Gaining translation experience

When starting a career as a freelance translator, most translation service providers start out by becoming self-employed and applying to a number of agencies to find freelance work. Gaining translation experience is extremely difficult.

At the beginning of your career, gaining translation experience – which is necessary to be employed by agencies – can be very hard. Most translation agencies stipulate a minimum of three years translating experience before they will employ a translator. They won’t give you a single translation job if you can’t provide them with the relevant proof of experience, you can’t provide the proof as no one will give you any translation work. Classic Catch 22.

Solutions?

• Find a job as an in-house translator.
• Look for a job that includes some translation/interpreting work.
• Go abroad for a while. Having lived in the country where your foreign language is the main language is a great advantage.
• Gather experience where ever you can and make sure you can prove that you have done so.
• Start your own marketing campaign for direct clients.
• Gain experience and develop a portfolio by working pro bono for charities. This could be something you do while you are still studying.