What was your history with and journey to translation?
In 2016 I was able to take a half-semester French translation class and immediately I knew I had found my calling. I loved going to class each day and for the first time in my life, I actually looked forward to doing homework—I never looked back!
How did you choose NYU’s MSTI program?
When I was researching graduate programs, NYU stood out to me right away because of the curriculum the program offered. There were so many classes that I was interested in and classes that I thought would be useful for my career. That combined with the resources (like Wasserman and the Violet Network) NYU gives to its students and the university’s prestige made it an easy choice for me. It was my top choice program and when I found out I got in, I screamed a little bit during a political science lecture.
You currently have a translation Internship with Nonviolence International-NY (NVINY). What was the application and selection process?
I found the opportunity on Indeed and then applied on NVINY’s website. From there I got a quick response from a supervisor and had a phone interview with her in both French and English. I was lucky enough to be hired right then and started only a few days after that.
What are you working on as an intern at NVINY? Any major takeaways?
There are currently three translators on the team and together we work to translate NVINY’s publications from English into French. After the documents are translated, they will be put onto NVINY’s website in order to help the organization reach a francophone audience. We each work on our own section of a document and meet daily via Zoom to discuss issues or edits we come across. The biggest thing I’ve taken from this internship is that I’ve gotten very comfortable taking constructive criticism. It can be hard to come back to a document and find edits on your work, but at the end of the day, it leads to a better product and it helps me be a better translator.
What is your favorite thing about translating?
I love translating because I feel like I’m able to connect people. In our new highly-globalized world, cross-cultural communication is more important than ever. I’m so passionate about being able to facilitate that communication and connect people who would otherwise remain separated by language barriers.
Do you have advice to other translators or people interested in the MSTI program?
Figure out the niche you’re interested in. The program allows for a lot of choice in terms of what you translate for assignments, so practice in the field that you’re interested in. For example, I’m interested in the legal and political side of translation, so I choose to use texts like treaties, contracts, and court documents for my class assignments.