Superwoman in disguise..

I cannot recount the number of times people have told me that studying English will not get me far later on in life. But I don’t think this is true. These people often think that studying English at the University of Salzburg, as at any other university, only consists of reading and writing things in English. There is much more to it than that, however, and when I’m finally done with my degree, I am sure it will suit whatever kind of job or career I move into.

Over the past four years I have mastered the skill of speed-reading and efficient time-management (Forget about those utopian to-do lists!). How else could you possible cope with the Department’s reading list in just one month? Also, every course has specific deadlines for projects and papers, which has taught me how to work under (extreme) pressure. A professor of mine once told us:

“Don’t forget that a seminar paper consumes a lot of time. You need to do research and really get into your topic before you write critically about it. A good paper takes much longer than just a week to write.”

Longer than a week? Usually I have no more than 3 days left to write a paper. But I digress.

These skills, along with what’s actually being taught throughout the year, prepare you perfectly well for life after university. Although I don’t think I can change the whole world in just one go, there are numerous things one can, at the very least, set a starting point.

I am not talking about the most obvious way of slowly but surely changing the world with my English degree (tutoring/giving private lessons), although this has already had some tangible results: Lazy as she is, my sister slept through most of the eight years of grammar school and only realized this two weeks before her final exams. My parents were not amused. What followed was two weeks of intense studying (as well as sisterly love that almost turned into pure hate) and in the end she passed with flying colours. Mission accomplished: family tensions eliminated.

However, one can change the world on an even smaller scale. Of course, I could also apply for the position of Austria’s Next Top Chancellor and then use my knowledge of English to set certain things straight. This, however, is not going to happen besides I’d much rather be the Queen of England. And, I am also not a hypocrite, so please don’t expect a moving fairy tale about me going to Third World Countries to teach English. I’d like to take a more down-to-earth approach focusing on how very little things can change a lot, even if it’s just a smile. (Or some very relieved parents.)

Have you seen the movie “Pay it forward”? If not, you should certainly watch it sometime. Anyway, Trevor, the film’s main character, has an idea I really like and I think it’d be a good way to start changing the world. (If someone does you a favor, don’t pay it back, but forward it instead – to at least three people who then forward it a further three times. This results in a chain-reaction and spreads quickly across the world. Nice idea, eh?)

And yes, the English language fits in here just fine. The other day at a local supermarket I saw this old man looking desperately lost and there were no shop assistants in sight. As soon as he’s seen me, he approached me and asked me kindly to read out loud and translate the description at the back of some canned food. He’d forgotten his glasses, he told me, and was very appreciative of my help. He hadn’t experienced such kindness in a long time. Such a small thing and so little effort involved but the old man seemed happy as he walked off. (I saw him again walking up to his car but I fled as quickly as I could before he turned the car park into a dodgems ride.)
It was good, though, to see someone happy having helped them just by knowing a language.
English is the best possible way to help people who ask for directions or any other kind of help. It is widely spoken and understood; if you have a good command of the English language you are more than fine in most countries. Now it’s up to you to change the world, even if it’s just on a small scale. And think about it, how happy you’d be in a foreign country if somebody explained to you the ingredients of what you were going to eat beforehand. (Just in case.)