[WovenGalaxy]

And would you be willing to talk to me about what its like? My dream job is language translation, but I think you have to go to school forever?

[Yaowen]

I know that English speakers are hired to teach students English in Asian countries but don't know much about the field of professional translators. Sorry.

[divine1966]

I am.

It depends what kind of translations. I did it for years as a side job. It was language company that contracted people to do all kind of translations for all kind of agencies . I liked it. I had to stop because it was just not fitting my schedule. I am still in their files and they still call me asking me to do the job, but it’s been awhile since I took on any assignments.

I didn’t go to school, I mean I did, but not for translation. Just being native in one language and fluent in the other was perfectly fine.

It wasn’t literature translation though. That would be cool too!

[BreakForTheLight]

I studied translation but don't work as a translator. Full time jobs are hard to come by, a lot of it is freelance work and that wasn't for me. I didn't go to school forever, it was the same as any other study at bachelor level. You do have to be fluent in the source language though. It would be easiest to find a job if you have an unusual language combination. You don't need any qualifications to call yourself a translator and a lot of people think they are fluent enough in another language to be a translator. A lot of them are wrong. You also have to be a good writer, understand your target audience, know the nuances of both languages.

The company I worked for previously worked with freelancers (I was in a completely different department) and the quality of what they did was AWFUL.

If you just want to make money, call yourself a translator and start applying for jobs. If it is your dream job though, and you want to have some sense of professional pride, I would recommend at least some study or taking courses.

Why do you want to be a translator? What sort of work do you want to do?

[divine1966]

Agree about nuances of the language and other important aspects. It certainly can be tricky. It’s more than just speak the language

One assignment I had was for law enforcement and FBI, not at liberty to say what it was in detail because I signed a confidentiality document, but in general terms so much of the language I had to translate was in slang and urban dictionary kind of thing (they say one thing but it’s not really what they mean). Part of it was also understanding the culture, not just knowing the language. It was probably the most exciting task I ever had and it was many hours of work so the pay was good.

Then one other long standing assignment was working for a large hospital, mostly specific departments (one was cardiology). That one I was given some medical brochures and articles to go over some terminology first. Those assignments were direct translation. Twice I was present in operation room during heart bypass procedure/surgery (patients were under local anesthesia not full otherwise they’d be nothing to translate lol). That was exciting to say the least. Then there was court room assignment but don’t recall details now

I’d say go for it. Clearly I am still talking about these jobs and I hadn’t done it for years.

It left lasting impression I think mainly because I did things I don’t normally do on a daily basis. Like my job has nothing to do with medical field or court or law enforcement but I got to experience those different fields with my short and sporadic translator experiences.

I now think that when I retire, I might want to do this again. Thanks to this thread I started thinking about it again!

Woven galaxy go for it!!! It could be very rewarding

[rechu]

I am sort of a jack of all trades. I do business writing, research and translating. I have had several jobs where a lot of translation was required. My current job is writing in English but the source materials are often in Spanish or Portuguese.

In my case, my background is as follows. My bachelor’s degree is in Spanish and I did a semester abroad in a Spanish-speaking country. After graduation, I moved abroad for about a year and a half to another Spanish-speaking country. By then I was pretty much fluent in Spanish. I came back to the US and after a graduate degree in a social science field. I started working for a company in the international trade information area, researching and translating materials into English from Spanish. That employer sent me to Portuguese classes so I could work with Brazil too.

After some time, I ended up back abroad in South America. I’ve done freelance translating in all three languages for people I know here and through referrals. I also had a permanent job that required a lot of translation from Portuguese and Spanish to English and did occasional interpreting sessions for a company.

As others have said, most work is freelance. It is often not steady, and you have to be able to promote yourself.

I am curious about your language skills right now. Do you speak/write another language well? Do you have experience writing in English? Do you have opportunities to practice a second language outside of the classroom? I think those are important factors to consider. Some people find learning a language easier than others. Another thought is, do you have work experience in a certain field(s)? Some translations require knowledge of special terminology like legal or technical vocabulary. So, if you have that sort of knowledge, it could be useful.

[WovenGalaxy]

Hi. I’ve been pretty preoccupied lately, so its taken me a little while to respond. Thanks to everyone who responded here. I thought there were some interpreter / translators here, so I’m glad I asked.


I have a really good aptitude for my own language and languages. That doesn’t mean its always easy, depending on the language. All through middle and high school and into college, I took Spanish – I was good at it, but it wasn’t a passion or really even an interest back then. Then more recently I have taken Polish, which I really liked, and American Sign Language, which is interesting but I’m not sure about being an interpreter.

I am in the very beginning here, and if this were something I were to pursue, it’s a few years out in the future maybe. I also think I need to get professional help surrounding this, because I have a fear of public speaking, and I do think that if I were to learn another language to become fluent, I’d want to get another bachelor’s degree at the very least, and I’d have to give speeches sometimes in classes as well as probably take public speaking. I’m also not big on doing semesters abroad, unless I’m going to like, Canada. I’m not really big into travel. My therapist and I are working on other things at the moment, though they’re career related so this might come up sooner than I might think there.

To make this a little more complex, I have a lot of other interests as well, and I think about other fields of study (I’m in my late 30s though. I just have never really started a career). I’ve written about it in the past here. It truly may come down to though, “choose your suck.” There’s something that sucks in everything we choose / decide. Its not like I can just get away from it, and I think that’s what I’m trying to do, as someone with anxiety. Though I also do get analysis paralysis in making this type of decision. Its an ongoing issue, but one I want to resolve. And logically, I’m sure there’s no perfect answer. I have recently been asked “what’s your dream job?” a few times by different people. I say translation (because I’d love to learn another language, and work in an office behind the scenes, and well, use my brain), but maybe it’s a surface level idea. I guess that’s why I was looking for more information. Thanks again.

[bpforever1]

I did some translation work- medical. It was hard since I did not use a translator app. Translation work is detailed-oriented work. I am not so. I am sloppy as heck. So, it also takes a lot of concentration to do translation work.

I recommend that you become very fluent in your target language. You might have to study or take courses. I never took any courses but highly recommend that you get some guidance.

Also, ASL interpreting is in high demand now. If you like it and find it interesting, I would recommend this route. I am planning to do the same for the medical setting. But, ASL interpreting is not easy but if you become good at it, it should not be too hard. You can work from home as an ASL interpreter but am not sure exactly how one goes about doing this yet.

I am planning to take ASL classes at a community college and see how it goes. I just started the alphabet and numbers online. So, I wanted a mentor in person which is the reason I'm going to go to class. I studied Japanese on my own and it was very difficult. This time around, I decided to go to school.

ASL seems fun to learn. But, you will need to be on camera and maybe in person to do the interpreting.

Translation could be fun also if you enjoy working by yourself and also like using software. You say you have anxiety so it may be best to do translation work where you just do it by yourself on your own time. By the way, you don't need a degree in translation to do translation work. Of course, it would help to get a degree in translation but it is expensive!! Also, you really can't do anything with it except translating. You would be better off getting a degree in information technology, finance, or legal matters, e.g. paralegal studies, since there are many people who can translate but if you have another knowledge skill, then you can translate in this field too.

Whatever you do, I wish you the best!!

[bpforever1]

I also taught English abroad which does not pay well but is something you can do if you want to immerse yourself in another country's culture. I did my five years here as an English teacher in Asia. If you want to jump ship to another field then an IT or finance degree will help tremendously here. I see you are in your 30s so you should have a chance to come to Asia still. I'm in my 50s so I am out the door here in terms of jobs. I liked my job as a teacher but it is no career. It is something to do if you want to come here and experience Asia. Also, Korea I heard pays better but also is a good experience. If you want to become a translator here though, you really need to be proficient in another area besides English. There are so many translators here so the competition is tough. I could have made a living as a medical translator but would have been really stressed doing it. So, I did teaching and was happy for a while. Whatever you do, don't give up believing you can do it. I know you suffer a lot from your illness, so do I. But, I somehow managed to work here in Asia by myself without any major problems. You can also teach Engish in Spain too. Just look into it.

[WastingAsparagus]

I am a language translator. If you feel comfortable doing so, you can send me a PM.