New Study Reveals European Cities with Most English-Speaking Job Vacancies in 2022

New research from the online language learning platform, Preply, has revealed the EEA countries and capital cities with the most job opportunities for employers with English–speaking skills in 2022.

As the language of business, the internet, and academia, the ability to speak English can unlock an endless pool of opportunities in the workplace, including career progression, new job prospects, and the ability to work almost anywhere in the world.

With many benefits to consider, it comes as no surprise that countries and businesses are investing in the English language for their people. But which countries have invested the most in the English language, and where do the opportunities lie for employees proficient in English?

Europe’s top 10 capital cities for English–speaking employees

To find out, Preply has investigated the best capital cities for English proficient job seekers in the EEA based on the city’s average number of job vacancies requiring English.

• Berlin, Warsaw, and Bucharest are the capital cities offering the highest number of jobs requiring English.
• The results show Germany’s capital Berlin has the most job vacancies requiring English skills, with 1,160 openings.
• Despite neither country requiring students to take English lessons at any point in their education, Poland and Romania came in second and third, with their capital cities offering 1,113 and 920 English–speaking job openings, respectively.

Top 10 European countries investing most in the English language

Preply’s research also investigated the countries investing the most in English education in 2022. Preply analysed seven metrics surrounding English education in 29 EEA countries. All the metrics were scored, and each country was given a final ‘English investment score’ out of 10.

• Germany leads the way in investing the most in the English language, with Spain and The Netherlands following close behind
• Germany is the number one country investing in English learning, with the highest job openings requiring English proficiency (4,537) and the fourth-highest number of English Language schools at 1,316. English is also a mandatory subject in Germany, meaning every student must study it at some point during their education.
• Spain and The Netherlands come second and third, scoring 6.1 and 5.5 out of 10 on the index.
• The Netherlands received the highest English proficiency score out of all the countries (663), indicating that the average person can use nuanced and appropriate English in social situations and read advanced English texts easily.
• Spain has the highest international schools out of every analysed country (274) and over 1,400 English language schools.
• Slovenia invests the least in learning English out of the EEA countries studied.

 Preply’s analysis

• Slovenia is investing the least in English, with an English investment score of just 1.8 out of 10. With English being an optional language, students are not required to take lessons.
• The country also has some of the lowest numbers of English language schools and international schools at 63 and 5 respectively.
• Lithuania and Cyprus also made the bottom three, scoring fairly low across the board for English investment, receiving a total English investment score of 1.9 and 2.1 out of 10, respectively.

Amy Pritchett, student success manager at Preply, commented on the importance of employees learning English in 2022: ‘English remains the language of the global business workforce. Therefore, being proficient in English will open up job opportunities, allow you to work almost anywhere, and can even increase your hourly wage in some instances due to its value to companies.’

‘Learning English can also give you a competitive advantage before starting your career by opening the door to some of the world’s highest-rated educational institutions. For example, 85% of the top 20 universities in the global rankings are English–speaking. Scientists, doctors, and engineers must also have English proficiency to publish work in their industry. This alone demonstrates how English has become the widely-adopted language of academia worldwide.’

‘Alongside this, over half of the most visited web pages in the world are also in English, making it the dominant language online. With over one billion internet users typing in English, you’ll be able to access many types of resources and learning platforms to strengthen your skills.’