Free test translations Thread poster: BirgitBerlin
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BirgitBerlin 
Germany
Local time: 22:10
English to German
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Hello everyone.
Today I received a request for a free test translation from an agency.
The test piece in question consisted 66 words, including not one full sentence. How can you establish the quality of a translator from 66 words, all in bullet-style short terms?
I have told them that I am not prepared to do a free test as this to me looks like they are looking for a cheap way of getting a translation done.
They have written back to me that they are a serio... See more Hello everyone.
Today I received a request for a free test translation from an agency.
The test piece in question consisted 66 words, including not one full sentence. How can you establish the quality of a translator from 66 words, all in bullet-style short terms?
I have told them that I am not prepared to do a free test as this to me looks like they are looking for a cheap way of getting a translation done.
They have written back to me that they are a serious agency and would never do a scam, but I cannot see how they can evaluate my skills from a few short words.
How do you deal with matters like this? Do you provide free test translations? Or do you ignore such requests?
I have been burnt before so I am rather careful these days.
[Edited at 2011-11-14 13:41 GMT] ▲ Collapse
| | | | Thayenga
Germany
Local time: 22:10
Member (2009)
English to German
+ ...
Seems to me like they are trying to add these words to their MT database.
Why else would an agency request a free test translation (of words without a clear context)?
Like you did, I would politely inform them that I will not do a translation of single words, then add that I'd be happy to do a small test translation of complete sentences which would enable the agency to determine whether my qualifcations as a translator meets their expectations. In case they send you one, mak... See more Seems to me like they are trying to add these words to their MT database.
Why else would an agency request a free test translation (of words without a clear context)?
Like you did, I would politely inform them that I will not do a translation of single words, then add that I'd be happy to do a small test translation of complete sentences which would enable the agency to determine whether my qualifcations as a translator meets their expectations. In case they send you one, make sure none of the "loose" words are included.
[Edited at 2011-11-14 13:07 GMT]
[Edited at 2011-11-14 13:08 GMT] ▲ Collapse
| | | | Rosa Grau (X)
Spain
Local time: 22:10
English to Catalan
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Dear Birgit,
I usually do tests that look like unpaid translations if it takes me not more than 10 minutes and I am in real need for work. You never know, it may earn you a client in the future. In any case, I believe that the results of their bad actions are only theirs.
I wish such things did not happen though.
Rosa
| | | | Tony M
France
Local time: 22:10
French to English
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SITE LOCALIZER | My policy is generally to refuse | Nov 14, 2011 |
As a general principle, I refuse all translation and / or editing tests, unless there are exceptional circumstances. In some cases, I offer to do a paid test, with the proposal to deduct the cost of this test from the first 'real' job invoiced for the same client.
As you say, I feel most test translations are in any case a waste of time:
1) It's difficult to assess a translator's ability from a short extract.
That said, I have myself been asked to assess a ... See more As a general principle, I refuse all translation and / or editing tests, unless there are exceptional circumstances. In some cases, I offer to do a paid test, with the proposal to deduct the cost of this test from the first 'real' job invoiced for the same client.
As you say, I feel most test translations are in any case a waste of time:
1) It's difficult to assess a translator's ability from a short extract.
That said, I have myself been asked to assess a number of 220-word IT > EN test translations, and I was appalled at just how easy it was to weed out the 'hopeless' from the 'potentials'; out of around 20 translations by people claiming to be 'professional' translators in this language pair having with EN as their mother tongue, at least 5 made errorsthat unmistakeably betrayed the fact that they were anything but native speakers of English; of the remainder, about 4 made basic errors of comprehension in the IT text that even I (as a non-speaker of IT!) was able to spot!!! 5 more made other mistakes and/or expressed themselves poorly in EN, and in the end, only about 4 showed enough promise to be worth shortlisting.
So even on such a short test, it was certainly possible at least to reject the worst cases.
2) A test like this does not enable the translator to present themselves in the most favourable light: for a start, a short extract taken out of context deprives you of all that valuable information that you might have gleaned from the rest of the document; in some cases, I ask the customer to send me the entire document, simply highlighting the test passage. This can also be quite revealing, since one may sometimes find a whole string of KudoZ questions from various translators asking about terms from various bits of the document — I smell a rat!
But in any case, for a free translation, I cannot possibly afford to invest the time needed to research terms etc. properly (which investment I would of course be making in the context of a much large job that was also remunerated!)
On the rare occasions when I do do free tests, I usually use some kind of a 'spoiler' so they will be difficult if not impossible for the agency to use. For example, I usually put copious margin 'comments' explaining my doubts or queries about a certain expression, and with ambiguous terms, I usually leave the source term in, and add a margin comment explaining some of the terminological choices that might be possible.
I think this serves a two-fold purpose: a) it acts as something of a spoiler; and b), by revealing my way of working and thought processes like this, as well as showing how thoughtful, conscientious, and meticulous I am, it actually enables me to turn a disadvantage into an advantage, as I think that sort of information says a lot more about how good or bad I am as a translator than the mere end result would have done. It's surprising how often I have had feedback from customers complimenting me on my thinking and questions, saying that the mere way I have formulated my questions shows just how good a grasp of the subject I have.
3) Any self-respecting agency ought to be able to give a new translator a small job in order to gauge their competence in a 'real' situation; or at least, be prepared themselves to invest in a short paid test. In my own case, I believe that my credentials in the industry are well proven, and a certain amount of trust is to be expected, and indeed, is usually forthcoming. I can understand that a test translation might be reassuring for an agency when dealing with a newcomer or less experienced translator; and it is also clear that when you are employing people at the 'bargain bucket' end of the market, it does seem like a sensible precaution (as in the IT > EN case I mentoned above!)
I have found that one of the ways I have "got my foot in the door" with new customers has been to take on a small proofing job for them, which gives them at least some insight into the quality of my work, before moving on to a fully-fledged translation project.
One agency for whom I did do a test translation recently [they have a 5 rating on BB] issued me with 3 very short extracts of text in 3 quite different fields, styles, and registers. This was clearly a thoughtful, intelligent approach, and enabled me to present a much better picture of my capabilities, as well as giving them an opportunity to judge my overall approach and adaptability. ▲ Collapse
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BirgitBerlin
Germany
Local time: 22:10
English to German
+ ...
TOPIC STARTER | Thanks for your thoughts on free tests | Nov 14, 2011 |
Thank you everyone, and Tony in particular for your thoughts.
The reason why I smelled a rat was that the "test" in question was so extremely short and delivered in a table-format Word doc.
[Edited at 2011-11-14 20:55 GMT]
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