Networking Guide
Not Just For Finding Terminology Resources!
Many interpreters have difficulties finding terminology resources in their non-English language, especially if it is a language of lesser diffusion. While this guide is especially helpful for those interpreting “rarer” languages, even interpreters of more “common” languages can benefit. Finding other interpreters who speak your working languages can be an incredibly valuable terminology resource.
While I’m limited in my ability to help you find resources outside of my working languages (English and Spanish) I can suggest a bunch of really useful tools for connecting and networking with other interpreters in your working languages. Connecting with interpreters who interpret the same languages as you is useful, but if you’re an interpreter of a language that isn’t widely spoken, they may very well be your best resource at getting some clues on where to find terminology resources!
Join Professional Communities
Medical interpreters are very active on Facebook
This links to a list of professional Facebook groups I’m a member of. Specifically for non-Spanish-speaking interpreters, Medical Interpreting and Translation Crew and U.S. Medical Interpreters are going to be most useful for connecting with others. If you don’t know any other interpreters who speak your languages, even just creating a post stating, “My name is Kelly and I interpret Nahuatl. I’m looking to connect with other Nahuatl interpreters,” is worth a shot. To be clear, I don’t interpret Nahuatl!
In addition, pinned to the top of the Facebook group U.S. Medical Interpreters is a language poll. As of April 2024 we have 8.7k members and counting, and over 800 members have responded to the poll. This means that if you navigate to the poll at the top of the group, find your language in the poll options, and click on the percentage of people who responded with that language, it will give you a list of people who interpret that language!
Please note: even if your language says 0%, click on the percentage! It may be less than 0.5% of the 800+ people who responded to the poll, which could still be a couple people.
Linkedin - Create a Profile, Find Others
Kelly's profile linked as an example. Feel free to connect with me!
I’ve included a link to my LinkedIn profile so you can see what my profile looks like. I highly suggest creating a full profile on LinkedIn, making sure to include your working languages in your headline AND your section on languages. Your headline should also include your qualifications (upon completion of a 40-hour+ medical interpreting course “Qualified Medical Interpreter”) and your role (i.e. medical interpreter, educational interpreter, community interpreter, etc.). Don’t forget to upload a photo of yourself! Without one, people may not view your profile.
If you’re really having a hard time connecting with an interpreter of one of your working languages, using LinkedIn’s search feature USING QUOTES is super useful. For instance, searching “Nahuatl interpreter” (with quotes) will return a bunch of interpreters of Nahuatl. You may even be able to search “Nahuatl medical interpreter” but typically interpreters of those languages of lesser diffusion will do all sorts of interpreting. You can send someone a connection request and a message, letting them know you’re a [insert language here] interpreter trying to connect with other interpreters of your working languages. If they respond, you may be able to ask them about terminology resources! Chances are, they know how difficult those resources are to find and may be willing to help.
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