Imperfect Translators Are Often Useful

[PaulBee]

When having a business dealing with an unco-operative native speaker, there´s nothing better than to
have a reasonably bi-lingual helper cut to the chase. (I´ve oft heard it said that foreigners understand
what they want to, but conversely I know sleazy native speakers can say ambiguous things when it´s in their interest.)

For non-official purposes, I´ve never felt I need more than a reasonably bi-lingual person, for dealing with, say,
tricky or hard to understand native speakers. I don´t need an official interpreter.

 

[fifs2]

All the skills that you mention can be learned without the formal training. You certainly don't need anybody else's help to learn CAT tools. There are a plethora of resources online.
I can attest to that since I have hired over 200 translators in the past few years. While having a degree is certainly a good predictor of quality, my best translators do not always have a translation degree or ATA certification.
Take the example of those who translate literature, they are oftentimes not 'professional' translators, but otherwise very good writers who have an in-depth understanding of both the source and target languages.

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In my company where we do Xx million usd per year in gilt processing a degree is a non nogotiable req. and a v basic req..... But I fully understand its not so in all and actually think services like Nikads are what most expats need and the crappy colegio de t. Req should be scapped as as a formal body it adds little value

 

[Gabby]

No, not 7 years to learn how to translate, but 7 years to learn about the legal systems involved as they are different, plus the legal terminology. Certified (legal) translators can already speak English & Spanish perfectly when starting the course, but they still need the legal knowledge, same as lawyers do and that's why we study with them at the same school, the school of law.
Now, if you read my previous post again you'll see that it took ME 7 years because I had a full-time job at the same time and the course was very demanding, but it usually takes 5 years.
I am sorry if this course is not equal to the one that translators take in other countries, where this kind of training is rather informal to say the least, but it is not in vain that certified translators from the University of Buenos Aires are well known abroad for their skills and training received. All that takes time, yes, years.
I guess that's why people make these comments here.
Again, you don't need a certified translator to speak both fluent English and Spanish, but if a legal matter is concerned or if the government is involved then, that's another situation that require specific knowledge. Otherwise, anyone would be able to translate a sentence, a decree, an agreement, etc.