Career development tips: Learn a foreign language for free

From career development to travel plans, learning another language opens up many more opportunities.

Unfortunately, if you aren’t careful then learning a language can be nearly as expensive as travel itself. Evening classes, books, DVDs - the cost soon mounts up.

But there are ways to pick up a foreign language without spending anything except time. Here are some of the best ways to learn a language for free.

Go online

There’s a load of free online resources for would-be multilinguals, so you can start learning a language without paying a penny for a book.

For example, the BBC has free tutorials and resources for a number of popular languages, including French, German, Spanish and Chinese. You can even sign up to free 12-week course and receive weekly emails encouraging you to stick with it.

Alternatively, if you just want to learn a few useful phrases in time for your holidays, the Beeb has several ‘Quick Fix’ language courses that give you some of the more common and useful phrases.

Other websites, such as LiveMocha offer free courses and exercises, although you need to pay for some of the more sophisticated content.

Volunteer abroad

The very best way to learn a new language is to immerse yourself in the relevant culture and that means travel. But as every gap year student finds out, travel can be expensive, even if you plan on working as you go.

So could volunteering abroad be the answer? Admittedly, this isn’t for everyone – it’s hardly free if you have to leave your job. But for many people, particularly those who don’t yet have children or mortgages, this is a fast-track to a new language and an adventure.


                                [Related Article: Six rewarding volunteering holidays]


Organisations like VSO and UN Volunteers can help you find free voluntary opportunities overseas, where your living costs and travel are paid for.

There are many opportunities in Spanish and French-speaking countries, so if those interest you and you have six months to a year to spare for a good cause, then this could be a perfect match.

Swap language skills

Of course, taking a gap year or sabbatic

al simply isn’t possible for most people, but that doesn’t mean they can’t learn by chatting with real speakers of the language.

You can arrange to swap languages with a foreign student online or in person.

Classifieds websites such as Gumtree are a good place to arrange an informal language swap with a visitor from overseas.

Obviously, be very careful what information you share with anyone you find online, and only meet them in a public spot.

There are also websites that arrange online conversations with foreign language speakers, such as MyLanguageExchange and FluentFuture.com



Watch TV

If you’re not feeling brave enough to practise your language skills in real conversations then TV is the next best thing.

Whereas on language tapes and videos the presenters are enunciating clearly and slowly, in a TV programme they will be speaking naturally, with emotion and pace.

You may be able to view some overseas programmes online or through your satellite subscription. The BBC offers many different foreign language programmes as part of its Learning Zone. If you watch these online then you don’t even need a TV licence to view them.

For example, you can view French content and even German news.

Visit your library

If you learn best through books, or there’s a particular course that’s been recommended then it’s worth exploring your local library. It may have the specific languages book you’re looking for, and it may be willing to order it for you if not.

Take a course

Perhaps you really want to crack a language then you might prefer to study a proper course at your local college, either a full-time or evening class.

The government NextStep website can help you find a suitable course and offers advice on finding funding and childcare. If you’re unemployed or have no qualifications then the government might pay your tuition fees. Chat with an adviser online to find out.

Have you learnt a language for very little or free? Share your own tips with readers in the comments below.