Verifying a Candidate's Multilingual Skills

As a human resources manager, you are aware of the large number of applicants who falsify their resumes. Research shows that about 50% of applicants lie on their resumes, so how do you separate the truth from the lies?

Taking one Chinese course in college does not mean that the applicant actually has a basic understanding of the language, nor is someone who has taken a few Spanish classes fluent in Spanish. Therefore, you must be able to efficiently assess a candidate’s multilingual skills in order to verify that he or she is qualified for this position.

Verifying a job candidate’s multilingual skills does not have to be a difficult task but it does require additional effort. This effort is necessary for a company because the last thing they want to happen is to hire an employee who is under qualified for a position. With a few assessment tests, you will be able to clearly identify whether or not a candidate is right for the job.

The first elimination process of potential candidates will come from just mentioning that an assessment test for multilingual skills is necessary to be considered for the job. If this is mentioned on the job ad, this may help to reduce the number of unqualified applicants from applying. Once you mention the assessment test, it is very likely that those applicants, who lied on their resume regarding their proficiency in another language, will drop out of the competition.

Next comes the actual multilingual skill assessment tests to see who the best candidate for the job in question is. To be accurate, you should use a set of oral and written tests. This way, you know that your candidate is proficient in all areas of the language rather than just speaking or just writing. However, if your resources are limited and the job requirements only consist of speaking a language, then an oral exam will be efficient enough for the particular post.

Another reason why these tests are important is because the candidate may be bilingual or fluent in a certain language yet these skills still may not be enough for your company. For example, you may be looking for a Spanish speaker. An Argentinean speaks Spanish yet their Spanish skills may be more difficult to understand than someone who speaks continental Spanish. The vocabulary is different and although an Argentinean can assimilate and learn the continental Spanish vocabulary, you may need to fill your position urgently and do not have the time for one’s language skills to develop.

Certain applicants may also have the proficiency yet are not accustomed to certain vocabulary that is necessary for the job. Therefore, these written and oral assessment tests can evaluate one’s understanding of the business in a foreign language.

These tests are absolutely necessary when multilingual proficiency is in question. You, personally, may not speak one of the languages that your candidate speaks. Therefore, it is necessary that someone in your company who does speak that language help to verify the candidate’s proficiency. Another option is to hire a third party who is experienced in testing language skills for candidates. Either way, taking a candidates word that he or she is proficient in multiple languages is a very big risk for the company. Be accurate and have the final candidates for the position tested to make sure they meet the requirements of your business.