For office-based internships at international companies in Barcelona, Paris, Berlin, Tokyo, or Bali, English is the working language. But even basic local language skills dramatically improve your social experience, your professional impression, and your day-to-day life. An A2 level in the local language is worth the 6–8 weeks of effort.
What Level Do You Need?
🏘 Work Language
Most international companies in our network operate in English. You don't need the local language to do your job. However, some sectors (NGOs, hospitality, local SMEs) require working-level ability in the local language.
🌎 Daily Life
A2–B1 level is enough for grocery shopping, navigating public transport, ordering food, and basic social interaction. This takes 6–10 weeks of consistent practice. Very achievable before you leave.
👥 Social Life
The students who get the most from their time abroad are the ones who try to communicate in the local language. Even broken attempts are appreciated. Language opens doors that English alone doesn't.
Language by Destination
🇪🇸 Spain (Barcelona, Madrid) — Spanish
A2 Spanish is genuinely useful. Barcelona offices are often English-speaking, but your social life will be richer with Spanish. Catalan is also spoken everywhere in Barcelona — you don't need it for work but locals appreciate attempts.
🇫🇷 France (Paris) — French
France is unique — French people tend to be less accommodating of English than other nationalities (less so in Paris than elsewhere). A working knowledge of French is more important here than in most other European destinations. B1 level is ideal.
🇯🇵 Japan (Tokyo) — Japanese
English is the working language at international companies in Tokyo. Basic Japanese (greetings, numbers, reading hiragana) is appreciated and useful for daily life. Full professional Japanese takes years — don't be intimidated, but do learn the basics.
🇮🇩 Indonesia (Bali) — Bahasa Indonesia
Bali's international community operates almost entirely in English. Bahasa Indonesia is easy to pick up basics in — it has no tenses and consistent pronunciation. Even 50 words of Bahasa earns you significant goodwill from locals.
🇦🇾 South Africa (Cape Town) — English is official
English is one of 11 official languages and the primary business language. No language preparation needed. Afrikaans and Xhosa are widely spoken but not expected of international students.
Best Free & Low-Cost Resources
Duolingo
Free. Best for daily habit building and vocabulary. Covers most major languages. Not sufficient alone, but excellent alongside other resources. 20 minutes a day for 3 months gets you to conversational basics.
Language Transfer
Free. Podcasts for Spanish, Italian, French, German. Brilliant for understanding grammar intuitively without memorising rules. Most useful for European languages.
Preply / iTalki
Paid. 1-on-1 tutoring online. Even 1 session/week for 6 weeks makes a real difference for speaking confidence. £10–25 per hour depending on tutor level.
University Language Centre
Often free or subsidised for registered students. Check what your university offers — many have evening beginner classes that run through term time.
Finding the right destination
If language is a concern, our matching process factors it in. We'll never put you in a role that requires fluency you don't have.
Start for free →