Everyone knows that working as a professional French translator or French interpreter is about much more than just speaking two languages. It is a profession and career!
A professional French translator must be able to write accurately and naturally in both English and French, understand specialized French terminology, research, follow professional translation standards and ethics.
French Interpreters need even more skills: listening under pressure, rapid language transfer, memory, terminology management, and the ability to work accurately in consecutive and simultaneous modes of interpretation.
For professionals who want to work with governments, courts, immigration authorities, law firms, corporations, hospitals, universities, or international organizations, professional certification can provide an important credential.
The system is different in the United States, Canada, and Quebec. In Canada, certification is largely organized through provincial professional associations, with national standards coordinated by the Canadian Translators, Terminologists and Interpreters Council (CTTIC). Quebec has its own professional order, OTTIAQ. In the United States, the American Translators Association (ATA) offers a major professional certification for translators, while court interpreting is primarily regulated through individual state court systems and the federal judiciary.
Here is how the system works.
French Translators vs. French Interpreters
Before choosing a certification pathway, it is important to understand the difference between translation and interpretation.
French Translation is written-language work. A translator takes a written document in one language and produces a written document in another.
Examples include:
- Birth certificates
- Diplomas and transcripts
- Contracts
- Immigration documents
- Court documents
- Medical records
- Websites
- Technical manuals
- Financial reports
- Books and publications
French Interpretation involves spoken or signed communication.
Examples include:
- Court hearings
- Depositions
- Medical appointments
- Conferences
- Business meetings
- Immigration interviews
- Community services
- Government proceedings
The two professions overlap linguistically, but the skills are not identical. Pas du tout !
Becoming a Certified French Translator in the USA
The American Translators Association
The principal professional certification organization for Translators in the United States is the American Translators Association (ATA).
The credential is particularly relevant to French translators working with:
- Legal documents
- Immigration documents
- Business documents
- Technical translation
- Government work
- Medical translation
- Financial translation
- Certified-document translation
What Does an ATA Translator’s Seal Mean?
One of the most recognizable features of ATA certification is the ATA Certified French Translator seal.
The seal is reserved for ATA-certified translators and includes information that allows clients and employers to verify the translator’s credential. ATA states that certified translators may use the seal on items such as résumés, business cards, and certifications of accuracy. American Translators Association (ATA)
The seal is important because it connects three things:
- The translator’s identity
- The translator’s professional certification
- A mechanism for verifying that certification
However, there is an important distinction between a certified french translator and a certified french translation.
A translator does not necessarily have to hold a professional certification to produce a document accompanied by a certification statement. ATA explains that a certified translation can be a translation accompanied by a signed statement affirming that the translation is complete and accurate. American Translators Association (ATA)
Therefore, a seal does not magically make a translation “official” in every situation.
Instead, the seal provides evidence of the translator’s professional status. The organization receiving the translation ultimately determines what form of certification it accepts.
For example, an immigration authority, court, university, government agency, or foreign consulate may have its own requirements.
Becoming a French Court Interpreter in the United States
Court interpreting is a separate professional pathway.
There are essentially two systems to understand:
- State courts (only)
Federal courts
State court interpreter certification
The National Center for State Courts (NCSC) plays a major role in developing national court interpreter examinations and resources, but NCSC itself does not certify individual state court interpreters.
This distinction is extremely important.
NCSC states that certification of state court interpreters is established by the individual states. A person who wants to work as a court interpreter must meet the requirements of the particular state in which they want to practice. National Center for State Courts
Many states use examinations developed through the national court interpreter testing system associated with NCSC, but not every state uses the same examination or procedure.
A typical state court pathway may involve:
- An application to the state court interpreter program
- English-language proficiency testing
- A written examination
- Legal terminology
- Court procedure
- Ethics and professional responsibility
- Sight translation
- Consecutive interpretation
- Simultaneous interpretation
- An oral performance examination
- Orientation or training
- Continuing education
- Background or other administrative requirements
The exact requirements vary by state.
NCSC specifically advises interpreters already credentialed in one state to contact the court interpreting office in another state because each state controls its own certification and recognition requirements. National Center for State Courts
This means that an interpreter should never assume that certification in California, New York, Texas, Florida, or another state automatically transfers to another jurisdiction.
FRQCA French Translation & Interpreting Services works with French Translators and French Interpreters throughout North America. A votre service !
