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[brad21088]

I want to be an interpreter at the UN. And no, it's not just because The Interpreter made it seem like the coolest job ever(even though it did). My worry is this: How am I going to be able to compete with people who were raised bilingual? I think I have a knack for languages(I have a really good memory. Not the greatest reasoning skills, but I can

Comments

[sparkofcreation]

I'm a federal court interpreter, which of course is not the same as being a UN interpreter, but it could be argued that in some ways it's equally difficult. In any case, I wasn't raised bilingual ... and I noticed the farther up you go in the ranks of court interpreting, the more English-native interpreters there are. I don't know why that is. But in any case, while of course it helps to live in a country where the language you interpret is spoken, I don't think being raised bilingual is really necessary, assuming you have the skills and training to minimize your accent.

[brad21088]

A federal court interpreter sounds exciting, too. And the UN will probably be shut down by the time I'm done with college. lol I'm planning on going to school in Spain for a couple years so hopefully that will help a lot.

Besides, I did better than a native speaker in my Spanish III class this year(but that's because he was never taught Spanish, he just grew up with it). lol

[gazelle]

Sometimes classes aren't a good judge, though. You can ace a class, then go to the country the language is spoken and be completely and utterly lost.

[zarxos]

Seconded.

[tacente]

Bilingual people usually make poor interpreters. Not always, but in terms of profession, it's more often than not a disadvantage, for obvious reasons.

As for requirements, I guess un.org is still functioning.

[sparkofcreation]

That was uncalled-for. Please don't start a flame war and make me delete this post and give you a warning, okay?

[brad21088]

Sorry.

[lobolita]

I'm also a conference interpreter working freelance at the moment, and I can tell you that there were hardly any people at my university who had been raised bilingually . However, there were lots of people who had lived in different countries for a while, but I cannot remember one person who studied with me and who was raised bilingually. Knowing two or three languages well or even be fluent in them like a native speaker doesn't automatically make you a better interpreter.

[brad21088]

That's weird that everyone's said that so far. I wonder why that is?

[akibare]

Interpreting is a whole skill by itself. I've done my share of casual interpreting between people in a social circle, family, etc, but only "guy A says something, then I make him stop and paraphrase what he said for guy B." But for things like the UN, particularly simultaneous, you have to be listening to one sentence while at the SAME time having translated the previous sentence in your head and be speaking that sentence. That requires large brain buffers, particularly if the languages are very different in word order (as mine are).

[aindreas]

I think I would go batty after a couple minutes of simultaneous interpreting. My brain would just implode. We do these exercises at school where the teacher will read a paragraph from a book and we have to just listen, and after he's read it we try to reproduce as accurately as possible on paper. And sometimes there are moments when my brain just snaps and everything leaves it and I can write nothing on the paper. That's what I fear would happen to me with sim. interpreting. =P

[tekdeath]

I agree that being raised bilingually doesn't help you interpret much. I was raised speaking English (my mother tongue) and German. I can't write for shit in German and am not very good at giving people translations for things (they always ask me what something may mean right then and there be it a song or commercial or something). If anything, when I get to college, a level 101 german class would really help me.

Il ne faut pas vendre la peau de l'ours avant de l'avoir tué.

[anonymous]

Disclaimer: I have not seen the movie, nor have any experience as an interpreter. However, you sparked my interest and so I decided to do a little digging around. Poking around the Department of State website ( http://www.state.gov/p/io/empl/11076.htm ), I found the following that you might find useful:

The general requirements state that "Virtually all professional and senior posts require an advanced degree; significant number of years of recent, relevant and specialized work experience, some field experience in developing countries; and at least a working knowledge of a second UN language, usually French or Spanish..." "...There are rarely suitable openings for students, recent college graduates, or persons who lack pertinent experience or language skills." :(

Also, "UN agencies and other international organizations are under continuous pressure from member governments to appoint that country's nationals, and there remains an emphasis throughout the UN

Re: Il ne faut pas vendre la peau de l'ours avant de l'avoir tué.

[brad21088]

Thank you so much! Even though it's kinda discouraging. lol I think I have a knack for interpreting(I've done it a few times casually) and know I'm good at translating(done it a lot). I'm not trying to brag or anything; I could go on and on with everything I suck at; language-related stuff is my forte. So I know I want to be an interpreter one day. It doesn't necessarily have to be with the UN, but I feel like the UN is an important entity(well, the idea is anyway) and want to be doing interpreting work that is bigger than myself I guess. And I'm interested in government and politics and the like, so who knows. I'll talk with my college advisor once school starts and figure out what to major in and what didfferent career paths are out there. Thanks again!

Re: Il ne faut pas vendre la peau de l'ours avant de l'avoir tué.

[anonymous]

Don't let it discourage you. Let it motivate you. :)

All of the best things in life are worth working hard for. It is always best to know up front, though, what you're getting yourself into, and what sort of realistic expectations one should have. No sense in sugar coating something as important as a life-long career. And it is always important to have a plan B. I think you will do fine.

Regardless, good luck. I would definitely keep an eye on that usajobs.gov site, though. Never know what other interpretation-type jobs might pop up there that might be just as cool, but much more accessible. It would seem that other government entities would be in need of someone with a passion for interpretation, when they operate internationally, if that sort of thing floats your boat. Otherwise, I am sure there are plenty of international businesses that would take someone with those skills.

Re: Il ne faut pas vendre la peau de l'ours avant de l'avoir tué.

[brad21088]

Oh, and I know what your "subject line" says because you used it in the example and I know most of the words, but what does "l'avoir tue" mean?