Sarah studied Spanish at school but it wasn’t until she was on her gap year in South America that she really understood how useful it was. She taught English to students in Argentina, before heading off the beaten track and exploring the rest of the continent. Travelling through Uruguay, Chile, Bolivia and Ecuador, she thanks her Spanish skills for getting her out of several sticky situations!

Sarah is now studying Modern History and Spanish at Oxford University and is currently spending her third year teaching in Andalucia, Spain.

Ed’s language skills have landed him the job of a lifetime – a five-month traineeship with the European Parliament in Brussels. It’s a dream role for Ed, who hopes to continue to work in an international environment – possibly for an EU agency.

Ed’s always been passionate about languages and he studied French and German at Cambridge University before taking a Masters in European Politics. A keen traveller, he lived in Germany and Prague during his studies where he joined a local hockey team, which he feels improved his language skills no end.

Nikki has a lot to thank languages for – speaking German helped her find love! She reckons that speaking her boyfriend’s native tongue has really enhanced their relationship.

Nikki first studied German for GCSE before taking it to degree level at Nottingham University. However most of her German was picked up while working for a year as a language assistant in Rostock, north Germany, before spending another year assisting at a kindergarten in Hanover.

Nikki feels speaking the language gave her a fantastic experience of Germany and its culture. Now training as a primary school teacher, she wants to use her skills to help pupils get to grips with languages from a young age.