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Singulariki

Foreign Language

Skill in demand · Lightcast

Foreign Language is a common skill in the Lightcast Open Skills taxonomy — the vocabulary employers use to describe what work requires. It maps to 47 occupations that together employ about 13,656,950 workers, with a median wage of $45,790. Its reach across the occupation map is moderate. The occupations that use it sit, on average, at the 35th percentile of AI task-exposure ( moderate) — a measure of how much the work overlaps with what AI can do, not of the skill's value. See where every skill sits.

This page is built from a crosswalk that maps each occupation's O*NET knowledge, skill, and ability requirements to the named Lightcast skill — it reflects which jobs require the skill, not a direct count of job postings. Employment and pay are BLS OEWS national figures for the occupations, not for the skill itself.

Occupations that need this skill

Occupations whose O*NET requirements map to Foreign Language, ranked by employment. Wage and employment are BLS OEWS (national, cross-industry, May 2024).

Occupation Workers Median pay
Fast Food and Counter Workers 3,780,930 $30,480
Nursing Assistants 1,388,430 $39,530
Security Guards 1,241,770 $38,370
Light Truck Drivers 994,410 $44,140
Medical Secretaries and Administrative Assistants 830,760 $44,640
Customs and Border Protection Officers 666,990 $76,290
Dishwashers 471,670 $33,670
Preschool Teachers, Except Special Education 445,080 $37,120
Hosts and Hostesses, Restaurant, Lounge, and Coffee Shop 427,150 $30,380
Cleaners of Vehicles and Equipment 373,960 $35,270
Amusement and Recreation Attendants 371,590 $30,490
Bakers 231,890 $36,650
Shuttle Drivers and Chauffeurs 229,630 $36,670
Cement Masons and Concrete Finishers 205,230 $54,660
Speech-Language Pathologists 178,790 $95,410
Eligibility Interviewers, Government Programs 156,260 $51,500
Cooks, Short Order 150,420 $35,620
Lifeguards, Ski Patrol, and Other Recreational Protective Service Workers 143,590 $33,720
Meat, Poultry, and Fish Cutters and Trimmers 141,090 $37,700
Roofers 136,740 $50,970
Flight Attendants 130,110 $67,130
Reservation and Transportation Ticket Agents and Travel Clerks 127,440 $41,460
Freight Forwarders 97,800 $49,900
Crossing Guards and Flaggers 90,180 $37,700
Drywall and Ceiling Tile Installers 82,900 $58,140
Slaughterers and Meat Packers 67,500 $39,790
Clergy 58,080 $60,820
Interpreters and Translators 53,360 $59,440
Concierges 44,200 $37,320
Helpers--Pipelayers, Plumbers, Pipefitters, and Steamfitters 43,640 $39,270
Pediatricians, General 42,960 $210,130
Musicians and Singers 38,350 —
Special Education Teachers, Preschool 28,200 $62,190
Graders and Sorters, Agricultural Products 26,870 $35,430
Passenger Attendants 25,340 $37,560
Fence Erectors 22,640 $46,940
Foreign Language and Literature Teachers, Postsecondary 21,170 $77,010
Philosophy and Religion Teachers, Postsecondary 20,840 $78,050
Music Therapists 19,320 $65,010
Music Directors and Composers 12,330 $63,670
Coil Winders, Tapers, and Finishers 12,170 $47,260
Area, Ethnic, and Cultural Studies Teachers, Postsecondary 11,430 $84,290
Anthropologists and Archeologists 8,070 $64,910
Anthropology and Archeology Teachers, Postsecondary 5,260 $95,770
Farm Labor Contractors 410 $48,690
Personal Care Aides — —
Substance Abuse and Behavioral Disorder Counselors — —
Exposure quadrant: AI task-overlap percentile vs Median pay AI task-overlap (horizontal) versus median pay (vertical), each as a percentile across all scored occupations, for 40 occupations in occupations that need Foreign Language. Overlap measures shared tasks with AI, not automation. Lower overlap · higher pay Higher overlap · higher pay Higher overlap · lower pay Lower overlap · lower pay Cement Masons and Concrete Finishers Dishwashers Roofers Drywall and Ceiling Tile Installers Fence Erectors Helpers--Pipelayers, Plumbers, Pipefitters, and Steamfitters Lifeguards, Ski Patrol, and Other Recreational Protective Service Workers Coil Winders, Tapers, and Finishers Farm Labor Contractors Light Truck Drivers Bakers Security Guards Flight Attendants Customs and Border Protection Officers Amusement and Recreation Attendants Special Education Teachers, Preschool Passenger Attendants Speech-Language Pathologists Anthropologists and Archeologists Pediatricians, General Reservation and Transportation Ticket Agents and Travel Clerks Area, Ethnic, and Cultural Studies Teachers, Postsecondary AI task-overlap percentile → ↑ Median pay
Occupations that need Foreign Language, by AI task-overlap and median pay

How this skill maps to occupations

The O*NET attribute types that bridge to this Lightcast skill, and how many of the mapped occupations each accounts for.

  • O*NET knowledge area 47

Datasets behind this page

Every figure above traces to a named public dataset and the exact release below — not hand-written opinion. See the full methodology for what each measure does and does not mean.

Data compiled June 2, 2026. Figures are estimates, not advice.

Cite this page
Plain

Singulariki. "Foreign Language." Singulariki: a source-backed encyclopedia of work. Built from O*NET 30.3; BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) May 2024; “GPTs are GPTs” (Eloundou et al.) arXiv 2303.10130; AI Occupational Exposure (AIOE) Felten, Raj & Seamans. Accessed June 7, 2026. https://singulariki.com/demand-skills/foreign-language

APA

Singulariki. (2026). Foreign Language. Singulariki: a source-backed encyclopedia of work. Retrieved June 7, 2026, from https://singulariki.com/demand-skills/foreign-language

BibTeX 
@misc{singulariki-foreign-language,
  title  = {Foreign Language},
  author = {{Singulariki}},
  year   = {2026},
  note   = {O*NET 30.3; BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) May 2024; “GPTs are GPTs” (Eloundou et al.) arXiv 2303.10130; AI Occupational Exposure (AIOE) Felten, Raj & Seamans. Accessed June 7, 2026},
  url    = {https://singulariki.com/demand-skills/foreign-language}
}

Citations name the underlying public dataset releases — they reflect what this page is built from, not just the URL.