in modern language studies.

Now you know how to become a bilingual secretary, have a look at these similar jobs.

Related careers

• European Union administrator
• Interpreter
• Personal assistant
• Secretary
• Translator