All you need to know to break into the remote interpreting market

The world of translation and interpretation is changing, as all professions invariably do. Many linguists are considering broadening their base and offering new services, such as interpretation. While the two professions are very much related, interpreting is a separate skill. Can you add it? Should you? 

Remote interpreting was already very much on the rise before 2020. But then the pandemic happened, and here also caused an acceleration of this trend. Suddenly, in most cases the only option if you needed an interpreter was that it had to be remote. While in some sectors an attempt is being made now to “return to normal”, what will actually happen is we will eventually adapt to what everyone is calling the “new normal”, and this will further solidify the rise of the remote interpreter. Read more about the recent trends in the language services industry and the continued rise of the remote interpreter in the ProZ.com report prepared by Jared Tabor.

Pros and cons of working as a remote interpreter 

Tech advances then reached a point where those plane tickets and travel expenses began to dry up, as it became easier and easier and more and more cost effective to bring the interpreter onto the scene either over the phone or virtually. Not only can remote interpreting be more cost effective, it can also be safer-- think of military applications, war zones, language support during epidemics, and so on. Smart phones allowed us to go mobile with a distant interpreter, and platforms geared towards finding and engaging with a distant interpreter began to pop up across the internet. This allows getting to a broader pool of professionals. At the same time, it became easier to get a larger outreach of online events being interpreted into different languages.

Of course, there are some disadvantages to using technology. Neither an interpreter nor a client can fully rely on it and connection or a device may fail at any time at an important moment. More and more information that is being interpreted becomes sensitive. It is a must for a remote interpreter to be in compliance with security measures.

Remote interpreting in different settings

Remote Interpreting in Healthcare Settings

Remote Interpreting in Healthcare Settings

Depositions are a key part of the American legal system, and oftentimes court interpreters are required for these proceedings, which are typically held at law firms.

Remote interpreting in public service settings

Tools

Tips, tools and applications to make the most of your tablet while interpreting.

Skillset 

What’s next?

How to break into the remote interpreting market

Watch this short video to find out..

Podcast Episodes About Remote Interpreting

Check out ProZ.com podcast episodes dealing with remote interpreting and click on the links below to listen to the audio (these podcast episodes are also available on iTunes, Spotify and other major podcast platforms).

1. Paul talks with Enrique Manzo, ProZ.com's Head of Interpreter Operations, about the remote interpretation market, employment opportunities for interpreters, how to train as an interpreter and interpreter pools.

https://anchor.fm/proz/episodes/The-ProZ-com-Interpreter-Network-er75j7

2. Experienced conference and court interpreter Katty Kauffman gives us the inside track on remote simultaneous interpreting, hybrid events, interpreting hubs, audio feeds, equipment, interpreting opportunities and more! We also discuss Katty's YouTube channel https://www.youtube.com/c/RemoteSimulInterpreting, quality and reputation and the client approval hashtag. A must-listen episode for anyone in the remote simultaneous interpreting space.

https://anchor.fm/proz/episodes/50--Remote-Simultaneous-Interpreting-featuring-Katty-Kauffman-e1emk5d

3. Jessie takes us through her fascinating journey - from starting out in accounting to working as a court interpreter, and then going back to school to study conference interpreting. We discuss her Master's from the Middlebury Institute, some of the ins and outs of court interpreting, vicarious trauma, income streams, interpreter preparation, remote simultaneous interpreting, Zoom language access, advocacy and client education. This is a must-listen for anyone working as an interpreter or thinking of doing so.

https://anchor.fm/proz/episodes/73--Court-and-Conference-Interpreting-featuring-Jessie-Liu-e1rmdsq

4. Paul chats with Jonathan about some relevant interpreter issues including rates and conditions, remote interpreting, machine interpreting and how to get more interpreting clients. 

https://anchor.fm/proz/episodes/Topical-Issues-for-Interpreters-featuring-Dr-Jonathan-Downie-emcht6

ProZ.com interpreting industry overview

In the next post, we will take a look at the current landscape for remote interpreters.

https://go.proz.com/blog/remote-interpreters-in-2023-part-onehttps://go.proz.com/blog/remote-interpreters-in-2023-part-one

Pre-pandemic, much of the technology required to loop in an interpreter remotely was already pretty good and improving. When much of the world was on lockdown, this technology made it possible for many interpreters to continue to reach their clients, and it was pushed to improve and scale more rapidly than it would have on its own. 

Fast forward to 2023, and a partial retreat from the paradigm of remote operations has materialized, albeit temporarily. This trend is observable across industries, as endeavors to revert to pre-pandemic norms coalesce with the integration of valuable technological advancements, protocols, and lifestyles that blossomed during the lockdown era. To delve deeper into this comprehensive overview, we invite you to keep reading "Industry overview: interpreters in 2023"

Breaking into the remote interpreting market

Click below to find learn more about remote interpreting and get certified by an MCIS and ProZ.com co-branded certificate. MCIS has developed new training that provides effective strategies for language professionals to become successful remote interpreters. This e-learning course will guide professional interpreters through the expectations and best practices of remote interpretation. Language professionals will learn the process of remote interpretation assignments, platform expectations, common challenges and solutions, and performance requirements. The course is approximately four (4) instructional hours, plus one (1) additional hour for students to complete the course quiz and review additional resources.

Interpreting Jobs at ProZ.com

Take a look at the interpreting jobs currently available posted at ProZ.com: 

https://www.proz.com/language-jobs?st=2

Hire Remote Interpreting professionals at ProZ.com

ProZ.com is the world's largest community of professional linguists and also home to many great interpreters (as well as remote interpreters) from around the globe. If you are looking to hire a remote interpreting talent, click below to post a job.

Learn How to Establish Yourself in a Remote Interpreting Industry with ProZ.com's self-paced courses.

There several self-paced courses to be of interest to those who are starting their remote interpreter career or who is a bilingual and looking for new sources of income. 

ProZ.com & MCIS Online Language Interpreter Training Program provides attendees with all the tools they need to make a successful start to their career as freelance interpreters. The Interpreter Training Program covers basics of interpretation, such as ethical principles guiding the interpreter and three modes of interpretation: sight translation, consecutive and simultaneous interpretation. The importance of developing memory and assertiveness for interpreters are emphasized in the course. It also focuses on the remote settings for interpreting, such as over-the-phone and video interpretation that has recently become an indispensable mode of interpreting.

Bootcamp to Become a Remote Language Interpreter is based on the successful eLearning course provided to support language specialist to get retrained as interpreters in times of the COVID-19 pandemic. This course was taken and completed by more than 200 linguists throughout the world.

The ProZ.com HIPAA Compliance for Remote Interpreters course takes approximately 90 minutes and will ensure that Remote Interpreters working with United States-based patients or entities are aware of & compliant with all applicable HIPAA laws and regulations so as to ensure that the linguist does not incur fines, penalties or worse.

Follow this link to learn more about the courses https://training.proz.com/interpreting-self-paced-courses