How to become a translator? This question might be coming to your mind if you want to start your career in the Translation Industry.
The translation is the process of converting one source language to another, retaining the meaning of the source language. The translation can be in written or spoken form. Today, We will provide some tips on how to become a translator and throw some insights on translation career.
The present time being the period of globalization and the increasing internet access in the world population has turned the whole world into a small village. The business houses are no more concentrated to a particular place or a country. So, when people with two different languages communicate and do the business together, the role of translation comes into place. Although translation has been made easier due to the arrivals of the computer, we cannot completely rely on machines for translation. At present, Machine Translation can translate as much as 70% of the text correctly while a real human being is required to make it 100% accurate. Machine translation is still developing while most of the organizations still prefer human translation for accuracy.
You might want to become a translator as the demand for translators is still high in the present time. The basic is that you must have an interest in a translation career and should develop yourself as a professional Translator. If you have a passion to read and write a bit, becoming a translator can be a good option for you. Moreover, The compensation provided to Translators is appealing.
CAREER IN TRANSLATION
In most of the countries, there is a good demand for translators in both the government and private sector and it is expected that the demand for translators will increase in the coming days. In this part, We will be talking about finding translation jobs, the first step of your translation career, which will ultimately help you become a translator.
Translation Jobs in Government sector
Almost all the government departments require translators for translating official and government documents. There are provisions in the constitutions/acts of many countries which makes it mandatory to translate all the government documents between National Language and English. Moreover, some countries even have provisions that mandate government authorities/bodies to provide English documents translated in the mother tongue language if asked by the citizen holder of that country. In addition, the constitution of some countries gives special recognition to regional languages and there arises a need for a translator.
The translator can get career opportunities in media houses, security forces & banking in government sectors.
Talking about banks, they have a dedicated post for a translator to translate all their policies and rules. There is also a demand for legal translators to translate documents relates to acts, criminal cases & court orders.
Translation Jobs in the Private sector
There are many areas in the private sector that require a translator. Becoming a translator is easier in this sector as there are multiple job opportunities in this sector.
Translation Opportunities in Media/Publication houses
The media/publication house is incomplete without translation. They use translators to translate content from all over the world to deliver the latest updates to their readers. So, If you want to start your career as a translator, media/publication houses can be a good option but to remind you, most media/publication houses require a degree in Journalism. There are also many opportunities for translators in Publication houses as they also deal with the literary translation of popular stories, novels, books, essays and poems into English and another language.
Translation Opportunities in the Advertising industry
Nowadays, you might have seen the same Audio-Visual advertisement in multiple languages. Yes, this is the output of translators. Translators have an important role in the Advertising and Marketing industry these days. They do this by translating the content in regional languages/foreign languages expanding the reach of Advertising and Marketing, which leads to more sales to the business houses. Translators are provided with very good compensation in this industry.
Translation Opportunities in the Movie Industry
In the past few years, movie dubbing and remake have increased tremendously. A movie is first recorded in a language and later is dubbed into multiple languages. When dubbing is not possible, subtitling/captions are used to translate the voice of the character. You might have seen English movies in your native language. This is the output of the translator and there is a good demand for translators in the movie industry.
Translation agencies – translation jobs in agencies
There are many translation agencies around the world, where you can work as a translator. Some agencies hire an in-house translator while some prefer freelance translators. These agencies are just not limited to a particular language pair. They have career opportunities for translators in multiple languages. You can apply for the role of translator in the translation agencies.
The Freedom To work
The translation is one of the best professions where you can work from home on a freelance basis. You have an internet connection, a laptop, and some experience, you can start working as a translator from home. There are many websites and resources online which can help you get Translation jobs. Some of the popular sites for finding online translation jobs are Proz.com, Translatorscafe, Upwork, Freelancer, etc.
Read Also: How to avoid copyright infringement & plagiarism in translation
The career option for translators looks bright but the most important thing about becoming a translator is that you should have good writing skills and you should have expert knowledge in the language pair you are working with.