Translation Specializations
People just starting out in the translation industry often struggle with the issue of specialization.
People just starting out
in the translation industry often struggle with the issue of
specialization: what should they specialize in, how important is it to
specialize, how does one decide what area to specialize in and, probably most
importantly, what are the most requested specializations.
In this post, we’ll go
over some general guidelines when it comes to translation specializations,
although, of course, there are no hard and fast rules.
- Choose
a Topic You’ll Enjoy Researching
If you’re going to
specialize then it might as well be something you enjoy researching, and
perhaps a way to work out what you might enjoy is to ask yourself the following
question: ‘When you pick up a news magazine, what section do you go to first –
the health section, finance, business, technology? If it’s a subject you enjoy
learning about, then that’s a potential specialization for you.
- The
Larger the Language, the More You’ll Need a Specialization
The larger the language
you’re working with, the more you’ll need to specialize. If you live in the
United States, translators working with smaller diffusion languages like Thai
or Finnish have no need to specialize: it would be impractical because there
are so few of them working in these languages. However, if you’re a translator
working with Spanish, German or French languages, then you’ll need to
specialize so you can find your niche in what is a large market.
- Do
You Already Have a Strong Background in a Certain Area?
It’s simply a fact that
many translators are self-taught when it comes to their specializations.
Specialization can indeed be a daunting thought, and many people believe that
in order to specialize they’ll need to go back to school or take university
courses. The fact is that many translators already have a strong background in
their area of specialization, so obviously if you enter the translation arena as a former attorney, physician, or
financial analyst, it’s highly likely that you’ll earn a higher income than
someone who learned their technology on the job. But don’t let this intimidate
you: you can still specialize in any area that interests you.
- Specializing
Can Lead to a Lot More Work
You may be surprised to
learn that specialization often leads to more work, not less. Clients who are
familiar with your specialization will consider you their go-to person for translating
documents in your area of expertise. One of the best ways of making more money
when working as a freelance translator is to work quicker, and it makes sense
that the more familiar you become with the terminology of the documents you’re
working on, the faster you’ll be translating.
- Choose
an Area of Specialization That’s In-Demand
Of course, the idea is
to earn more money through your area of specialization, so when making your
choice, choose an area that you know is in-demand. Some of these areas include
finance, law, computer software and hardware, medicine, automotive, medical
instrumentation, patents, environmental science, technology, advertising,
general business documents, pharmaceuticals, engineering, and hard science.
- Take
Extra Courses in Your Area of Expertise
Once you’ve discovered a
specialization that you really enjoy, then you might want to consider going
deeper into that area. The perfect way of positioning yourself ahead of your
competition is to take a course in your specialization’s terminology, or even spend
a day at an industrial facility or place of business that works in your
specialization. Now you can let your clients know about your advanced knowledge
in your specialization!