Column - International experiences vital to post-college success

On the mind of every college student these days is whether or not they will be able to find a job with their degree upon graduation.

With our own country's economy in its fourth year of slow job growth – polished government statistics notwithstanding – students here and at all colleges need to expand their horizons when it comes to finding their first post-college opportunity.

Double-majoring, or at least minoring, in a foreign language and studying abroad for a semester will give college students the expanded world view that is so desperately needed in our shifting global economy. While this advice applies to college students around the world, it is absolutely vital to American college students.

Our economy may not be tanking as fast as the European economies, but at least their college students have an edge on us: knowledge of a language other than their native one.

Yes, geographically, Europeans are forced into a situation where learning another language is vital to everyday life.

Americans, on the other hand, have been in a geographic situation where we haven't had to learn another language to survive daily life.

No job in your home state? Just move to another state without having to learn another language or adjust to a new culture first.

Now the economic situation – unless you want to move to the Dakotas and work in the Bakken Oil fields – is pretty much the same from state to state. Sure, "jobs" are available, but most are parttime to avoid having to pay their workers any benefits.

While this is certainly a "First World problem" to have, it's still not desirable, as there's little future in working these low-skill, low-pay temp jobs if you have a college degree.

Even though the entire world's economies are in varying stages of decline, and technically all college students should be facing the same problems, we are far worse off.

Most of us have no knowledge of a foreign language, little experience abroad outside of Caribbean vacations, and have never had to compete with foreign applicants for the same job.

Add to this the propensity for undergraduate American university standards to be lacking in comparison to the rest of the world's, and we are woefully unprepared if we continue on the same path.

No one is asking students to change their majors entirely; the graduates who are the most successful are those who choose fields to work in that they actually enjoy.

But to stay competitive, college students should consider double majoring or at least minoring in a foreign language that will complement your major.

If you're intimidated by foreign cultures or travel, this path does not have to take you very far. Having a journalism or technical writing degree isn't that bad, but adding even French will give you a realistic shot at a job in Canada, where fluency is required.

While arguments could be made over which foreign language is the best to study now for today's economy with Americans being so easily isolated – and the bevy of options here at West Virginia University – any of them is better than none.

Whether you choose a language from the struggling and stalling developed economies – French, German, Italian, Japanese, Spanish – or rapidly developing economies – Arabic, Chinese, Portuguese, Russian – your options after graduation will be much broader.

Studying abroad, as long as students don't just hang out and drink with other English speakers, will be the best preparation for working and living abroad if a college degree takes you there.

Since WVU has partnerships with many international universities, tuition, in most cases, is the same as paying for classes at WVU so there are few legitimate reasons not to study abroad for at least a summer or a semester.

Organizations like Amizade can even take you abroad during breaks so you can not only take classes to get ahead credit-wise, but also experience a country off of the typical spring break circuit, such as Ghana.

These steps may not guarantee a good job, but these world experiences will forever be a part of you and enrich your life wherever you may be.

College is a time of discovery and doing things we may not be able to do again later, so why not explore the world? Robert Frost perhaps said it best in "The Road Not Taken:" "Two roads diverged in a wood, and I-/I took the one less traveled by, /and that has made all the difference."