To what extent do the requirements of spoken English in vacancies correspond to reality?

Question

Career in IT

Often I meet in vacancies / internships the requirement "English is not lower than Intermediate" i.e. colloquial, although, at first glance, the company is Russian-speaking, sawing some kind of internal project - why speak English there?
I never taught English on my own, there was no foreign language at school, i.e. conversational practice - zero. And although I can read, google, write comments (using spellchecker) in English, but to get to the spoken one I have to sell a kidney (and I'm not sure if this is a metaphor). Does it make sense to respond to vacancies without paying attention to such requirements, or will it only result in the loss of my and the employer's time. I'm especially interested in Epam - I see internships as a great opportunity, but the requirement to speak English really confuses me.

Answer 1

Does it make sense to apply for vacancies without paying attention to such requirements, or will it only result in the loss of my and the employer's time

It makes sense to respond, you just need to immediately indicate the fact that you have enough English to read and understand relevant materials (which in itself is already good and, for the most part, enough for most cases), but conversational is lame. And to clarify how critical this is, since this requirement can indeed be mandatory if, in accordance with your duties, you have to communicate with foreign partners.

Answer 2

just forget it, spoken English in practice reaches the level of communication in 2-3 months.
So you can safely respond if you read in English