“This is an absolutely thankless profession”: young translators talk about the pros and cons of their work. “This is an absolutely thankless profession”: young translators about the pros and cons of their work Is it worth going to become a translator?

A translator can spend his whole life in a small, stuffy office, translating pages of other people’s documents for notarization, or he can help communicate with leaders of countries during the most important negotiations. A specialist performs the most important function - he helps people communicate and understand each other.

Without them, we would never have read the works of foreign-language writers, watched foreign films, or learned about what is happening outside our country in general. But not every employee’s work is appreciated; only 15% of translators are satisfied with their salaries. Is it worth dedicating your life to this profession? Where to study to become a translator, what to be prepared for and how to build a career? Let's talk in detail.

History of the profession

The profession, although not in its modern form, has existed since ancient times. Then representatives of different nations spoke one more language, in addition to their native one. The key function of these “specialists” was the translation of speech and written messages. Typically, translators were used in negotiations or when announcing the will of a foreign language ruler of a certain territory. Often these were people captured during wars. In ancient Rus', translators were called interpreters. Presumably, their role was determined at the time of the beginning of the dialogue between the Russian principalities and the Turkic tribes.

The importance of interpreters strengthened during the time of vassal dependence of the Russian principalities on the Golden Horde - the collection of tribute and viceroyalty required knowledge of the Turkic language. In this regard, the position becomes official, and many translators go to serve the prince or khan.

Who is a translator and what are his responsibilities?

A translator is a specialist who translates oral or written text into another language. What distinguishes a professional from someone who simply knows a foreign language is the lack of room for error and the ability to correctly present information (match the speaker’s speed of speech, avoid long pauses, and so on). Remember the dozens of incidents that occurred in the negotiations of the same politicians due to translator errors. The same “overload” in relations between Russia and the United States (instead of a “reset”).

Key responsibilities of a specialist:

Translation of scientific and fiction literature, press, patent descriptions, specialized documents and other materials.
Performing translations of oral and written texts, ensuring their full compliance with the semantic, lexical and stylistic content of the original.
Editing translations of other specialists.
Preparation of documentation and all kinds of texts in a foreign language in accordance with officially accepted standards.
Scientific work on the unification of terms and improvement of translation technologies.

The range of responsibilities can expand or narrow depending on the employee’s qualifications, experience and place of work. But the skill requirements remain unchanged: a professional must not only be fluent in the language, but also comply with job descriptions. For example, have well-spoken speech, excellent memory for simultaneous translation, high typing speed, and so on.

It is necessary to constantly develop - every language lives and changes, new slang words and new trends appear in it.

If a specialist does not improve his skills, then in 1-2 years of “downtime” he can completely lose his skills.

Where can a specialist work?

Translation agency. At least 50% of university graduates work in specialized bureaus that provide interpretation and translation from foreign languages. The organization's customers can be individuals and legal entities, institutions and government agencies. The bureau primarily carries out written translations - these are documents (in particular, those preparing for a notarial application), educational works, books and magazines, letters, articles and much more.

Private organizations. Here specialists work for many customers, but in the interests of one company. Only 1-2% of organizations can afford to maintain a staff of translators - usually 1-2 people who perform a wide range of tasks. They go to negotiations, translate business correspondence, technical literature and documentation, prepare requests and papers for negotiations with foreign partners or customers, and provide information support to clients from foreign countries.

Government structures. Specialists work in government agencies or collaborate with them on individual projects. Example: the regional administration is building partnerships with investors, say, from the Czech Republic. They require translators with knowledge of the Czech language on an ongoing basis, since the volume of work is large and the workload is regular. Another example: from the same Czech Republic, a delegation of, say, athletes comes to the region to participate in some event. In this case, a translator with knowledge of the Czech language will be required for one-time project work.

Publishers and studios. Thousands of books, films, TV series and song lyrics are translated every year. Working in publishing houses, film studios, production centers and similar companies requires a specialist to know the specifics of the literary language and modern slang. You've probably noticed how the quality of translation, for example, of the same series in different studios varies. This is not about voice acting, but about vocabulary. Here, not only the clarity of the content depends on the translator, but also the pleasure received by the listener, viewer, reader from the oral or written text.

Freelancing. According to unofficial statistics, at least 10% of the total number of graduates of educational institutions in Russia constantly work as freelancers. They find regular customers, collaborate on projects with organizations and institutions, or look for work on popular freelance exchanges. The key advantage of this regime is absolute freedom, the ability to set your own schedule and regulate your income. The main disadvantage is the lack of any guarantees, in particular stable payment and fulfillment by the customer of the terms of the contract.

Where to study to become a translator? TOP 5 Universities

The best choice would be a linguistic university. You can start your education in college and continue it over time by enrolling in a university through an accelerated program.

A diploma of higher education gives preferences in employment, being an indicator of the quality of training.

However, the key argument in your favor for the employer is your work experience and qualifications. You will have to improve it throughout your career. And the higher quality the knowledge gained during training, the better. Therefore, it is worth trying to enroll in the best university available to you.

TOP 5 linguistic universities in Russia:

Moscow State University named after Lomonosov.
St. Petersburg State University.
MGIMO.
Moscow Linguistic University.
Russian State University named after. Kosygina.

Choosing a university is an important step in a translator’s career, but not a determining one.

Graduates of provincial educational institutions that are far from the top of the rankings can build a successful career. But during self-study, they will have to do much more than students at elite universities. Moreover, you will not receive the most valuable connections that graduates of prestigious universities acquire during their studies and which help them in finding a job.

An excellent solution would be to enroll in master's programs at foreign universities. This opportunity is worth taking advantage of not only for bachelors who want to emigrate, but also for graduates who want to succeed in a career as a translator. The opportunity to study a language in depth for several years in a country where it is official is an invaluable experience. It will help you reach the top and will become an important line in your resume. You can also: approve scholarships and grants from foreign universities that honestly offer free education. The procedure for admission and paperwork is quite complicated, but it’s worth it.

What qualities do you need to have?

Excellent memory. One of the basic requirements for in-depth study of any language. If you are forgetful, you must be prepared to put a lot of effort into developing your memory.
Logical thinking. It is not enough to remember individual words and phrases - you need to understand its logic, features of vocabulary and word formation. Developed logical thinking will become the basis for understanding grammar and slang expressions.
Perseverance. The work of a translator can hardly be called exciting - it usually involves many hours of sedentary work over piles of foreign language texts.
Stress resistance. It is especially important during simultaneous interpreting, when you are under constant pressure, trying to synchronize your speech with the speech of the speaker.
Attentiveness. Each mistake can lead to distortion of huge blocks of text. History knows many examples of failed negotiations or, say, unsuccessful film releases due to inaccuracies in translations.

The relevance of the translator profession and its prospects

Key confrontations are unfolding in the IT fields. Many experts say that in the near future, trained artificial intelligence will be able to completely replace a human translator. However, the developers themselves speak with caution about such prospects. Most of them talk about this possibility as a rather distant reality.

According to analytical data, in the next 20-30 years machines will not be able to replace the work of translators even by 15%. At the same time, the specialists themselves are happy to use new developments and professional software - it really helps in their work. If you liked the presentation of the profession at the Open Day at the university or if you have been writing an essay on the topic “My future profession is a translator” since elementary school, then you can safely follow your dream.

Pros and cons of the translator profession

This specialty is suitable for people who like complex, intense, orderly work. There are no risks or threats to life or health. It is difficult for a translator to get physically injured at work. But it is quite possible to weaken your psyche and drive yourself to hysteria as a result of constant stress and the burden of responsibility.

pros translator professions:

Relevance of the specialty . This is a profession in demand and even university graduates, as a rule, do not encounter a shortage of vacancies. The only exceptions are rare, particularly endangered, languages.
Lots of employment options . You can work in a regular translation agency, in private companies and government agencies, you can translate books, films and TV series, you can accompany tourists, or even remain a freelancer.
Career prospects . All in your hands! If you are constantly developing, continue to study the language throughout your life, do not marinate yourself in one job and are not afraid of change, you have every chance of achieving success.
Quite high salaries . They cannot be compared with the income of top managers in oil companies, but in comparison with the national average they are high. Moreover, with experience and advanced training, you will be able to qualify for a salary increase.
Real opportunity for emigration . Translators especially often use special programs, complete master's degrees abroad, receive grants and scholarships from foreign universities, as they have an excellent command of the language and successfully pass testing.

Minuses translator professions:

Difficult and responsible work . Most specialists are under constant tension, feel a burden of responsibility and often suffer from stress.
The need for constant development . Just 1-2 years without practice (for example, during maternity leave) and you “fall out” of the profession. The language changes very quickly and you must constantly improve your skills.
Monotonous work . No matter where you work, you will constantly be dealing with large volumes of text - written or spoken. There are no surprises to be expected.
Low salaries at the start of your career . University graduates, even with 1-2 years of work experience, can rarely get a well-paid job.

If you love languages, if you are ready to devote your life to establishing communication and linguistic connections between people, this profession is for you. If you want something more dynamic and exciting, but you go to a linguistic university only because of the prospect of a high salary, you will hate your job with all your heart. Before enrolling, we recommend that you analyze all the pros and cons in advance, and then make an informed choice.

How much do translators earn in Russia?

According to analytical services, the average salary of a Russian translator is 34.7 thousand rubles. At the same time, there are significant differences between average salaries in the regions. Specialists from Moscow (42 thousand rubles), St. Petersburg (38 thousand rubles) and Vladivostok (36 thousand rubles) receive the most. Salaries vary not only in regions, but also in organizations - maximum in private companies, minimum in government agencies.

As they progress in their careers, translators can expect significant salary increases. In 5 years of work, it is possible to increase your income by 10-15 thousand rubles. We should not forget that the amount of wages also depends on the relevance of the language. In some cases, specialists with knowledge of rare languages receive large fees, but usually collaborate with them only on individual projects. Translators specializing in English, German, French and Arabic earn the most.

Profession linguist description

A linguist, in short, is a specialist in the field of foreign languages; he usually speaks English and one other foreign language.

But it is impossible to acquire the profession of simply 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, linguist-teacher, English teacher or, in some universities, a guide-regional specialist. It is clear, yes, that a linguist differs from a translator in the same way as, for example, a fish differs from a carp - both fish, but the name carp is more specific)

Let's understand 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 teaching a foreign language class, in addition, the teacher has a part of the work that is not yet very noticeable to students, this is the so-called “second half of the working day”. During this time, free from classroom teaching, the teacher must organize educational activities for students, write scientific articles, draw up various methodological documents, and, of course, prepare for his classes, as well as check various tests and other written works completed by students.

You need to keep 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 PhD, so you need to be ready for further scientific activity. Postgraduate study is inevitable because: only it can lead to a more or less normal salary, and, practically, it will “reserve” you a job at a university, which, due to the current policy of the Russian state to reduce the number of universities, will turn out to be even more precarious for those who are not candidates of sciences.

If you don’t want to go to graduate school at all, then you should think about teacher profession and subsequently go to work at school. They won't demand this from you.

What are the responsibilities of a teacher? Yes, you yourself studied at school and you know that the teacher conducts lessons, checks notebooks, fills out a register, and if he is a class teacher, then conducts extracurricular activities and parent-teacher meetings. What is 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 leadership of the head teacher), which in some organizations are held once or even twice a day. a week, and they last not half an hour, but two hours (it’s still so boring, but you can’t skip a walk!). Teachers, just like teachers, draw up various methodological documents and write articles. In order for the salary to be higher, you need to be certified for the category, I don’t really know the intricacies, but it’s quite difficult, you need to conduct an open lesson, pass a test in a foreign language, certificates of advanced training, and 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 classes/lessons are conducted in the first or second shift, the remaining time, if there is no meeting of the department or teacher council, the teacher/teacher can distribute himself: he decides for himself - where, when, what extracurricular work he should do)

The creative nature of the work (the teacher can approach the teaching process creatively, use various methods and techniques so that both him and his students/students find it interesting)

Work with your favorite foreign language (now a foreign language will always be in your life, six to seven (don’t forget about checking students’ written work) days a week, and even if you didn’t learn something while studying at a university, while teaching you will definitely learn it )

Work with young people: children or youth (maybe you don’t quite understand what the advantage is here, then imagine that at work you are forced to communicate with the elderly, they come to you and constantly complain about their health, their lack of demand, disrespect from young people, you, for example , a local doctor or a social worker. And if you are a teacher, then you deal with young people for whom everything is fun, everything is interesting and they have the attitude that their whole life is ahead and everything will work out. Did you feel the difference?)

Disadvantages of teaching professions

A lot of paperwork, uninteresting work (methodological documents, reports, journaling, etc.)

There will always be a feeling that you have homework (it’s like you’ve already graduated from university, but you still need to prepare for classes and check written work, and so on all your life, and people of other professions, having graduated from university and got a job, are free at the end of the working day from official duties)

Discipline (it is very difficult for a young specialist to establish discipline, especially at school, do you remember how your class “stood on ears” if the teacher was not a vixen? At a university, discipline is better, but still, students will not take a young teacher seriously for a long time, and there is no way to solve this, you can only wait, because, as they say, youth is the most quickly passing flaw)

The next disadvantage, which is a disadvantage at school and an advantage at a university: the need to communicate with the students’ parents (parents, as it turns out, can be inadequate and may simply not understand why the teacher gave their child a bad grade and calmly “attack” the teacher about this! The children got into a fight , again, the teacher is to blame! Fortunately, at a university, the teacher practically does not have such a component as “communication with parents”)

For a teacher, entering graduate school and defending a dissertation can be a disadvantage of the profession, because it is a really complex and difficult matter.

It is also necessary to note that all the achievements of a teacher at a university will not be taken into account if he gets a job at a school (position, degree, candidate, for example, work experience), so a candidate of sciences, upon coming to school, will be considered a “young specialist” and occupy the lowest position and receive the smallest salary.

Linguist-translator is a specialist who speaks one or more foreign languages and is engaged in translation from native to foreign or from foreign to native languages. In this case, it can be divided into: 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 - experience in performing this type of work. Yesterday's graduate, a translator with honors, is unlikely to successfully cope with the responsibilities that befall 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 workload.

WITH translator the situation is simpler, on the one hand. Any production facility has a translator department for translating documents from foreign languages and conducting business correspondence with foreign partners. But imagine that you got a job, for example, at a machine-building plant, and in the texts you will always find some bearings and gears, do you understand them in Russian? And in order to translate correctly you will have to figure it out.

Pros and cons of the profession of linguist-translator:

Working with foreigners, in the case of interpreting (it’s always interesting to communicate with representatives of other cultures)

No problems with discipline (which the teacher and teacher have)

No need to engage in scientific activities, unlike a teacher

Full time in the case of a translator, temporary work in the case of an interpreter

Monotonous, monotonous, painstaking work (imagine that all day you need to translate texts, documentation, constantly referring to the dictionary, choosing the right word, having difficulty understanding the content of what is written, and which translation word out of a dozen presented in the dictionary will be correct in this particular context ?)

Extensive experience is required to perform interpreting.

What are the opportunities for part-time work as a linguist?

tutoring

Well paid

You can choose a time convenient for you to study

Students do not always want to study English (it is common to think that if money is paid for classes, then they are very important for the student, and he will listen carefully and complete all the teacher’s tasks; in fact, this is not always the case. Often, studying English is a desire parents, not the child, they want him to know English, but no one asked the child, so he does everything without enthusiasm, it’s very psychologically difficult with this).

part-time job at a private language school

You can choose the most convenient time for classes and load volume

Compared to working at school, there are a lot of advantages: there is no paperwork, no scientific activity, better discipline, no checking of notebooks, etc.

Control of the administration (not everyone will be able to get a job in a language school; before admission, they are often required to successfully write a test in a foreign language and attend an interview. After being hired, the administrator will be present at the lesson and monitor the quality of the lesson by the teacher - this is psychologically difficult, especially for young professionals)

Payment is less than for 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 job. If you get sick, 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 work as a guide. This type of training is available in some universities, and you can also take guide courses if you already have a higher education. Like a translator, work for a guide is not available in every city, so I would classify it more as a part-time job. To be in demand, you need to have a good level of knowledge of a foreign language, be sociable, polite, and friendly. It is very important to establish yourself well and get into the contact database of travel companies; if everyone is happy with you, they will invite you, and this work is well paid.

Working with foreigners

Good earnings

Temporary, seasonal nature of work

It takes time to get into the contact database of travel companies and get a large number of orders, which will allow you to have good earnings and a constant workload during the tourist season.

What should you take into account when choosing a profession as a linguist-teacher, teacher, translator or guide?

I described the pros and cons of these professions, and if you have a passion 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 you are close to scientific work, then a teacher, if you don’t mind working full time and don’t want to work with people, then a translator, if you feel that you have a talent for foreign languages, and If it is in your power to learn how to interpret simultaneously, then you are an oral translator. In addition to what is close to your spirit, it is very important to take into account what city you live in or in which you plan to work: is there a job there for a translator, a guide, or is it a university town? It is very important to choose a profession immediately, 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 to be a linguist?

Higher linguistic education can be obtained at philological faculties or at institutes of linguistics. There you usually have the opportunity to take courses or complete a second higher education if you want to get a diploma as a translator or guide.

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 the NSLU, and then I 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 to become a translator in universities.

Training to become a translator at a state university

I have to be honest with you – the translator’s profession has changed a lot now. Previously, in Soviet times, it was a purely military profession. That is why girls were not accepted to study at translation departments.

That is, 100% of the students there were guys. And now it's the other way around. If you go to any advanced school, you will see that 98% of the students there are girls. Nowadays, a translator is a person who sits at a computer and translates instructions and legal documents. No romance =)

Another interesting fact for entry is that after graduating from the Faculty of Translation, only 5-7% of graduates work as translators. The rest are doing whatever they want - teaching English, opening their own business, retraining to become dentists.

This happens because the training program at translation faculties is very outdated. They mostly continue to write translations by hand in notebooks. There are still very old teaching materials there.

Disadvantages of Public Education

When I was studying at the technical department, we did technical translation using magazines from the 60s. But these materials were approved “from above”, and the entire curriculum was built on them.

The next disadvantage of formal training is that you are not taught how to use a computer. Today, a translator simply must have a very good command of 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 Word themselves.

But in reality this is not enough. Creating a document and typing text there is not enough. You need to be able to format text on the fly, design drawings in translation, and do all this without unnecessary characters, with a clean layout. 100% of graduates do not know how to do this. Because this is a separate professional discipline.

Why 95% of translation graduates cannot find a job

If we return to the educational materials, graduates of translation departments are very surprised when they find out what a translation task 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 then study it long and hard in class together with the teacher.

In reality everything is much tougher.

You are given 10 pages of text of terrible quality. In half the places it is impossible to make out the text at all. 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 in the world. Or because this is a new industry and the terms only appeared yesterday. Or because the author himself invented them. Or it was mistyped. Or the text was written in English by a person for whom English is not his native language, and he simply inserted the wrong words because he doesn’t 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 it should have. And the remaining 5% are lost when they find out what pennies they will be paid if they finally cope with this text.

Let's be honest with ourselves. Translation faculties today, unfortunately, do not prepare people for the profession of translator. This is not just a problem for perfs. 95% of graduates across the country work outside their specialty for approximately the same reasons. But translation has its advantages.

What is actually taught in translation?

To be completely honest, today translation departments teach only foreign languages. This cannot 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 took tests on translation. Firstly, 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 individual words. That is, we were taught not to translate, but to memorize the correct words. And it yielded results. We learned a foreign language. But this has nothing to do with the translator’s profession.

Why do people come to public universities?

Perhaps you, my dear reader, are now at that tender age when it seems that you need 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 get you any job.

You come to apply for a job as a translator, but they will ask you for work experience, not a diploma. In general, after graduation, I only got my diploma two or three times. I needed this in order to become a translator for a notary.

But if I didn’t have a diploma, I could have wasted my school certificate. I am telling you this in all seriousness. I personally brought our Ukrainian, Uzbek and other translators to the notary, who only had a school certificate, where it was written that they studied Russian at school. And this was enough for the notary to agree to certify the translator’s signature.

All this, of course, is sad, but there are also positive aspects.

“Career” of translation department graduates

One of these points is that most graduate students do not intend to work as translators =)

As I wrote above, the main contingent in translation departments 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 nothing funny, it was along this “career ladder” that many girls who studied with me in the same class followed.

What kind of Words are there, document formatting and notarized translation of documents. They now work in France as salesmen, in America as salesmen, again in France as waiters...

If this is what you consciously or subconsciously strive for, then you can’t think of anything better than the translation department. The problems begin if you suddenly, out of the blue, really want to work as a translator.

Practical training courses for translators

When I just graduated from the translation department, I had a problem that I couldn’t translate. Then I learned by working in a translation agency for pennies. 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 as I myself was a few years ago came to us to find a job. And their mistakes were still the same. And one day I got tired of explaining the same thing to every translator.

Then I just went and wrote instructions - how and what should be translated, in what situation. Separate instructions on how to work with Word and how to work with personal documents. And so on.

After that, I could simply give instructions to the new translator and he would immediately, and not after three years, begin 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 to almost 1000. And there all the translation situations were analyzed in the smallest detail.

The result was a real course of practical (not theoretical) translator training. I remember I was still surprised why no one had thought of making such a course before me. After all, beginners mastered it literally in 2-3 months, and immediately began to earn money “like an adult.”

Otherwise, they had to learn everything the hard way over several years. And all this time - to live “on bread and water”, because no one pays good rates to newcomers.

Now I strongly recommend my course to all beginning 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 as a translator is not an easy one. The answer depends on what you actually want to achieve. Learning a foreign language and trying to “pass” is a perfect skill for you. And if you really want to make money with translations, then you will have to learn this on your own.

And there are two options. The first is to learn by doing, working in a translation agency. The second is to take our course, where many years of experience are packaged into step-by-step training. Personally, I took the first path. That is, I learned everything myself. Simply because there were no courses like there were before.

I had to work for pennies for several years. And, unfortunately, few people can withstand such a life. And if you, too, would like to shorten your path from “beginner” to “pro,” use our course as a springboard.

See you later!

Yours Dmitry Novoselov

On the one hand, in the global world, the profession of translator is extremely in demand. But at the same time, why learn another language if there is a universal English that everyone is trying to speak in one way or another? Thirdly, competition in the profession is very high, and machine translation technologies are actively developing. T&P learned from five young translators what it’s like to constantly be a mediator between different cultures and how another linguistic subpersonality helps in life, as well as the joys of successful formulation and the social significance of their work.

Anastasia Pozgoreva

translator from English

“You don’t just translate, but recreate the author’s text in another language”

When working with English, I tried a lot of different formats and topics and eventually found my niche - I specialize in reverse translation. Of course, I also translate from English; professional tradition has developed such that a person usually translates into his native language, but any skill can be developed in practice. A huge bonus of working with the most widely spoken language in the world is the ability to choose any topic. I would never undertake to translate something medical, but I am happy to work with the museum and exhibition complex “Institute of Russian Realistic Art”, translating exhibition catalogs and captions for exhibits for them, because this is very close to me.

I don’t think that a machine will ever replace a person in written translation. On the other hand, there is now practically no market for interpretation from English. I liked translating most at negotiations and meetings, but the demand for this has now almost disappeared. Most likely, now a large employer simply will not hire employees who do not speak the language. It’s good to know the language as an addition to some other profession. Along the way, I also had to retrain and take on management, marketing and online sales. I coordinate the translation service of a global company: a large organization needs marketing materials in 35 languages. As a translator, I work based on recommendations; I have never had to look for work.

Recently, people around have become noticeably better at speaking English, but this is more likely an achievement not of the state education system, but of the Internet and the ability to travel. English is still relatively easy. I now feel quite confident in any work with English, although I am not a native speaker. The difficulty for a non-native speaker is mainly articles and commas, the correct use of which we can never be one hundred percent sure. It is better to ask the native editor to proofread these nuances.

The people I have met in the English translation industry are usually much older than me, they are about forty, they have dedicated their whole lives to this business and are probably no longer ready to change anything. Very young people work with translations for about a year, and then they want to move into another field. Still, written translation is a fairly monotonous job that requires perseverance. The pace of life has accelerated: people want to learn as much as possible in a short time, rather than focus on one task.

Not everyone is capable of working as a synchronized interpreter in English, even if they have the appropriate education. This requires special personal and cognitive qualities. I sometimes do synchro for fun, but it would be very difficult for me to do this as my main activity.

The specificity of translation from Russian into English for me is that a lot of cultural and other realities have to be given in transliteration or descriptively. When translating, the most important skill is to have a good sense of style and transcreation (transcreation = creative translation). For example, once “minibus driver” had to be translated in context as “kamikaze driver.” Transcreation requires a lot of time and effort: you cannot translate directly, you always need to comprehend the text and redo something. But as a result of my work, the feeling of belonging is especially dear to me. You feel like a colleague of the person who wrote the book. After all, you are not just translating, but recreating the author’s text in another language.

Customers very often do not understand how much time it takes to translate. According to the conventional norm, one page, 1,800 characters, is translated in an hour. But if a translator approaches his work responsibly, he will definitely understand the terminology, proofread and edit. With this approach, it is difficult to comply with the temporary norm. And they often don’t understand that translation is difficult in principle. Just think: I took it and translated it, especially from English. In general, long-term communication in any foreign language is a big burden on the brain, it makes you physically and mentally tired.

Sonya Grigorieva

translator from German

“In another language you are just a different person”

I studied international journalism at MGIMO and literally just finished my master’s degree last year. In the last year of my bachelor's degree, I began translating from German and into German in the theater. 2012 was the Year of Germany in Russia, then I worked at the New European Theater (NET) festival, which was entirely dedicated to Germany. It was so cool that I started thinking about it as a possible future professional activity. Since then I have been working as a translator - mainly in the theater. This could be a tour when German troupes come, for example, to the Chekhov Festival. Or joint productions, say, at the Bolshoi Theater, when a German soloist, set designer or conductor comes. I work less often with dramatic performances, but this is very interesting, I was lucky to translate at Praktika and at the laboratories of the Moscow Art Theater. Chekhov and the Goethe Institute. I also translate all sorts of normal things not related to the theater, and work on cultural projects at the Goethe-Institut.

In general, if you want or need to work hard, this is not a problem, there are a lot of opportunities. The main thing is to understand what exactly you want to do and develop your own structure. My situation seems ideal to me. Perhaps this is because I have not been in translation for 10 years yet - I do not feel tired of the monotony. In fact, this work is very diverse both in content and rhythm. There is a day when you work 10 hours straight: you are the only translator, and you are tired. And the next day there may be only a couple of technical issues.

As you know, at MGIMO you learn the language you were assigned to (since the institute is associated with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, which needs specialists in all languages). I don’t even remember exactly what I indicated when applying, but I got German. I accepted this choice, and everything worked out very well for us. They say that when you learn another language to a certain extent, it is as if you have acquired another soul. I think this is absolutely true. I've seen this many times with friends. In another language, you are just a different person.

I feel very comfortable in Germany and in the German environment. I am glad that no one can ever determine what kind of accent I have, which means that I am not perceived as some kind of alien element. When I work with Germans here in Russia, I also cannot say that I see in them representatives of some completely different culture. Yes, they always turn off the lights when they leave the room, they try not to use plastic bags, they say that it’s too warm here and we don’t save electricity at all, but these are rather minor things.

Translation is different, it all depends on the situation. I translated at the Golden Mask awards ceremony, when you need to go on stage at the Bolshoi Theater or the Stanislavsky Theater and translate in front of a large audience. This is a completely different feeling of yourself and language than when you interpret the same important people, but within the framework of office negotiations.

It is very difficult to translate on the fly without preparation, but this also happens. Once I translated almost impromptu at lectures at the Museum of Military Uniforms. Usually there is an opportunity to prepare, look at the terminology and special vocabulary in advance. And here the lecturer and the audience practically played the game “guess the word from the description,” I translated the details of the military uniform descriptively, and they told me the correct names. A special case is when it is necessary to translate the director's comments during rehearsals. It is important to convey often very complex philosophical concepts very accurately so that the intent and interpretation are clear. Recently at the Bolshoi there was Shostakovich’s opera “Katerina Izmailova”, it was staged by Rimas Tuminas, and it was necessary to translate for the German soloist about “consciousness”. In German it is a more complex concept related to “conscience” (“Bewußtsein”), and such abstract phenomena are more difficult to convey than technical issues.

Most of the actors and directors I work with speak English, but at a level that is sufficient for basic everyday communication. For the actual work process and rehearsals, a translator is needed. On the one hand, this is an additional intermediate link in communication, on the other hand, it is a guarantee of a more complete understanding, and the translator must feel when to withdraw from the conversation, and when, on the contrary, to help and explain.

It seems to me that we should not exaggerate the omnipotence of English at all. In the professional sphere, there always comes a time when a person must speak his native language in order to say exactly what he wants. In addition, I had an interesting experience working with young actors: it would seem that they are people of our generation who should know English fluently, because all the films and TV series around already broadcast this linguistic reality. But they completely spent the time when they could study the language on their career, so at the age of 25–26 they cannot work fluently with English; translation is still necessary. If I had another life, I would probably try to do something of my own in the theater. This is probably why so many critics at some point try themselves as creators in their area of interest, but often it turns out so-so. So while I really enjoy watching this world, the theatrical environment is incredibly enriching and developing.

Denis Viren

translator from Polish

“The Poles and I have much more in common than it might seem”

Everything happened quite by accident with translation and the Polish language. I studied at VGIK to become a film scholar and thought that I would use Polish in my research, and then I worked a couple of times as a translator at the Moscow Film Festival and after that I began to take on a variety of orders.

When I first learned Polish, I had the feeling that it was a rare language (for example, Polish still has this status in publishing houses). But over time, I discovered that this was rather a misconception. Firstly, quite a lot of people learn Polish just for themselves. Secondly, it turned out that there are quite a lot of translators from Polish, and for them, in turn, there is quite a high demand. It would seem, who needs the Polish language? Many Poles of the older and middle generation still know Russian, and if they do business with Russia, then, as a rule, they even speak Russian. Young people most likely know English, and they don’t need a Polish translator. It turned out that this is not so and translation is really needed. I know more about the cultural sector, where major events are regularly held. For example, the theater festival of children's performances "Gavrosh", where last year the main guest was Poland. So it’s difficult to talk about competition in my business. In fact, there are many niches, and everyone can find their own.

The Poles and I have much more in common than it might seem. Poland positions itself as a country that is more committed to the West. This is certainly true, but at the same time the geographical and historical aspects still make themselves felt, there’s no getting around it. Poland is somewhere between East and West, and this is one of the main reasons for its specificity and the fact that it is a very interesting country from many points of view, including cultural. At recent business negotiations, I drew attention to the difference between Polish and Russian mentality - to the fact that, for example, Poles who do business are very concrete people. This is very noticeable in their manner of speech: they know what they want to say. Our businessmen have more confusion and chaos, so conversation is often a kind of stream of consciousness. I think this is due to the fact that the thought process continues while speaking, and Poles tend to think things through in advance.

I often hear concerns that because English is the language of international communication, local languages like Polish will not be in demand. But practice shows the opposite. It often happens that people who even know English well say: “No, I want to speak my native language. Why, if there is a translator from my native language, will I express my thoughts not as fully and not as vividly as I could?”

A translator is always more than just a machine for translating from one language to another. The human factor is very important here. There is a very special connection with the person you are interpreting, especially when you have been working together for a long time. On the other hand, the human factor can complicate the work. Customers have a strange idea of translators as people who, firstly, must be available all the time, and secondly, love their languages so much that they can work simply because they enjoy it. I can still understand the first point: apparently, these are the costs of the profession. The second point seems completely wrong to me, and, in my opinion, this state of affairs has begun to change a little. There is respect and understanding that this is difficult work, sometimes physically difficult.

Roman Bondarenko

translator from Japanese

“In Russian everyday life I don’t encounter my Japanese subpersonality”

I really liked the sound of the word “arigato” and decided to learn Japanese. I studied at ISAA at the Department of History and Culture of Japan, so I was supposed to study the language and translation techniques in full. It was quite a tough workout and very useful.

In 2014, I became a translator at Baikonur. It so happened that for the launch of the Japanese satellite, they were looking for trilingual translators with Russian, English and Japanese. Our department issued a certain list of specialists, where I came after the teachers, but at that moment they all left to work at the Olympics in Sochi. Now I’m still working with French and getting my Spanish up to working order, so I don’t even know what I should be called. Quintilingual, probably. In my opinion, knowing Japanese in itself inspires respect. For some reason, people think that learning Japanese is very difficult.

Part of the Japanese picture of the world was very clearly explained to me at the institute, and part of it I had the opportunity to experience for myself. As for the financial return from working as a translator, I will say that you need to know the places. There are many sites that are full of not so much advertisements, but rather demands like “we need an ideal specialist, already yesterday and for a thousand rubles a day.” It is simply unrealistic to work under such conditions, but apparently, there are still people who need experience or really need money - this is the only way I can explain that such advertisements appear constantly.

A translator is a person who is called upon to ensure interaction between two parties, in fact a living interface. I'm pretty sure it will be able to be replaced with a mechanical one at some point about 90% of the time. A qualified translator is a guarantee that people will understand each other and they will not have to take into account the risk that a busy manager with knowledge of English does not understand a busy manager with knowledge of Japanese. This is the ability to delegate the guarantee of mutual understanding to the human interface.

In terms of interestingness, the only thing comparable to working at Baikonur is my experience as a translator at karate training camps in Russia. Shihan, a 9th dan master (higher than sensei), came. I had never practiced karate, and I wanted to understand an unfamiliar environment in a minimum amount of time, master the terminology and imitate one of them. I remember that during one of the training camps, one of the honored sensei from the Russian side came up to me during a break and asked me not to shout. And we are in a gym where 200-300 people are training at the same time, I translate the commands, and they must be pronounced loudly, including phrases like “So, after training, hand over your black belts to me, I will take them to Japan and send you brown ones in return.” (which means a decrease in level). I can’t mumble such phrases! No, I convey the same emotion when translating. This is how I shouted, having every right, at 300 people, who represent a rather formidable fighting force.

I heard the theory that with each language learned to a certain level, a separate linguistic subpersonality develops in a person, which bears the characteristics of the mentality of the people who speak that language. This may be due to grammatical structures, such as the dominance of verbs in Spanish. I have a fairly strong Japanese subpersonality, so that when I speak Japanese, I am a completely different person. But in my Russian everyday life I don’t particularly encounter the Japanese subpersonality. There are some concepts of the Japanese worldview that really attract me. For example, "ikigai". It can be roughly translated as “the meaning of life,” but more precisely it is something like “goal,” “direction,” “path.” The Japanese think much less in abstract terms; with them everything is much more concrete. Therefore, haiku poetry is like a magnifying glass on a specific moment. The Japanese are very strong at observation, as opposed to theorizing.

Alexandra Bibikova

translator from Italian

“People often ask me: ‘You know Italian so well, why don’t you leave?’”

My choice of profession began with a rather vague desire to become either an interpreter or a writer. It’s just that I’ve always been inspired by the fact that translation is needed to facilitate understanding between people. We often do not understand each other in the same language, and even more so in different languages. I studied at the philological department of Moscow State University and chose Italian simply because I fell in love with Italy, with the language and culture. I remember one of my first experiences in interpreting: I helped an Italian director who came to Russia to make a film about icons. He was interested in the Savior Not Made by Hands, since this genre is much less widespread in Italy. It was both very interesting and difficult - a specific topic.

In the end, I realized that I like both oral and written translation, the most important thing is what to translate, the topic. For example, I am not very inspired by routine work on documents or negotiations between oil workers. I’m ready to take on something like this, but the social significance of my work is important to me. For example, now the help of a translator is often required to prepare documents for adoption or for medical support.

I would say that translating is an absolutely thankless profession in the sense that those who can pay for this work usually do not consider him as a worthwhile person. Often the customer wants to pay less or is not always respectful. So a translator is far from the most profitable and respected profession. But I can still say that in Moscow many graduates work in one way or another in the profession, in particular with the Italian language. And here, as in many places, it is important to be quick, to be able to penetrate into a professional environment, the skill of communication itself and the ability to make acquaintances and maintain connections are important. In the work itself, it is very important to understand the realities of life in the country whose language you are studying.

People often ask me: “You know Italian so well, why don’t you leave?” In sunny, carefree, friendly Italy, it is now very difficult to find work for both Italians and visitors. So, it seems to me that working professionally with the Italian language is easier in Russia, in Moscow, than there. Italian has a lot of pitfalls. You will never stop improving.

My job is a constant compromise between what I want to do and what I get paid to do. It can be quite tedious; you have to sit at night with several orders at once. No matter how well you do your job, there are still dissatisfied clients, and something has to be redone and re-registered. But if you don't translate only for money or praise, you will find a lot of inspiration and pleasure. There is always a challenge in the work of a translator. Translating Italian poetry was such a challenge for me. When my colleagues and I were working on a book of poems by Corrado Calabro, it was assumed that I would make an interlinear translation, and then the poet would rework my material into poetry - this way we would have such a joint translation. As a result, my interlinear translations were published as something that was closer to the author.

In translating poetry, the most difficult thing was to convey the realities of Italian life into Russian. For example, there was a poem called “A targhe alterne”, but such a concept simply does not exist in the Russian language. Targhe alterne is an Italian law, it is aimed at limiting the flow of cars in the city center. According to this law, on even days you can only enter the center by car with even number plates, and vice versa. Of course, Italians will find a way around almost any law, and almost every family has two cars: one with even numbers, the other with odd numbers. But nevertheless, such a limitation exists, and it is well understood by any Italian. The poem ended with the phrase “our life is unfair, like targhe alterne.” As a result, we translated the name as “Roulette” and provided a footnote with explanations.