Volunteering for translations in reverse language pair
Christopher Rizzo United States Local time: 03:51 Member (Apr 2012) German to English + ...
Dec 20, 2011
Hi everyone:
First post for me. I am in the NYU German to English certificate program and in the meantime I
thought it would be a good idea to volunteer translate. I contacted several organizations and most
of them do not need German to English translations; but many do need English to German. I am
a native English speaker. Would it be worth my time to volunteer to translate English to German,
so I could put those projects on my resume, even though I only intend to work in German to English?
The translations required by these agencies are simple, nontechnical translations so I don't see the
translations as problematic for me.
Thanks for any feedback.
Christopher Rizzo
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Sam Pinson United States Local time: 00:51 Member (2011) Russian to English
I would keep looking
Dec 20, 2011
I would keep looking for organizations in need of German to English. They must exist. Of course, you're most likely to find them based in Germany.
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Christopher Rizzo United States Local time: 03:51 Member (Apr 2012) German to English + ...
TOPIC STARTER
Thank you
Dec 20, 2011
Thanks Sam, I will do that.
Christopher
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Marina Steinbach United States Local time: 03:51 Member (2011) English to German + ...
Blue Board outsourcers accepting applications
Dec 20, 2011
ChristopherR wrote:
(...) I contacted several organizations and most of them do not need German to English translations; (...)
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Christopher Rizzo United States Local time: 03:51 Member (Apr 2012) German to English + ...
TOPIC STARTER
Blue Board Outsourcers
Dec 20, 2011
Hi Marina: I looked at the outsourcer list, thank you for that. Did you mean I should
apply to these agencies for volunteer projects or paid projects? I have less than a year
translation experience, and am still a student in the German to English translation program at NYU, so I'm assuming they would only be interested in volunteer work.
Sorry but I know next to nothing about the industry! I am just a lawyer (practicing in the U.S.)
in translation school (And loving that by the way.).
Thanks again,
Christopher
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Phil Hand China Local time: 15:51 Member (2011) Chinese to English
Never hurts to practice
Dec 21, 2011
I would say that the ability to write in your source language is a useful skill (among other things, you will need to communicate with some of your clients in your source language, and you want to make sure you write impeccable business letters, so writing practice in German is always valuable); and that doing back translation is a helpful practice exercise (I do it a lot, and it helps me crystallise ideas about equivalents).
I'm not sure how much value native>source translations would have as CV items, seeing as you will be working German>English. It all shows dedication to your craft, which is good, but you might find more relevant experience elsewhere. Particularly with your law background, I can't imagine you'll find it hard to get work.
Welcome to the ranks!
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Paula Gordon United States Local time: 03:51 Bosnian to English + ...
Maybe team up with another translator?
Dec 21, 2011
Christopher,
Have you considered looking for a mentor in translation? Consider joining the NY Circle of Translators, attend a few meetings and events, join the online discussion group (there are probably sections for different language pairs and different subject areas). Once you know your way around a bit, you could put the word out that you're a student looking for some guidance, and in exchange, you could offer assistance with English legal language (if you are willing to do that). It needn't even be someone working in German -- just someone to show you the ropes, introduce you around, etc. But if you can find a German>Eng translator who is looking to break into legal translation, you may be able to team up on translation assignments as a translator-reviewer pair.
The American Translators Association has a mentoring program as well.
Or you could get experience by offering to proofread German into English legal translations, as long as you are comfortable with your knowledge of German. I'm harping on legal, since this is a marketable skill. ("I'm just a lawyer." -- just???)
Like others who answered, I'm not sure that offering to translate into German is desirable or practical, especially if you don't plan to pursue that direction.
Good luck!
Paula
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Christopher Rizzo United States Local time: 03:51 Member (Apr 2012) German to English + ...
TOPIC STARTER
Thank you
Dec 21, 2011
Thank you Sam, Marina, Phil, and Paula for your thoughtful posts. I will take all of your
advice into consideration.
Christopher
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