A hat-tip to the TIME China blog, which has a post linking to a couple of articles on the benefits of studying Mandarin.
As someone who poured nearly four years into studying Japanese, Japanese language, and Japanese culture and society, the thought of studying Putonghua never really occured to me. Even back in the summer of 2004 when I was preparing to leave my cushy PR job for the thrills of Beijing, undertaking Mandarin study just seemed like way too much of a commitment. I viewed it as only for people who were going to live in China forever, planned to marry a Chinese, or for diplomats or scholars.
Once I arrived though, I quickly realized I could work and gain experience and bolster the resume, but all of it would be practically useless if I don't learn Mandarin. Kaiser Kuo had an article in That's Beijing from a few years ago (I don't have the link -- my apologies) about how living in China is no longer a job qualification. China is flooded with foreigners now, and knowledge about the country is no longer a unique skill. But learning Mandarin (which is also becoming much more common) is a barrier between those who are serious, and those who are not; those who are prepared to take the next step, and those who aren't.
For the last 2.5 years I've been in the latter category. And, as a 28 year old, taking valuable time out of the full-time work force to spend 18 months in full-time Mandarin study is a tough call. But if senior citizens living in Flushing have the determination to learn, than so can I. I have basic Mandarin already, and can read/write about 800 characters. But it's time to take it to the next step.
Time also did an excellent article on the explosion of Mandarin study worldwide last year.
