Want a degree in Portuguese? Join Goa University

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On this Tuesday morning, Dhruv Usgaonkar’s phone is incessantly vibrating. Parents and students interested in learning more about the Goa University’s Bachelor of Arts in Portuguese degree and its associated offerings are posing inquiries to Usgaonkar, an assistant professor in the Department of Portuguese and Lusophone Studies at the university.

In the middle of everything, he gets a call from the dean of a management institute in Goa, asking if there are any instructors available to teach a Portuguese course to the students enrolled in the integrated MBA program at the institute. He tells the caller, “There’s a huge shortage of Portuguese teachers right now,” and bemoans his inability to provide the demand.

According to Usgaonkar, “there is a growing interest in and need for Portuguese language experts and proficient speakers; unfortunately, we are not able to meet the demand due to a shortage of trained personnel.” Not only are trainers in high demand, but the department’s staff also gets daily requests from small and large language service providers around the nation looking for applicants to hire—a need that isn’t being filled at the moment.