Star Translator
Here you will get to know some of our translators and interpreters, to help you understand a little more about the language industry and the people you will be working with. By all accounts, translation is a serious job but we do try to have some fun along the way. That's how we relieve stress in this highly demanding profession! Nina Wuming - December
What language pairs do you work with? English and Chinese. I was accredited by NAATI at professional level in English and Chinese (both directions) in 2003. What was your very first assignment and how did you handle it? My very first translation assignment came in 1992. The company I worked with requested that I translate a Maintenance Manual of Boeing 737-300 from English to Chinese. It was 10cm thick and had 3000 pages, and involved a number of terms I was not familiar with. At that time, I had no access to internet, either at home or at work, and there were few books on airplanes in Chinese bookshops or libraries which I could refer to. I had to seek advice from maintenance engineers of a local airline from time to time. I made every effort on that first assignment to do the best job possible. The next day I handed in my translation, another assignment came, translation of a 3500-page Operation Manual of Boeing 737-300. [back to top] What was the worst job you've ever had to do? Last year, an immigration lawyer engaged me to translate a Diagnosis Certificate issued by a Chinese hospital from Chinese into English. She said in her email the Certificate would be used as key evidence to support her client's refugee claims. She also said she had previously engaged another translator's service, but for some reasons, he had omitted a number of medical terms which occurred in the original. I decided to give it a try. I opened the attached document and found the scanned Certificate was actually written in barely legible handwriting. I had to guess most of the words from the context. To avoid any mistakes, I even forwarded the email to a doctor friend for his help. We both spent over four hours on the 150-word document, and managed to translate 99% of it. The lawyer was very happy with the translation. And the most exciting?I was excited when Polaron recently assigned me to do translations for an automotive manufacturer. In 2005, I created, wrote and taught the first English for Automotive Engineering course for Chinese university students majored in English. That experience made the translation job much easier. It sounds like you really love your job! Do you? Yes, I've really enjoyed it and learnt a lot from it. Translation has brought me lots of fun. Of course, for most of the time I have had to work under pressure in order to meet deadlines without undermining the quality of my work. But it is worthwhile if you can build up a reputation and a group of steady clients. But what's one thing that you don't ever put on your CV?I am also a registered Australian migration agent, and translation is actually a small part of my job. But if you asked me which occupation I prefer to do, I will choose translation without hesitation. I have worked as a translator for 18 years, but a migration agent for only 2 years. Do you have any advice for someone that has never worked with a translation company?Continually improve your work and move ahead in the pursuit of excellence. So what's on your plate at the moment?I am now working on two assignments from Polaron.
Eva Hussain - November
What language pairs do you work with? Polish and English, but I do speak several other languages and have a special talent of recognising pretty much every language in a written or spoken form. What was your very first assignment and how did you handle it?Gee, what was it? Oh yes, I remember now. It was a hospital interpreting assignment in Geelong (about 100 km from Melbourne). I was so keen and excited! This was Christmas Eve 2000, soon after I got my accreditation. I thought I knew how to get to Geelong (kind of, been there once) but half way through I saw a sign that said Ballarat 20 km. To my horror, and despite my very best intentions, I was going to be late (a capital crime in the interpreting industry). As it turned out, I was late by about 15 minutes and virtually ran into the reception at Geelong Hospital, panting and sweating. Naturally, this was not the first time, nor the last that I was late for an interpreting assignment! [back to top] What was the worse job you've ever had to do?I had to tell parents of a 2 week old baby of their doctors's advice to turn their child's life support machine off. Whilst you try not to get involved, it is very difficult to get over breaking that kind of bad news. That or translating an autopsy report for a mother of a 25 year old whose son was killed in Poland. And the most exciting?Oh, it would have to be the drug importation trial I interpreted at in Sydney. It was a very public case that really tested my skills, knowledge and patience with the legal profession! It sounds like you really love your job! Do you?Yep. I wake up every morning looking forward to translating and interpreting. Although nowadays I don't do a lot of the hands on stuff any more, I still love crafting the words on a page to produce a translation that doesn't read like a translation! So yes, there are deadlines and challenging situations but I have to say that this work is my passion and I can't see myself doing anything else. But what's one thing that you don't ever put on your CV?That my very first job in Australia was cleaning of private houses and how much I hated it. One of the clients asked me to clean her toilet so that it was as clean as a cooking pot. Argh! Do you have any advice for someone that has never worked with a translation company?I do! Ask lots of questions, listen and get involved. The end product is always much better when the client shows interest and engagement in the process. So what's on your plate at the moment?A couple of technical translation for the European Commission. These documents are very complex, long and a real challenge in terms of terminology but give you a real buzz as they really stretch your professional proficiency. |
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