For a university course I have to choose to study 1 of 5 languages: Arabic, Bulgarian, Japanese, Portuguese or Slovak.

I am mostly undecided between Arabic or Portuguese.
Arabic interests me the most however I have been told that in Arabic-speaking countries mostly male/Muslim interpreters are preferred. Also, I understand that it would be very difficult to ever reach a level of fluency in this language. I live in Italy and it isn't convenient for me to attend an Arabic language school abroad - additionally due to the current safety of some Arab countries (no racism intended).

I know I shouldn't rule out something more unusual like Bulgarian or Slovak, because this may enable me to stand out when I begin looking for a language based career.

Opinions and experiences studying any of these languages?
Thanks, B.