The Savvy Newcomer aims to serve newcomers to the translation and interpreting professions by publishing high-quality, peer-reviewed content on a weekly basis. We strive to provide you with the answers to the many questions you face as a new or aspiring translator or interpreter.
This post was originally published on听KGH Interpretation. It is reposted with permission.听 In 2022 I facilitated a session of the Language Access Caf茅 at the NCIHC Annual Membership Meeting and was asked to speak about interpreter self-care. Prior to the meeting, I decided to do an informal survey of medical interpreters asking them some questions about their mental health. I wanted to have a little bit of data that would clue me in on some of the issues interpreters were facing. While most of the results I shared during the AMM focused on stressors and supports, I also briefly shared…
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This post originally appeared on Copyblogger I don鈥檛 know about you, but when I started freelancing as a writer, I made a ton of mistakes. And by 鈥渁 ton,鈥 I mean everything I did was pretty much a disaster. Thankfully, you can fix mistakes. And contrary to popular belief, making mistakes is a good thing 鈥 provided you learn from…
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Oftentimes, clients will have questions as to the style choices that language professionals make. Perhaps the target document may not appear the way they see it in English, or perhaps it does not coincide with other documents they have seen written in the target language. In order to alleviate some of the stress in this process, this style guide was…
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Reblogged with permission I often receive emails from aspiring translators who are switching from a career in the fields of science or healthcare and are seeking advice from someone with the same language combination who made a similar change, albeit several decades ago. This blog post is an expanded version of my response, in the hope that it will save…
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From time to time we at The Savvy Newcomer receive questions from our readers that make for great blog post topics. This is one of them! Here鈥檚 a question from one of our readers who鈥檚 just starting to pursue an interest in languages and wants to know how to get started. Q: Is there any advice you could give for…
Read MoreHow to Create an Ideal T&I Client Profile to Market Your Services
This post was originally published on Madalena S谩nchez Zampaulo’s blog. It is reposted with permission. It is incredibly important to know your ideal client if your marketing efforts are going to be effective. After all, we want to work with our ideal clients, and not just anyone who crosses our paths, right? I mentioned recently in a webinar that I…
Read MoreThe Secret Sauce for Building Cohesive Teams
Though it may seem paradoxical since many of us work independently, teamwork is a critical component of a freelance translator or interpreter鈥檚 professional life. Introverts and extroverts alike need collaboration and interaction in order to thrive, and oftentimes quality necessitates working together to resolve questions and agree on solutions. Whether you鈥檙e volunteering on a committee, working with a team of…
Read MoreFreelance Beginner Tips: The Pitfalls to Avoid
Reblogged from Hongkiat, with permission If you鈥檙e still unsure whether or not to pursue freelancing, chances are you鈥檝e contemplated what life is like as a full-time freelancer. You鈥檝e probably heard of the many splendid perks of freelancing, but you鈥檙e still dying to know if it鈥檚 really all sunny and greener 鈥渙n the other side鈥. Like most professions, freelancing has its…
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As many states and entities seek to define standards for the translation and interpreting profession, the State of Oregon serves as a great example of a robust set of standards. In order to prepare to meet these standards, many take translation courses. Such courses can serve as proof to clients who require proof of having taken translation training or as…
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This post was originally published on the听dba Plan B blog. It is reposted with permission. When you have a translation project ready to go, here are some of the questions you鈥檒l likely be asked 鈥 certainly by me, but also by other translators. In most cases, translators need to see the documents before giving you a quote, but even with…
Read MoreCommon Errors Found in the English>Spanish Certification Exam
Reblogged from The ATA Chronicle, with permission ATA certification continues to be a sought-after credential. As a way to prepare for this demanding exam, ATA has been offering practice tests for many years, which are real exam passages that have been 鈥渞etired.鈥 In addition to the practice test, ATA has been offering exam preparation workshops taught by ATA exam graders…
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