I translate written-word texts from German, Swedish or French into English, as well as proofreading and editing translations done by other translators and reviewing English-only texts written by non-native speakers.

A typical day for me involves working on translation and proofreading projects of various sizes according to a deadline-based schedule. This will be interspersed with responding to email enquiries about work and occasionally phone or video calls with clients (mostly language services agencies). I also spend time doing administration work as I run my own business and set aside certain periods to take part in courses for continuous professional development, to help keep up my language skills and knowledge of specialist fields.

I love being able to actively use my language skills and having the opportunities to explore a wide range of different fields and industries in the process.

Managing my time and keep up with the administration involved in running my own small business are challenging, but manageable with good organisation. Marketing myself to potential new clients can also be daunting.

I wanted to work in a field where I could use the language skills I honed during my modern languages and subsequent translation degrees. I have always enjoyed translation and the challenge of working with words and converting texts between languages and cultures.

Language skills (German, French, Swedish), writing skills, other communication skills.

After finishing my undergraduate degree at Sheffield, I spent a few months studying in Sweden to hone my Swedish language skills, followed by a few months doing temp work in a local magistrates court accounts department before undertaking a Master's degree in Translation Studies. I did this MA to narrow down my language education into something practical and career-oriented. I then joined a translation agency in Nottingham as an in-house translator and proofreader, where I remained for nearly 14 years (apart from two periods of maternity leave) and worked my way up to a senior/managerial level. I eventually left this role to set up my own business as a freelance translator, mainly to gain more flexibility and a better balance with my family life while still remaining in the languages industry.

I see myself building and developing my business, consolidating particular specialist areas and seeking out more clients.

Work experience is really valuable and I would advise anyone interested in a potential career in translation to seek out internship or work experience opportunities alongside their studies (even just a couple of days shadowing a translator is useful) as a way of supplementing their academic languages education.

Joanna  BA Modern Languages (2002)
Postdoctoral Research Fellow  (Education)

Accepts questions from students about their career