Continuing Professional Development (CPD) for Translators
9th December 2014
Continuing Professional Development (CPD) is the systematic maintenance, improvement and broadening of knowledge and skills. It also encourages the development of personal qualities necessary for the execution of professional duties throughout a translator’s working life.
Why CPD?
Every profession requires constant development. Continuous changes in the market and customer requirements necessitate constant skills development and improvement of market knowledge. This change requires adaptation from the professional linguist.
Working as a translator is a never-ending learning process but the level of CPD depends on the sector specialised in. If the majority of your work lies in website translation, for example, you’ll need to stay on top of any SEO changes (search engine optimisation) and listen to Google recommendations and demands. Attending various SEO events such as Brighton SEO and Search Love will help you to stay current and in the loop. Linguists also need to keep up-to-date with the changing vocabulary, jargon and language trends.
How should translators stay up-to-date?
There are several approaches that can be taken to stay up-to-date:
1. Attend conferences and language shows:
| 1-3rd November 2022 | LOCWORD 48 Silicon Valley Theme – Unlimited. The event focused on international localisation. It holds various workshops and round tables, to further build your skill and knowledge libraries, as well as two days of specialised talks from experienced speakers. | San Jose, California |
| 11-13th November 2022 | THE LANGUAGE SHOW This is a free exhibition for language learners, language teachers and everyone who loves languages. | Online |
| 9-10th January 2023 | TICIT 2023: 17 International Conference on Interpreting and Translation About: ICIT is one of the largest international conferences on interpreting and translation in the world that brings together professional translators, interpreters, researchers and academic scholars from around the globe. Attendees can share their experiences and research results about all aspects of interpreting and translation. | Japan, Tokyo |
| 16-23rd January 2023 | Localisation Winter School This event is best for localisation professionals looking for a practice-oriented course where they can learn about localisation processes, trends, workflows, common issues to tools and project management. More information can be found here: https://localization.school/ | Online |
| 23-24th February 2023 | ELIA Conference: TOGETHER 2023 Theme: Connecting the dots ELIA aims to promote the interests of freelance language professionals and language service companies by providing them with an international network and a platform for exchanging ideas. Additionally, it supports its members in improving their service quality through training and best practice sharing. This year’s conference will focus on the multiple aspects that characterise the ever-evolving world of localisation, the underlying technology that supports it, and the people who build and live within this fascinating industry. | Rome, Italy |
| 12-15th March 2023 | GALA Conference This conference focuses on the future of the translation industry shaped by AL technology. It welcomes all members of the translation and localisation industry and gives you a networking and peer-to-peer learning opportunity. | Ireland, Dublin |
| 15-16th March 2023 | 12th Internation Translation Conference Theme: Translation and Creativity: An Interdisciplinary Encounter Learn about emerging intersections between creativity and translation and the use of translation in creative research. | Doha, Quatar |
| 22-24th March 2023 | PSIT8 – 8th International Conference on Public Services Interpreting and Translation Theme: Ready, Set 2020! The main objective of this conference is to continue exchanging thoughts, projects and experiences about Public Services Interpreting and Translation. | Madrid, Spain |
| 24-26th March 2023 | NLP 5th International Conference and Natural Language Processing Forum Theme: People, looks & tech ICNLP conference provides an international forum for the exchange of ideas among interested researchers, students, developers and practitioners in the areas of Natural Language Processing This conference covers all aspects of natural language processing such as machine translation, speech processing, information extraction, text mining, computational linguistics and computational semantics, grammar, parsing, discourse analysis, multimodal interfaces in NLP and machine learning for NLP. | Guangzhou, China |
| 30-31st March 2023 | Multilingualism in Translation (the English-speaking world, 16th century – present) Learn more about the relationship between multilingualism and translation involving English as the source/target language and at least one other language in works of literature, the performing arts and audio-visual productions, from the sixteenth century to the present. | Paris, France |
| 27–28th April 2023 | International Conference on Languages, Literature and Translation Studies Learn about new research methodologies, the use of artificial intelligence and other cutting-edge technologies in the language and translation/interpretation/terminology/mediation professions and new pedagogical approaches for the learning/teaching of languages, cultures, translation, terminology, interpretation, grammar, or literature at a distance. | University of Mons, Belgium |
| TBC | Translation & Localisation Conference – KLTC2023 This annual conference focuses on the latest technologies, localisation industry trends and various domains of translation. Full of presentations, workshops, and debates, it offers a unique opportunity to meet with LSPs, translators and end clients. | Warsaw, Poland |
| 8-10th May 2023 | BP23 TRANSLATION CONFERENCE The event focused on international business translation and localisation. Best for freelance translators, interpreters and language professionals. | Utrecht, Netherlands and online |
| TBC | memoQfest 2023 Who should attend? Anyone who wants to learn about the most recent industry trends, see what’s cooking at memoQ and get real-life tips and tricks from the memoQ team and other experienced memoQ users. This event is for those who believe that technology is crucial to success. | The Marriott Budapest |
| 25-27th May 2023 | 6th International Conference on Non-Professional Interpreting and Translation Attempt to explore the ethical questions arising from the ‘unstated’ character of NPIT (non-professional interpreting and translation), the status and conceptualization of NPIT as well as human crises, conflict situations and ad hoc translation and/or interpreting. | Nicosia, Cyprus |
| June 2023 | Evolution of TC 2023 Evolution of TC is the annual gathering event for all technical communicators focusing on innovations in software documentation. | Sofia, Bulgaria |
| 10-12th July 2023 | Using Corpora in Contrastive and Translation Studies (7th edition)
| Poznań, Poland |
| 17-21st July 2023 | The International Association of Applied Linguistics (AILA) World Congress Theme: Diversity and social cohesion in a globalized world The French edition of the AILA 2023 congress will be celebrating the 20th anniversary of AILA congress but also the 60th anniversary of AFLA. The event is aimed at language scholars, practitioners and students from around the world. The overall goal will be to reflect on how studies in applied linguistics and the researchers who produce them can participate in the construction of a globalised world in which respect for diversity as a basis for social cohesion requires individual and collective commitment. | Lyon, France and online |
| 25-28th October 2023 | ATA64 Conference The ATA Annual Conference is essential for professional translators and interpreters to get the education and career development specific to their needs. Over 150 sessions are offered, featuring a variety of languages and specialisations. | Miami |
2. Read reference books:
Both Amazon and Ebay have a wide selection of paperback and electronic books. Here are some recommendations:
- Found in Translation: How Language Shapes Our Lives and Transforms the World
Found in Translation reveals the surprising and complex ways that translation shapes the world. It covers everything from holy books to hurricane warnings and poetry to peace treaties.
Source: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Found-Translation-Language-Shapes-Transforms-ebook/dp/B008EXK7X0
- Lingo: A Language Spotter’s Guide to Europe
‘Combining linguistics and cultural history, Gaston Dorren takes us on an intriguing tour of the continent, from Proto-Indo-European (the common ancestor of most European languages) to the rise and rise of English, via the complexities of Welsh plurals and Czech pronunciation.’
Source: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Lingo-Language-Spotters-Guide-Europe-Gaston-Dorren/dp/1781254176/
- Is that a Fish in your ear?
‘Is That a Fish in Your Ear? by David Bellos asks: how do we really make ourselves understood by other people? This funny, wise and life-affirming language book shows how, from puns to poetry, news bulletins to the Bible, Asterix to Swedish films, translation is at the heart of everything we do – and makes us who we are.’
Source: https://www.amazon.co.uk/That-Fish-Your-Ear-Translation/dp/0241954304/
- Lost in Translation: An Illustrated Compendium of Untranslatable Words
“Did you know that the Japanese have a word to express the way sunlight filters through the leaves of trees? Or, that there’s a Swedish word that means a traveller’s particular sense of anticipation before a trip? Lost in Translation, a New York Times bestseller brings the subtle beauty of language to life with over 50 beautiful ink illustrations.”
Source: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Lost-Translation-Illustrated-Compendium-Untranslatable/dp/0224100807/
- Empires of the Word: A Language History of the World
‘Nicholas Ostler’s Empires of the Word is the first history of the world’s great tongues, gloriously celebrating the wonder of words that binds communities together and makes possible both the living of a common history and the telling of it.’
Source: https://www.amazon.com/Empires-Word-Language-History-World/dp/0060935723
- Through the Language Glass: Why the World Looks Different in Other Languages
‘In Through the Language Glass, acclaimed author Guy Deutscher will convince you that, contrary to the fashionable academic consensus of today, the answer to all these questions is – yes. A delightful amalgam of cultural history and popular science, this book explores some of the most fascinating and controversial questions about language, culture and the human mind.’
Source: https://www.amazon.com/Through-Language-Glass-Different-Languages/dp/0312610491/
- The Translation Studies Reader
‘The Translation Studies Reader provides a definitive survey of the most important and influential developments in translation theory and research, with an emphasis on twentieth-century developments. With introductory essays prefacing each section, the book places a wide range of seminal and innovative readings within their thematic, cultural and historical contexts.’
Source: https://www.amazon.com/Translation-Studies-Reader-Lawrence-Venuti/dp/041531920X/
- Routledge Encyclopedia of Translation Studies
‘Translation has long deserved this sort of treatment. Appropriate for any college or university library supporting a program in linguistics, this is vital in those institutions that train students to become translators.’ – Rettig on Reference
Source: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Routledge-Encyclopedia-Translation-Studies-Baker/dp/0415609844/
- Translation: An Advanced Resource Book
‘Routledge Applied Linguistics is a series of comprehensive textbooks, providing students and researchers with the support they need for advanced study in the core areas of English language and Applied Linguistics.’
Source: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Translation-Advanced-Resource-Routledge-Linguistics/dp/041528306X/
- A Practical Guide for Translators
‘This is the fifth revised edition of the best-selling “A Practical Guide for Translators”. It looks at the profession of the translator on the basis of developments over the last few years and encourages both practitioners and buyers of translation services to view translation as a highly-qualified, skilled profession and not just a cost-led word mill. The book is intended principally for those who have little or no practical experience of translation in a commercial environment.’
Source: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Practical-Guide-Translators-Topics-Translation/dp/1847692591/
- In Other Words: A Coursebook on Translation
‘Drawing on modern linguistic theory, this best-selling text provides a solid base to inform and guide the many key decisions trainee translators must make. Each chapter offers an explanation of key concepts, identifies potential sources of translation difficulties related to those concepts, and illustrates various strategies for resolving these difficulties. Authentic examples of translated texts from a wide variety of languages are examined, and practical exercises and further reading are included at the end of each chapter.’
Source: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Other-Words-Coursebook-Translation/dp/0415467543
3. Write a blog:
Writing a blog is not only stimulating for the brain but also very educational. You can create an online presence that is truly and fully yours and share it with the world. Creating interesting articles requires a lot of research and thought but it also has many other benefits: it can boost your SEO, develop relationships with existing and potential clients and allow you to show a personal side of your business that perspective and current customers won’t see through outbound marketing techniques. Undoubtedly, many interesting things will be learnt along the way.
A WordPress blog can be created for free. You should start by choosing a modern design, easy to navigate and customise it with your content and brand. All responsive designs are mobile-friendly. Once your blog is live you can optimise it for search, and integrate it with social media channels and sharing features. The next step is to connect it to Google Analytics to monitor visitor levels and activity and to Google Search Console to keep an eye on your blog’s health.
4. Attend training courses:
Whether a beginner or a translator of long-standing, attending courses on the topic of translating and/or interpreting will help to improve your expertise. It gives a holistic non-biased view of the current viewpoints and methodologies within the language industry. Many of the universities in the UK offering an MA in Translation or equivalent qualifications are Corporate Education Members of ITI. Whilst this may be costly, it can only be of benefit in the long run.
5. Subscribe to news from industry experts:
Research sector-specific industry blogs and subscriptions to weekly or monthly newsletters, with the most current news and articles, will not only provide the opinions of industry experts but helps keep pace with changes and new insights.
References:
