In this article, I will tell you where it is better to study the profession of a translator - in state universities or in courses. Or maybe there are some other options?
I myself graduated from the translation department of NSLU, and then I also created my own courses for translators. So I have a completely objective idea of the pros and cons of both options.
And let's start with the classic option - training as an interpreter in universities.
Training as an interpreter at a state university
I must confess to you honestly - now the profession of an interpreter has changed a lot. Before, in Soviet times, it was a purely military profession. That is why girls were not taken to the translation faculties to study.
That is, there 100% of the students were guys. And now it's the other way around. If you go to any perfak, you will see that 98% of the students there are girls. Now a translator is a person who sits at a computer and translates instructions and legal documents. No romance =)
Another interesting fact for entry - after graduating from the Faculty of Translation, only 5-7% of graduates work as translators. The rest do something - they teach English, open their own business, retrain as dentists.
This happens because the training program at the translation faculties is very outdated. They mostly continue to write translations by hand in notebooks. There are still very old teaching materials.
Disadvantages of public education
When I studied at the perfak, we did technical translation from magazines from the 60s. But these materials were approved "from above", and all training program built on them.
The next disadvantage of formal training is that you are not taught how to work with a computer. Today, a translator simply has to be very good at at least the Word program. But by default, it is believed that today everyone has a computer at home, and everyone can do something in the Word themselves.
But in fact, this is not enough. Creating a document, printing text there is not enough. You need to be able to format the text on the fly, draw up images in translation, and do all this without unnecessary characters, with a clean layout. 100% of graduates do not know how to do this. Because it is a separate professional discipline.
Why 95% of Translation Graduates Can't Find a Job
If we return to educational materials, then graduates of translation departments are very surprised when they find out what a translation assignment actually looks like. They get used to translating texts of 5-10 paragraphs, where everything is written in good English (or whatever?) Language.
And they have 2-3 days to translate this piece of text, so that they can analyze it long and hard in class together with the teacher.
In reality, everything is much tougher.
You are given 10 pages of terrible quality text. There in half of the places it is generally impossible to make out the text. And often there is no text as such. There are some drawings, and inside the drawings there are small icons with which it is not clear what to do.
And the worst thing is the words with which these texts are written. These words are simply not in any dictionary of the world. Or because it new industry and terms arose only yesterday. Or because the author himself invented them. Or sealed up. Or a text was written in English by a person for whom English is not native, and he simply inserted the wrong words, because he does not know the correct ones.
And add here the fact that you only have a day to translate these 10 pages.
This is where 95% of graduates “merge”. Because their life did not prepare them for this. And I should have. And the remaining 5% merge when they find out what pennies they will be paid if they still cope with this text.
Let's be honest with ourselves. At the translation faculties today, unfortunately, they do not prepare for the profession of an interpreter. This is not just a problem for perfs. 95% of graduates across the country work outside their specialty for about the same reasons. But translation has its advantages.
What is actually taught in translation?
Speaking quite frankly, today only foreign languages are taught at the translation faculties. This is not to be taken away. If you enroll in translation, in 3 years you will perfectly learn at least two foreign languages.
I still remember how we passed translation tests. First, we were forbidden to use dictionaries. Which is already strange, because the main skill of a translator is precisely the ability to use dictionaries.
Secondly, we had to translate dozens of terms from memory. Just single words. That is, we were taught not to translate, but to memorize the correct words. And it gave its results. We have learned a foreign language. But this has nothing to do with the profession of a translator.
Why do people go to public universities
Perhaps you, my dear reader, are now at that tender age when it seems that you have to study at a university in order to get a diploma, and then a job. But here I will disappoint you. A translation diploma will never give you any job.
You will come to get a job as an interpreter - and you will be asked for work experience, not a diploma. In general, after graduation, I got my diploma only two or three times. I needed this in order to be a translator at a notary.
But if I didn’t have a diploma, I could have passed with a school certificate. I tell you this in all seriousness. I personally brought our Ukrainian, Uzbek and other translators to the notary, who had only a school certificate, where it was written that they studied Russian at school. And that was enough for the notary to agree to certify their translator's signature.
All this, of course, is sad, but there are also positive aspects.
"Career" of graduates of translation faculties
One of these moments is that the majority of perf students are not going to work as translators at all =)
As I wrote above, the main contingent at translation faculties today are girls. And they come for translation with a very clear goal - to learn a foreign language, marry a foreigner and go abroad.
And it's not funny, it was on such a "career ladder" that so many girls went, who studied with me in the same stream.
What are the Words, document formatting and notarized translation of documents. They now work in France as sellers, in America as sellers, again in France as waiters ...
If you are consciously or subconsciously striving for this, then it is better for the translation faculty to come up with nothing. Problems begin if you suddenly, for no reason at all, really want to work as a translator.
Practical training courses for translators
When I just graduated from the Faculty of Translation, I had a problem that I could not translate. Then I learned by working in a translation agency for a penny. After some time, I opened my own translation agency. And then the next problem arose - the translators did not know how to translate.
That is, the same yesterday's graduates came to us to get a job, as I myself was a few years ago. And they made the same mistakes. And one day I got tired of explaining the same thing to every translator.
Then I just took and wrote instructions - how and what to translate, in what situation. Separately, instructions - how to work with the Word, how - with personal documents. And so on.
After that, I could simply give instructions to a new translator, and he immediately, and not three years later, began to work quite sanely.
I was delighted with the first success and began to gradually supplement my instructions. As a result, it grew first to 100 pages, then to 300, and then almost to 1000. And there were analyzed all the translation situations in great detail.
It turned out to be a real course of practical (rather than theoretical) training of a translator. I remember I was still surprised - why no one before me had guessed to do such a course. After all, beginners mastered it literally in 2-3 months, and immediately began to earn “in an adult way”.
Otherwise, they had to learn everything from their own experience for several years. And all this time - to live "on bread and water", because no one pays good rates to beginners.
Now I strongly recommend my course to all novice translators, which I called “Work! Translator". You can read more about this course.
Now let's make a small conclusion.
Conclusion
The question of where to study the profession of a translator is not an easy one. The answer depends on what you actually want to get. Learn a foreign language and try to "blame" - you're on a perfak. And if you really want to make money with translations, then you will have to learn this on your own.
And here are two options. The first is to learn by doing while working in a translation agency. The second is to take our course, where years of experience are packaged into step-by-step training. Personally, I went the first way. I mean, I taught myself. Simply because there were no such courses as before.
I had to plow for a penny for several years. And, unfortunately, few people endure such a life. And if you would also like to shorten your path from "beginner" to "pro" - use our course as a springboard.
See you later!
Your Dmitry Novoselov
Profession linguist description
A linguist, in short, is a specialist in the field of foreign languages, he usually speaks English and one more foreign language.
But it is impossible to acquire the profession of just a linguist, because this is a broad concept, its general name, usually, when entering a university, you need to make a choice in favor of a linguist-translator, a linguist-teacher, an English teacher or, in some universities, a regional studies guide. It is clear, yes, that a linguist differs from a translator in the same way as, for example, a fish from a carp - both fish, but the name carp is more specific)
Let's look at the pros and cons of these professions.
Since I am a certified linguist-teacher and I have practical experience in this profession, let's start with it.
It is implied that linguist-teacher is a specialist who will teach a foreign language at a university.
What are the responsibilities? Firstly, it is clear that - to conduct classes in a foreign language, in addition, the teacher has a part of the work that is not very noticeable for students, this is the so-called "second half of the working day." During this time, free from classroom activities, the teacher should organize educational activities for students, write science articles, draw up various methodological documents, and, of course, prepare for conducting their classes, as well as check various tests and other written works performed by students.
It must be borne in mind that if you choose this profession, your supervisor (head of the department) will constantly “push” you to go to graduate school and get a Ph.D., so you need to be ready for further scientific activity. Postgraduate studies are inevitable because: only it can lead to a more or less normal salary, and, in practice, will "reserve" you workplace at a university that, in connection with this policy Russian state to reduce the number of universities, will be even more unsteady for non-candidates of science.
If you do not want to go to graduate school at all, then you should think about teaching profession and then go to work in school. They won't demand it from you.
What are the duties of a teacher? Yes, you yourself went to school and you know that the teacher conducts lessons, checks notebooks, fills out a journal, if he is a class teacher, then he conducts extracurricular activities And parent meetings. Hidden from your eyes is that the teacher must write a lesson plan for each lesson and show it to the leader, he must also attend teacher councils (where all teachers gather under the guidance of the head teacher), which in some organizations are held once or even twice a week, and they last not for half an hour, but for two hours (still boring, but you can’t skip it!). Teachers, just like teachers, compile various methodological documents and write articles. In order for the salary to be bigger, you need to be certified for the category, I don’t really know the subtleties, but it’s quite difficult, you need to public lesson, be tested in a foreign language, certificates of professional development, work experience are also important. There are several categories and you need to pass certification every time to get the next one.
Advantages of teaching professions
Part-time work (classroom sessions / lessons are held in the first or second shift, the remaining time, if there is no meeting of the department or teachers' council, the teacher / teacher can distribute it himself: he decides for himself - where, when, what kind of extracurricular work he should do)
The creative nature of the work (the teacher can be creative in the learning process, use various methods and techniques to make it interesting for him and his students)
Work with your favorite foreign language (now a foreign language will always be in your life, six or seven (do not forget about checking the written work of students) days a week, and even if you didn’t learn something while studying at a university, teaching you will definitely learn it)
Work with young people: children or youth (maybe you don’t quite understand what is the advantage here, then imagine that you have to communicate with the elderly at work, they come to you and constantly complain about their health, their lack of demand, disrespect for young people, for example, you are a district doctor or Social worker. And if you are a teacher, then you are dealing with young people who are having fun, everything is interesting and they have an attitude that their whole life is ahead and everything will work out. Feel the difference?)
Disadvantages of teaching professions
A lot of paper, uninteresting work (methodological documents, reports, journaling, etc.)
There will always be a feeling that you have homework (like you have already graduated from the university, and prepare for classes and written works you still need to check, and so all your life, and people of other professions, after graduating from a university and getting a job, upon graduation labor day off duty)
Discipline ( young specialist it is very difficult to establish discipline, especially at school, do you remember yourself how your class “stood on its ears” if the teacher was not a vixen? In a university with discipline, it is better, but still, students will not take a young teacher seriously for a long time, and this cannot be solved in any way, it remains only to wait, because, as they say, youth is the most quickly passing disadvantage)
The next minus, which is a disadvantage at school and an advantage at a university: the need to communicate with the parents of students (parents, as it turns out, are inadequate and may simply not understand why the teacher gave their child a deuce and calmly “run into” the teacher about this! The children fought, again the teacher is to blame! Fortunately, at the university, the teacher has practically no such component as “communication with parents”)
For a teacher, entering graduate school and defending a dissertation can be a disadvantage of the profession, because this is a really difficult and difficult task.
It should also be noted that all the achievements of a teacher at a university will not be taken into account if he enters a job at a school (position, degree, candidate, for example, work experience), so a candidate of sciences, having come to school, will be considered a “young specialist” and occupy the lowest position, and receive the smallest salary.
Linguist translator- a specialist who speaks one or more foreign languages and is engaged in translation from native into foreign or from foreign into native languages. In this case, it is possible to subdivide: translation of oral speech and written texts.
translate spoken language very difficult, you need to have not only a high level of foreign language proficiency, but even more important - the experience of doing this kind of work. Yesterday's graduate, a translator with honors, is unlikely to successfully cope with the duties that fell upon her the first time. In addition, I would classify this profession as temporary, it is more like a part-time job, because not every city has organizations that need such a unit, and there is a full load.
WITH translator the matter is simpler, on the one hand. Any production facility has a department of translators for translating documents from foreign languages and maintaining business correspondence with foreign partners. But, imagine that you got a job, for example, at a machine-building plant, and in the texts there will always be some kind of bearings and gears, do you understand them in Russian? And in order to translate correctly, you have to figure it out.
Pros and cons of the profession of a linguist-translator:
Working with foreigners, in the case of interpreting (it is always interesting to talk with representatives of other cultures)
There are no problems with discipline (which the teacher and the teacher have)
No need to engage in scientific activities, unlike a teacher
Full-time work in the case of a translator, temporary work in the case of an interpreter
Monotonous, monotonous, painstaking work (imagine that you need to translate texts, documentation all day long, constantly referring to the dictionary, choosing the right word, having difficulty understanding the content of what is written, and which word-translation from a dozen presented in the dictionary will be correct in this context?)
You need a lot of experience to perform oral translations.
What are the job opportunities for a linguist?
tutoring
well paid
You can choose the time that suits you best
Students do not always want to study English (it is customary to think that if money is paid for classes, then they are very important for the exposed person, and he will listen carefully and carry out all the tasks of the teacher, in fact, this is not always the case. Often, studying English is the desire of parents, not the child, they want him to know English, and no one asked the child, so he does everything without enthusiasm, it is very psychologically difficult with this).
part-time work at a private language school
You can choose the most convenient time for classes and the amount of load
Compared to work at school, there are a lot of poles: there is no paperwork, scientific activity, better discipline, no checking notebooks, etc.
Control of the administration (not everyone will be able to get a job in a language school, before admission they often require you to successfully write a test in a foreign language, to come for an interview. After hiring, the administrator will be present at the lesson and control the quality of the lesson by the teacher - this is psychologically difficult, especially for young professionals)
Payment is less than when conducting private individual lessons (tutoring found on your own)
There is no social package (this is important if working at a language school will be your main one. If you get sick, the sick leave will not be paid, if you go on maternity leave, you will not receive any maternity money, etc.).
part-time job as a guide
In cities where tourists come, there is an opportunity to earn extra money as a guide. There is such a direction of training in some universities, you can also take guide courses if higher education has already. As for a translator, not every city has a job for a guide, so I would classify it more as a part-time job. To be in demand, you need to have a good level of foreign language proficiency, be sociable, polite, friendly. It is very important to establish yourself well and get into the contact database. travel companies if everyone is happy with you, you will be invited, and this job pays well.
Working with foreigners
Good earnings
Temporary, seasonal work
It takes time to get into the contact database of travel companies and reach a large number of orders, which will allow you to have good earnings and a constant load during the tourist season.
What should be taken into account when choosing the profession of a linguist-teacher, teacher, translator or guide?
I described the pros and cons of these professions, and if you have a “soul” for foreign languages, and you want to focus on the profession of a linguist, think about what exactly you would like to do more. If you like working with children, then - a teacher, if scientific activity is close to you, then - a teacher, if you are not against full-time work and do not want to work with people, then - a translator, if you feel that you have a talent for foreign languages, and it is in your power to learn how to simultaneously translate, then - an interpreter. In addition to what is close to you in spirit, it is very important to consider what city you live in or plan to work in: is there a job for an interpreter, a guide, or is it a university town? It is very important to choose a profession right away, before entering a university, so that later you do not have to get a second higher education, because in many cases the organization avoids, for a number of reasons, hiring a specialist with a non-core education.
Where to study as a linguist?
Higher linguistic education can be obtained at the philological faculties or at the institutes of linguistics. In the same place, there is usually an opportunity to take courses or complete a second higher education, if there is a desire to receive a diploma of an interpreter or guide.
Translator - general concept professionals involved in the translation of oral or written speech from one language to another. The profession is suitable for those who are interested in foreign languages and Russian language and literature (see the choice of profession for interest in school subjects).
There are several explanations for where the different languages came from. For example, the Bible describes the legend about the Tower of Babel. According to this tradition, God confused the languages of the builders of the tower because of their desire to surpass him and excessive pride. People ceased to understand each other and dispersed around the globe without completing the construction of the tower, which was supposed to reach the heavens.
There is an explanation in the difference in the language of people and from a scientific point of view. Even in prehistoric times, people began to speak different languages due to disunity due to the mountains, deserts and oceans located between them. Languages were formed in different tribes in isolation, one tribe communicated little with others. How more degree geographical isolation, the more distinct the language. On the plains, where it is easier to move around, individual languages occupy very large spaces (Russian, for example). But whatever the background, there has long been a need for people who know more than one native language.
Majority modern people knows not only his own language, but can also speak a foreign language to some extent. Tourism is actively developing, and with it there is a need to communicate with foreigners, to understand at least superficially the language of the country you are going to. Most often, the population studies English language which is increasingly taking the place of the universal language of international communication.
But for professional translation, competent, prompt and clear, people with special education and experience are needed. Such specialists are called translators. In a general sense, translators are divided into oral and written.
An important quality of an interpreter is the ability to create an atmosphere of mutual understanding and partnership. The specialist must understand that the success of the ongoing negotiations largely depends on him. He must help find mutual language people with different cultures, mentality and understanding business in different ways.
There are two types interpreters- sequential and synchronous.
A consecutive interpreter is indispensable in business negotiations, at events where some of the participants speak one language, and some speak another. In such cases, the speaker makes his speech with small stops so that the interpreter can formulate the phrase in the language of the listeners.
Simultaneous translation- the most difficult type of translation. Such translation is carried out with the help of specialized equipment for simultaneous translation. A simultaneous interpreter must speak a foreign language almost better than his native language. The complexity of the profession lies in the need to quickly understand and translate what is heard, and sometimes speak at the same time as the speaker. The most valued are specialists who are able to build competent and informative sentences that do not allow pauses in their speech.
Translators can translate technical, legal, fiction, business documents. Nowadays, more and more professionals are using modern technologies(for example, electronic dictionaries). Such a special software for translators will help increase its productivity by up to 40%.
Technical translators work with technical texts containing special scientific and technical information. Distinctive features of such a translation are accuracy, impersonality and unemotionality. There are many terms of Greek or Latin origin in the texts. The grammar of technical translations is specific and contains well-established grammatical norms (for example, indefinitely personal and impersonal constructions, passive phrases, impersonal forms of the verb). The types of technical translation include full written translation (the main form of technical translation), abstract translation (the content of the translated text is compressed), abstract translation, translation of headings and oral technical translation (for example, for training employees to work with foreign equipment).
Legal translation aimed at translating specific texts related to the field of law. Such a translation is used to exchange professional information related to the socio-political and cultural characteristics of the country. In this regard, the language of legal translation should be extremely accurate, clear and reliable.
Legal translation can be divided into several types:
- translation of laws, regulations and their drafts;
- translation of agreements (contracts);
- translation of legal opinions and memorandums;
- translation of notarial certificates and apostilles (a special sign that certifies signatures, the authenticity of a stamp or seal);
- translation of constituent documents of legal entities;
- translation of powers of attorney.
Fiction translator- a specialist in the translation of literary texts. He must, in addition to a comprehensive knowledge of a foreign language, be well versed in literature, master the word at a high level, be able to convey the style and style of the author of the translated work. There are many examples when recognized masters of the word (V. Zhukovsky, B. Pasternak, A. Akhmatova, S. Marshak, etc.) were engaged in translations. Their translations are works of art in themselves.
Required professional skills and knowledge
- perfect command of one or more foreign languages;
- competent Russian;
- good knowledge of technical terminology, both in the source language and in the target language (especially important for technical translators);
- deep knowledge of literature and literary editing skills (for translators of fiction);
- knowledge of the characteristics of language groups;
- the desire to improve knowledge of a foreign language every day.
Personal qualities
- linguistic abilities;
- high level of analytical thinking;
- the ability to store a large amount of information;
- accuracy, patience, attentiveness;
- high level of erudition;
- fast reaction;
- the ability to concentrate, to be attentive;
- sociability;
- verbal abilities (the ability to coherently and extremely clearly express one's thoughts, a rich vocabulary, well-delivered speech);
- high efficiency;
- courtesy, tact.
Pros and cons of the profession
Pros:
- the possibility of implementation in different areas (written translation, simultaneous interpreter, translation of films, books, magazines, etc.);
- a person who speaks a foreign language can find a very prestigious and highly paid job;
- there is an opportunity to communicate with people of different countries and cultures;
- high probability of business trips and travel.
Minuses
- in different months, the volume of transfers can vary several times, hence the unstable download;
- often translators are paid not upon delivery of the material, but when payment comes from the customer.
Place of work
- press centers, radio and television centers;
- international funds;
- travel companies;
- ministries of foreign affairs, consulates;
- book publishers, mass media;
- translation agency;
- museums and libraries;
- hotel business;
- international firms, companies;
- international associations and associations;
- international funds.
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