Italians out there?

Question

I am a native Spanish speaker and I am getting my italian citizenship soon, I have a degree from the US and want to know if I can get a job without knowing Italian (at least until I learn it which will take me some time) I am wondering if the information systems/information technology jobs are in English or Italian? do the people communicate in English at work in the American companies? For example, if I get my MCSE in USA it will be in English, and will be kind of hard to make it work in Italian (because I learned the commands in English) , I am wonder if I would find jobs in English since all these certifications coming from Cisco and Microsoft, Oracle, are in English as well over there? or are they translated already?

I know that I have to learn Italian which I would love to learn but just wanted to know how hard is for a person who knows spanish and english but not italian to get a job.

Answer 1

Italian is spoken in Italy in the work place.... Even in American companies (for example: American Express, 3M just to name two). Meetings are held in Italian, managers manage giving directives in Italian. Technical information may be written in English but then it's discussed in Italian.  

If you know no Italian AND have a good command of English then you may be able to teach English. If you want to get into the field of your choice then the job interviews will most likely be in Italian.

PS - Contact John Murphy at "The Informer" for some job tips in Italy: http://www.informer.it/

Answer 2

Hi there.

While there are many companies that deal with international clients like the US, England, Australia, etc... and require an English speaking relation, the language of Italy is Italian, therefore daily interactions and transactions are done in Italian.

That is not to say that in big cities you cannot survive with little or no Italian language skills, however it will be hard and apart from cities like Milano, Roma, Firenze, etc...you will need to speak Italian.

The good part about your job is that there is a demand for it, especially if you are well qualified. The competition is pretty high though. Certifications in system information technology are standard world wide, so I would not think there is a problem there. Translations are also standard.

The only obstacle I see is your basic Italian skills. The good news is that it is a pretty easy language to learn as it is based on one ancient language which is Latin, so the rules are consistent as opposed to a language like English that is influenced by 5 or 6 languages including Celtic, Scandinavian, Latin, etc....

Good luck though and don't be discouraged. Many have done it and although challenging, the rewards of living in Italy are amazing (although you would not know it since Italians that live in Italy have no idea what they have).

Ciao e buona fortuna.

Answer 3

it depends........ im not sure exactly where you are thinking of moving to in italy........ but in my city we don't speak spanish and very little english........  i am sure mabey in other city they have more of languages....

Answer 4

i am OF Italian descent and just recently returned back to the States after a week long family vacation there. My brother in law is Costa Rican (speaks English fluently and of course Spanish....he's been in the country about 10 years). he was able to talk to Italians in Spanish....

mind you not all Italians speak Spanish....some do and some don't.

best bet is if you move there, try finding someone who will help you learn and will act as your translator. while you are living where you are, try going barnes and noble or another book store and find the section on languages....there should be study workbooks that you can work through to teach yourself spanish...also there are also an english to italian dictionary, italian to english dictionary and a small book that is more of a phrase book.....

hope this helps

Answer 5

Italian is needed, even in IT American companies people communicate in Italian. Some basic knowledge of English is expected, but fluent English is a bonus. If you're native Spanish speaker, picking up Italian shouldn't be a problem. You'll find most things have a localized version, but it really depends on the place where you work. I prefer the English/original version, since for instance it's easier to search on-line forums, most books are not translated, but switching is easy.

Answer 6

To be honest you need to speak Italian.  I am Italian and it is changing in Italy.  While jobs are needed in Italy by English speakers you must be fluent in Italian as well.   Most Italians by today's education standard must be fluent in one other non primary language.  Many in the Northwest prefer French or German with English as a secondary choice.  Since Italy borders France and Switzerland to the west, German and French are popular as a second language.  Back in the 80's and 90's and even into the beginning of the 21st century America was in better standing with the world and English was more popular. Now that Europe is becoming more self sufficient they are leaning on being inclusive.  It is good you speak Spanish, you'll pick up Italian in 6-12 months fluently with the similarity.  Good luck!!!