In a world where travel is so extensive and necessary and social networking bridges the gaps between international friendships, language barriers

The post appeared first on Kwintessential UK.

Being able to speak more than one language has clear and obvious benefits. Travelling the world becomes easier, navigating other cultures

The post appeared first on Kwintessential UK.

St. Valentine’s Day is on the horizon, and love is very much in the air. Birds are singing, bees are buzzing

The post appeared first on Kwintessential UK.

International social media marketing is a continually growing and effective way for businesses and corporations to develop, expand and target new

The post appeared first on Kwintessential UK.

You are probably aware that the annual celebration of Chinese New Year is on the horizon.  However, how much do you

The post appeared first on Kwintessential UK.

  It is broadly acknowledged that legal translation is one of the most difficult specialist areas within the whole of the

The post Legal Translation challenges – Part 1 appeared first on Kwintessential UK.

As the festive season approaches, here are some words, phrases and traditions from around the world, that give an instant insight

The post The Festive Season appeared first on Kwintessential UK.

You may never have heard of it, but International Translation Day is celebrated every year on 30th September on the feast

The post Happy International Translation day! appeared first on Kwintessential UK.

Interested in working as a freelancer for a translations agency?

You’ve come to the right place. The competition can be tough – there’s no doubt about that. Translation companies receive a high volume of applications from freelancers every week. The standard is high, the competition is fierce, and the need to make your application stand out is greater than ever.
So, we thought we’d provide you with some guidelines. Here are our 5 key tips on how to make your application to a translation agency shine.

1. Research, research, research

When it comes to getting noticed by the agency’s resourcing team, sacrificing a small amount of time to investigate the company’s background will be worth the while.
Augment your chances of success by tailoring your applications for each individual agency, based on the research you’ve conducted. A covering letter which is specific, personalised, and denotes exactly why you want to work for the company will aid progression to the next stage. Demonstrating awareness of the company’s mission, culture and ethos will also stand you in good stead for impressing our recruitment team. Exemplary cover letters clearly state which of the selection criteria is met by the candidate, and offer transferable skills and experiences to make up for any shortfalls. The best candidates also tailor their CV to the positions, highlighting key strengths and skills which are applicable to the role.

2. Getting the application process correct

The power of getting to grips with the agency’s processes is not to be underestimated. By way of example, a high volume of applicants fail to realise most translation agencies have a designated recruitment area on their website, which details our minimum specifications, and provides a link to contact our recruitment team. Instead, many hopefuls submit their applications to our enquiries email address – an inbox designed for job enquiries from our clients – entirely missing the candidate specifications listed on the recruitment page. Others contact our team members on LinkedIn, often messaging an individual who doesn’t deal with the recruitment process at all.

Familiarising yourself with the company’s recruitment process in order to contact the right team not only saves both parties unnecessary email traffic, but also goes some way to demonstrate astuteness. What’s more, it ensures your application is seen by the intended recipient – a win-win situation for both parties.

3. Check the requirements

Many translation agencies have stringent requirements for recruiting freelancers. Most companies will require a degree and a solid few years of translating or interpreting experience. Companies which usually translate for clients in certain industries will also often look for their freelancers to specialise. Ensuring you meet these requirements before beginning work on your application is strongly advisable, as it avoids both employer and applicant time being wasted. It makes sense to focus your efforts on companies which have selection criteria matching your experiences, work history, and specialisms. If you have a vast and rich experience of completing financial translations, focusing your efforts on agencies which specialise in financial translation is highly advisable, as is making the most of your past accomplishments in this area.

4. Subject lines which err on the side of caution

Sometimes, the subject lines of application emails we receive raise a few eyebrows. Claims that the sender is “gifted”, “born with a second tongue”, or possesses “unnaturally exceptional ability” crop up occasionally in our inbox.
Although you might think that entitling your application email ‘Translator application: English to French’ fails to excite, the vast majority of translation agencies are the sort of people who prefer forthrightness, precision, and accuracy. In a word, precision and accuracy are what translation companies do. Subject lines which get straight to the point, and skip the exaggeration or embellishment, will invoke genuine excitement in a recruiter.

5. Impeccable English

This should probably go without saying, but the body of your application email should be written and formatted well. At translation agencies, writing, formatting and great presentation are of paramount importance. Your CV should follow in the same vein: potential employers will view your CV as a means to scan for excellent English skills, flawless grammar and good presentation.

Personalised cover letters, either making up the email body or included as an attachment, will add to your application, so don’t skip over this vital step. Putting the effort in at this stage means you’re much more likely to impress your chosen company.

You can download this article in the form of a infographic for your own reference.

The diversity within the langauges of the world is, in a word, glorious. Neighbouring countries can have completely different phrases, terms and slangwords for the same concept, with no visible correlation. In particular, idioms vary hugely from language to language. In English, we can be green with envy, we might see red, or we could be feeling a bit blue. But uttering those phrases in another language might earn you some strange looks.

Adam Jacot de Boinod, author of The Meaning of Tingo and Other Extraordinary Words from around the World, has delved into some of the most interesting idioms from across Europe for us, specifically in relation to the colour yellow in this issue. Who knew one colour could have so many linguistic uses?

1. French: “Jaune d’envie” – yellow (i.e. green) with envy

2. German: “Gelb vor Eifersucht werden” – to become yellow with jealousy

3. Norwegian: “Slå noen gul og blå” – to beat someone up badly (literally to beat someone yellow and blue)

4. Turkish: “Sararıp solmak” – looking sad or unwell (lit. getting yellow and withered)

5. Portuguese “Me ferrei de verde e amarelo!” – I’m in trouble (lit. I’m screwed in green and yellow!)

6. Portuguese: “Sorriso amarelo” – a forced, insincere smile (lit. a yellow smile)

7. French: “Rire jaune” – to give a forced, insincere laugh (lit. to laugh yellow)

8. French: “Voir jaune” – to be pessimistic (lit. to see yellow)

9. Italian: “un libro giallo” – a thriller book (lit. a yellow book)

10. Italian: “giallo d’invidia” – very envious (lit. yellow with envy)

11. Romanian: “a se îngălbeni de frică” – to become visibly afraid (lit. to become yellow with fear)

12. Romanian: “a flutura steguleţe galbene” – to blather (lit. to stream little yellow flags)

13. Romanian: “galben ca turta de ceară” – very pale (lit. as yellow as wax cake)

14. Romanian: “a râde/surâde galben” – to laugh or smile in a forced, insincere way (lit. to laugh or smile yellow)

15. German: “das Gelbe vom Ei” – a good thing (lit. the yellow of the egg)

16. Serbo-Croatian: “žut ko krpa” – nauseous (lit. yellow as cloth)

17. Estonian: “sárga az irigységtől” – very envious (lit. yellow with envy)

18. Estonian: “leissza magát a sárga földig” – he’s very drunk (lit. he drinks himself to the yellow gourd)

19. Polish: “żółtodziób” – an inexperienced person, a rookie (lit. a yellow beak)

20. Polish: “mieć żółte papiery” – to be insane (lit. to have yellow papers)

21. Scottish Gaelic: “buidheach” – jaundice (lit. yellowness)

22. Finnish: “keltanokka” – a beginner, a rookie (lit. yellow-beaked)

23. Swedish: “slå någon gul och blå” – to bruise someone (lit. to hit someone yellow and blue)

24. Danish: “et barn på gule plader” – a step-child (lit. a child with yellow licence plates)

25. Italian: “un giallo” – an unsolved mystery (lit. a yellow)

Adam Jacot de Boinod is the author of The Meaning of Tingo and Other Extraordinary Words from around the World, published by Penguin Books, and the creator of the iPhone App Tingo, a quiz on Interesting Words.