The jobs in Spain for which speaking English is a big advantage
A new study has revealed the jobs, sectors and regions of Spain which most require English-speaking skills and where having them will put you at a big advantage.
A comprehensive new study of the Spanish labour market has shed some light on exactly which jobs, sectors, and regions of Spain are mostly likely to seek English speakers for new positions.
The study, complied by English Live, ranks jobs by the demand for English language skills, using advert and application data from over 10,000 job offers in Spain between July and September 2023.
Alvaro Ruiz, vice president of growth at English Live, explained that the aim of this study was "to analyse which jobs and regions most demand a good level of English, as well as to help people who aspire to find a better position and who require high proficiency in certain skills, such as language skills."
Overall, jobs related to engineering, sales (of all kinds) and the tech generally sector topped the list of jobs that require a good command of English, with engineers leading the ranking and accounting for 1 in 10 of all jobs offered in the survey.
READ ALSO: LISTED: The most in-demand jobs in Spain in 2024
Jobs in Spain that require English language skillss
So, which are the job in Spain where speaking English is a big advantage?
According to the English Live survey, the top 25 that require English language skills are as follows (job, percentage of job adverts requiring English skills)
Engineers (10.62 percent)
Sales staff (7.22)
Technicians (4.90)
Administrative staff (4.83)
Marketers (4.07)
Project Managers (3.70)
Teachers (3.35)
Developers (2.82)
Customer service (2.43)
Waiters (2.25)
Analysts (2.24)
Technical support workers (2.21)
Receptionists (1.96)
Consultants (1.93)
Financial staff (1.84)
Operations (1.52)
Accountants (1.44)
Human Resources (1.38)
IT personnel (1.38)
Quality assurance managers (1.34)
Shipping and logistics (1.34)
Agents (1.33)
Software engineers (1.33)
Account managers (1.20)
Area managers (1.08)
As the results show, engineering is the job that leads the study in terms of the most demand for English skills in Spain, appearing in one out of every ten job offers published. In fact, engineers who are fluent in English, especially those with mid-level or senior experience, are seven times more in demand.
Sales staff came in a solid second place, and surprisingly, English language skills for sales roles are three times more in demand than for receptionist positions.
In third place are technical professionals, who, like engineers, require a good level of English as they grow in their careers and more international companies come to Spain and expand their workforce.
Sectors with the most demand for English
But what about sectors?
The business, consulting and management sector came first in the rankings overall, with more than 14 percent of job offers requiring some knowledge of English.
Combined with the sales sector (also 14 percent), they constitute almost a third of all the positions analysed in the study (28 percent). Engineering (12 percent) and skilled trades (11 percent) occupy the third and fourth place in the overall sector rankings.
Surprisingly, sectors that you might have assumed demanded English speakers, such as hospitality (6 percent), marketing (5 percent) and education (5 percent) have less demand for English-speaking professionals in Spain.
Regions with the most demand for English
Perhaps unsurprisingly, however, on a regional level Madrid and Catalonia are the two regions that most demand English speakers. 13.6 percent of the offers that require a high level of English were found to be in Catalonia, and Madrid was shortly behind with 12.20 percent of the job offers analysed.
The Basque Country and Andalusia both had more 10 percent of the job offers each. The Valencian Community rounded out the top 5, with 9.55 percent of all job offers. In total, the top 5 made up a whopping 55 percent of the job offers with the most demand for English in the country.
READ ALSO: Spaniards' English level still among worst in Europe in 2023
The regions with the lowest demand for English were Ceuta, Extremadura and La Rioja, which between them accounted for just 2.92 percent of all job offers in the study.
With the exception of Murcia, the entire east coast of Spain is among the top 10 in terms of demand for English-speaking professionals.
What level of English do jobs in Spain require?
Clearly, some jobs will require a more advance level of English than others.
The level of English varies according to the sector in question, as it will be different for more technical fields, such as administration or the hotel and tourism sector. However, using the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages, we can say that this ranges from B2 to C2.
According to the study: "The highest level of English, i.e. C2, is essential in professions such as engineering, information technology and business, mainly. As mentioned above, this is due to the arrival of international companies in our country."
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A comprehensive new study of the Spanish labour market has shed some light on exactly which jobs, sectors, and regions of Spain are mostly likely to seek English speakers for new positions.
The study, complied by English Live, ranks jobs by the demand for English language skills, using advert and application data from over 10,000 job offers in Spain between July and September 2023.
Alvaro Ruiz, vice president of growth at English Live, explained that the aim of this study was "to analyse which jobs and regions most demand a good level of English, as well as to help people who aspire to find a better position and who require high proficiency in certain skills, such as language skills."
Overall, jobs related to engineering, sales (of all kinds) and the tech generally sector topped the list of jobs that require a good command of English, with engineers leading the ranking and accounting for 1 in 10 of all jobs offered in the survey.
READ ALSO: LISTED: The most in-demand jobs in Spain in 2024
Jobs in Spain that require English language skillss
So, which are the job in Spain where speaking English is a big advantage?
According to the English Live survey, the top 25 that require English language skills are as follows (job, percentage of job adverts requiring English skills)
Engineers (10.62 percent)
Sales staff (7.22)
Technicians (4.90)
Administrative staff (4.83)
Marketers (4.07)
Project Managers (3.70)
Teachers (3.35)
Developers (2.82)
Customer service (2.43)
Waiters (2.25)
Analysts (2.24)
Technical support workers (2.21)
Receptionists (1.96)
Consultants (1.93)
Financial staff (1.84)
Operations (1.52)
Accountants (1.44)
Human Resources (1.38)
IT personnel (1.38)
Quality assurance managers (1.34)
Shipping and logistics (1.34)
Agents (1.33)
Software engineers (1.33)
Account managers (1.20)
Area managers (1.08)
As the results show, engineering is the job that leads the study in terms of the most demand for English skills in Spain, appearing in one out of every ten job offers published. In fact, engineers who are fluent in English, especially those with mid-level or senior experience, are seven times more in demand.
Sales staff came in a solid second place, and surprisingly, English language skills for sales roles are three times more in demand than for receptionist positions.
In third place are technical professionals, who, like engineers, require a good level of English as they grow in their careers and more international companies come to Spain and expand their workforce.
Sectors with the most demand for English
But what about sectors?
The business, consulting and management sector came first in the rankings overall, with more than 14 percent of job offers requiring some knowledge of English.
Combined with the sales sector (also 14 percent), they constitute almost a third of all the positions analysed in the study (28 percent). Engineering (12 percent) and skilled trades (11 percent) occupy the third and fourth place in the overall sector rankings.
Surprisingly, sectors that you might have assumed demanded English speakers, such as hospitality (6 percent), marketing (5 percent) and education (5 percent) have less demand for English-speaking professionals in Spain.
Regions with the most demand for English
Perhaps unsurprisingly, however, on a regional level Madrid and Catalonia are the two regions that most demand English speakers. 13.6 percent of the offers that require a high level of English were found to be in Catalonia, and Madrid was shortly behind with 12.20 percent of the job offers analysed.
The Basque Country and Andalusia both had more 10 percent of the job offers each. The Valencian Community rounded out the top 5, with 9.55 percent of all job offers. In total, the top 5 made up a whopping 55 percent of the job offers with the most demand for English in the country.
READ ALSO: Spaniards' English level still among worst in Europe in 2023
The regions with the lowest demand for English were Ceuta, Extremadura and La Rioja, which between them accounted for just 2.92 percent of all job offers in the study.
With the exception of Murcia, the entire east coast of Spain is among the top 10 in terms of demand for English-speaking professionals.
What level of English do jobs in Spain require?
Clearly, some jobs will require a more advance level of English than others.
The level of English varies according to the sector in question, as it will be different for more technical fields, such as administration or the hotel and tourism sector. However, using the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages, we can say that this ranges from B2 to C2.
According to the study: "The highest level of English, i.e. C2, is essential in professions such as engineering, information technology and business, mainly. As mentioned above, this is due to the arrival of international companies in our country."
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