A few questions for interpreters or future interpreters

Hola Everyone! My husband has been taking interpreting classes in the internet from SCSI, he got awesome grades on all his tests. He just did the written last week and failed, he got a 60% in English and a 90% in Spanish. He needed to get a 70% on both for a passing grade. He said that the test was extremely difficult and he felt that the school did not prepare him for this. Dh Spanish is flawless (went to school in Mexico, very intellectual) but he feels that he was not ready for the English part. He told me there where foreign words that he's never seen before in any of his test from the school. Hi is a bit discourage, he really thought he was going to pass, even the teacher that did the last test for him on the phone told him he was most likely going to pass the written. He told him you are ready.

I really think he had high hopes,(nothing wrong w/that)however I have been visiting this site for a while and i read how difficult this test is. My question is for certified interpreters or persons that just passed the test, is there something that you can recommend for him to do or study? In English of course.

This question is for Ada, i read in one of your posts that you failed a test 3 times, was this the written test? But then i read that you passed w/a 95. If you did Congratulations!!!

This question is for Maria Moreno. Hi Maria, I read that you graduated from SCSI, have you passed the state test? If not, have you found work w/out being certified? The reason i ask is bc, if you go to SCSIs website there is a video of a school graduate that has been working for the courts for 3 years w/out been accredited. The school claims that you can make $6000 certified and $3000 not certified. I don't know why the school has her on a video, kind of discouraging in my opinion that she hasn't passed the test for 3 years.

Thanks Everyone
Dulce

I too attended SCSI and had difficulty passing the written exam. I took the test four times and on the 4th I succeeded. I never failed the English portion but then again I did take the class at SCSI that prepares you for the English written portion. I highly recomend it. I also took the Spanish preparation class which I did not feel like it helped but the English definitely did. My difficulty was in the spanish so I started to read a spanish book that covers grammar, verbs, sentence structure, etc and I would just read it and try to remember the rules. I knew a lot of the stuff in the book and there was a few things that I didn't. Those few were the things holding me back from passing. But I finally did it. Stay positive. I'm currently working on passing the oral. Good Luck and stay focused.

Hi Dulces in Fontana: for some reason I didn't get the alert form this part of the forums. No I haven't pass the test, but didn't try this time (oct, nov). I need to get ready for both: I'm taking my time... I have tried twice ( the written part only). I need to get ready for both... THIS IS MY STRATEGY NOW.  If I pass the written , I will have to take the oral almost immediatelly.  So I took a year-break from it.. But studying hard ( Can't be paying 250 dollars every time ). I'm very confident on the written part NOW. and I think in 3 or 4 months of practice will go for BOTH...By the way wordreference.com is an on line dictionary.. very helpful...Good luck!!

hey Dulze did your hsband take the written again? if not you will fing that the gre is very usefull, I took my written in oct and the oral last week.

FOR CARLOS: Hola , podrias compartir como te fue en el examen?... te acuerdas de palabras de el vocabulario, y que tal el oral? te acuerdas de terminos o algo que nos aconsejes?? MIL GRACIAS por lo que puedas aportar y FELICIDADES por tu esfuerzo y te deseo lo mejor.. gracias.

DULCES: Tu esposo tiene el vocabulario que dan en SCSI?. I too have a Bachelors Degree from Mexico and came across with a lot of UNKNOWN VOCABULARY!!. In English and in Spanish!!. There's close to 700 hundred words that I've been focusing on... If He don't have it , I can give share the materials that I have...

el vocabulario es simplemente castellano, y literatura, el vocabulario no es tan importante como gramatica y puntuacion, en el examen escrito lo mas dificil es comprencion de lectura, and of course the ability to translate from one language into another.

hey mali in grand, did you take the oral exan?

maria moreno, that website is great as a dictionary, did u take the written again? i will let all of u know that it is a matter of practice, practice and practice.
your vocab is to be perfect, not casi perfectlol. if anyone is eady for a massive list of castillian vocab i will be happy to provide it for any one who asks for it.

carlos castillo armas in xelaju, Guatemala said: maria moreno, that website is great as a dictionary, did u take the written again? i will let all of u know that it is a matter of practice, practice and practice. your vocab is to be perfect, not casi perfectlol. if anyone is eady for a massive list of castillian vocab i will be happy to provide it for any one who asks for it.

I DIDN'T TAKE IT THIS TIME. DIDN'T FEEL READY FOR THE ORAL... I WANT TO BE READY FOR BOTH, CAN'T SPENT 250 DOLLARS EVERY TIME. I HAVE A LOT OF VOCABULARY, BUT THANK YOU FOR YOUR OFFERING.  HOW WAS THE ORAL?.

carlos castillo armas in xelaju, Guatemala said: hey mali in grand, did you take the oral exan?

Carlos, I missed the oral this Aug/09 because my dad died. I was going to take it this Nov/09 but for some odd reason I had saved the wrong page to my favorites and I missed the deadline to register. I guess it wasn't meant to be. I know that the next oral is not until Aug of 2010 so I have plenty of time to study. What's your status on the testing; written and oral?

any oral exam takers for last week? it was not as difficult as they said it was.......was it?
coments anyone?

Im sorry to hear about your father Mali, my father is still with us but if he were to die my world would be shattered as he is a great man and means lots to me. i want to give you my most sincere condolences and i hope that your family is now stronger,and united than ever.
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you will have plenty of time to study but i think it is going to be around april or june, thats my best guess, I took the written just last month and passed it on the first try, i took the oral wxam last friday.
when did u attend scsi? im wondering, how is it that u took four times to pass the written? i found it to be not as difficult as i was told.what i mean is, spanish was your weak ares right? my weak was english but i did put much more into español, because the vocab, the gramar and all else is way more fancierthan english, lets face it we have a very difficuls language, nonetheless the best one.
are you currently employed as an interpreter?

Thank you for your condolences. Regarding the written spanish portion because this was my difficulty, I always did good on the vocabulary. The grammar, on the other hand, was not that easy for me. I also freak out on written test period! Regardless of what language it's in....I just hate taking written test. I get all worked up and nervous that I can't function. If you met me you wouldn't even think that I would be like that with written test. I work full time at the courthouse and I have three active kids in sports, so I find it hard to have study time. I'm not an interpreter yet but I took the liberty of jumping the gun to getting an email that has the word interpreter in it, so I stick to the plan. I attended SCSI in 2006 and finished in 2007. It took me all of 2008 to take the written and finally passed. Congratulations on passing the written on the first try that's awesome. I learned both languages at the same time and I attended school here but I never took spanish so I never knew the grammar, sentence structure rules. I had to study and learn on my own. As to the oral, I have a great advantage because that's where I shine...not to mention I've been with the courts for many years and I have worked in almost all the departments to include arbitration, family law, civil, traffic and I'm currently in criminal. I really wish I had a job where I could use my skills daily and all day but let's face it....I gotta do what I gotta do. Oh and by the way I spoke to Prometric because I had some issues with them not wanting to return my money and they were the ones who told me the next oral is in Aug.

i have done my interpreting for ten years wcab and civid depos and i get hiered by this law offices to do work for them, even in mexico. i have made a good living from it but im tired of freelancing and i want the federal certification and i know by the end of 2010 i wll have it.
Mali why dont you drop me a line and may be you can answer me a couple of questions i have regarding the court house. m.corzo.interpreter@gmail.com
thats a long time for the next test but i guess it will be enough time to study to re-take it if i dont pass it and at the same time for the federal. i think i can handle both. did u get a hold of the magic list?

carlos castillo armas in xelaju, Guatemala said: maria moreno, that website is great as a dictionary, did u take the written again? i will let all of u know that it is a matter of practice, practice and practice.
your vocab is to be perfect, not casi perfectlol. if anyone is eady for a massive list of castillian vocab i will be happy to provide it for any one who ask
WILL U PLEASE E-MAIL ME THAT LIST. IT IS GREATLY APPRECIATED. THANX CURIOUSLYLOPEZ@YAHOO.COM

carlos castillo armas in xelaju, Guatemala said: maria moreno, that website is great as a dictionary, did u take the written again? i will let all of u know that it is a matter of practice, practice and practice. your vocab is to be perfect, not casi perfectlol. if anyone is eady for a massive list of castillian vocab i will be happy to provide it for any one who asks for it.

Carlos: Could you please share the LIST? I'll be taking the written in 2 months... Thank you mariamore70@yahoo.com 

Hi! everybody
I'm taking classes to be a certify health interpreter and I need to interview an interpreter for a presentation.

Does any one would like to be my volunteer by phone or online. i will buy lunch for you

ony said: Hi! everybody
I'm taking classes to be a certify health interpreter and I need to interview an interpreter for a presentation.

Does any one would like to be my volunteer by phone or online. i will buy lunch for you

i will volunteer.

m.corzo.interpreter@gmail.com

Hello all I found this web site by accident, but glad i did. Im starting an interpreters class in Jan'10. By reading all your comments it seems the test is difficult. Im retired from the S.B. county Fire dept and was looking for a new career and thought ths would be a good one. I speak spanish fluently but writing and reading ia a little difficult but i manage. Id appriciate any advise or help Thanks to all and God bless mike

p s I can be reached at captnikon1@aol.com

can you be more specific? what is it that you are trying to do? a free interpreters class?

Hi Carlos Im not realy sure what field Id like to get into, but interpreting for civil and criminal seems interesting. Im going to attend a school given by Joe Hernandez Interpreters.com. It seem like a good price for the 16 week school (one class a week). Like all other classes he also offers mock written testing and interviews. I have talked to a couple of interpreters and they did tell me the testing was difficultand they didnt understand why the such formal(for a lack of a better word) spanish is used. When they talk to clients and such they seem to use the more common spanish thats understood more. But anyways the most help I need would be in the vocabulary part. well thanks for the reply Mike

Anyone pass the last round of oral exams for court certification??
The next one I take will be my third try....

future interpreter in Pacoima, California said: Anyone pass the last round of oral exams for court certification?? The next one I take will be my third try....

Hi, good for you! There's other cases like you.. Don't worry next time you'll just pass it, you'll see!! What was the difficult par for you this time?..

Maria A Moreno in Los Angeles, California said: Hi, good for you! There's other cases like you.. Don't worry next time you'll just pass it, you'll see!! What was the difficult par for you this time?..

I have heard of takers who have taken the exam eleven times.

hey Mike..... change your mind about interpreting yet? make sure you dont fall into the trap of "guarantee to pass the test." you know that there is no such thing, if there was, the field would be saturated with certified interprets. think about that.

After 2 attempts I can see that my weakness is the sight translation component in Spanish to English when it is an official
document. I practice with news articles from all over Latinamerica,
but it is difficult to find legal documents. Afterall, if you do happen to know someone with a long rap sheet,from say Mexico, or Spain or it is highly unlikely they'll volunteer that info much less a copy of their "accomplishments"....
My first exam had a rather plain consecutive but a brutal simul. The second time it was the other way around: the consec almost made me scream it was sooo long and convoluted, but the simul was short and sweet.
How about you, Maria? What was your exam like? I took the last one in October of this year.

wait...it was just last month in November..Veteran's day..

Yes, I've heard of sad cases like those. A classmate bumped into a family friend who confessed he'd tried 12 times!!!!!
I do know he's never taken any sort of training so that has to be part of it.

twelve times?!!! wow!!! well the money is more than motivation to try fifty times if i had to. how about any one else, we will make this question the following: how many times are you willing to take the exam?.........but be honest.

carlos castillo armas in xelaju, Guatemala said: maria moreno, that website is great as a dictionary, did u take the written again? i will let all of u know that it is a matter of practice, practice and practice.
your vocab is to be perfect, not casi perfectlol. if anyone is eady for a massive list of castillian vocab i will be happy to provide it for any one who asks for it.

Hi Carlos..
I went to SCSI in 2007, and I'm barely gonna take the written exam. I'm been putting it aside because of work, but since I got laid early this year, I've kept rescheduling my written exam because I never felt ready.. Would you be kind enough to give me some pointers on the exam and possibly email me the Vocabulary list.. Thank you..

MaryJ in Los Angeles, California said: Hi Carlos..
I went to SCSI in 2007, and I'm barely gonna take the written exam. I'm been putting it aside because of work, but since I got laid early this year, I've kept rescheduling my written exam because I never felt ready.. Would you be kind enough to give me some pointers on the exam and possibly email me the Vocabulary list.. Thank you..

Omg.. I just realized I forgot to put laid off early this year.. I'm new at this and don't know how delete the replies.. sorry.

sure but i need a e. address to send it to. you'll pass it, dont worry its easy,all you need is a good vocab and some good words of encouragement. ill send u the list, i would post it here but this is the magic list. but there is a secret to it, you have to know how to use it.

Oh thank you soooo much!! its jaramillo_marylou@yahoo.com I really appreciate.. its nice when people who have already passed it aren't selfish and pass good pointers along.. once again, Thank you very much!

ok. on it's way.

Hey Carlos No I havent changed my mind LOL yes I know it will take alot of studying and practice. Also when I talked to the instructor for the course Im going to take he told me the class is not a sure thing of passing the test he did say it does take alot of study and practice. Carlos can you also send me that vocab list I'd appreciate it.
Thanks again all of you for the replies

Mike

carlos castillo armas in xelaju, Guatemala said: twelve times?!!! wow!!! well the money is more than motivation to try fifty times if i had to. how about any one else, we will make this question the following: how many times are you willing to take the exam?.........but be honest.

That's right Carlos.. It's about money!... If you have it, take it as many as you can... but that you can do at home...(PRACTICING) I will try it in Aug 2010, after more than a year of practice, practice....

Mike Vasquez in San Bernardino, California said: Hey Carlos No I havent changed my mind LOL yes I know it will take alot of studying and practice. Also when I talked to the instructor for the course Im going to take he told me the class is not a sure thing of passing the test he did say it does take alot of study and practice. Carlos can you also send me that vocab list I'd appreciate it.
Thanks again all of you for the replies

Mike

Que Tal, Mike V. de San Bernardino, I am also an aspiring Court Interpreter. Offering a word of caution to a fellow retired Civil Servant who is about to invest his valuable rescources. I am a retired Peace Officer from Ventura Co., I have completed the Court Interpreters' course at Cal State Northridge, recieved their Certification by maintaining a 4.0 GPA, took the State Exam and failed. I found that the test had very little of what was covered in 2 yrs of classes. This test had less than 5 questions on Legaleese and the court system, which I am very familiar with. I have also learned that most "schools" are slanted towards passing the oral exam, however, you cannot take the oral without passing the written exam. My demise was spanish to english or english to spanish GRE words. I came really close to passing the test, but you know what they say, close only counts in horse shoes and hand gernades. Don't be discouraged, I'm not. Like Carlos said, don't let the schools sell you a "guarantee". Feel free to contact this forum if you have any questions I can help you with. Good Luck with your studies..

To all fellow future certified interpreters..the last participant is correct. The written is basically a Spanish and English SAT test. Only 2 or 3 legal terms, all the rest was grammar and vocab and translation. Remember as interpreters we interpret MEANING!! They try and get you in the sentence translation part. If you've taken the SAT before, and did well, great!!Brush up on your skills as if you were taking it again. As far as the Spanish, for grammar help which was my weakness and I still passed .... A friend just directed me to a very useful book: "gramatica y ortografia para hispanos" by Maria Elena Frances. As I thumbed through it I also saw several words that were on the written.
Read , read and read some more, and good studying!!

Mike, zavala, no creo que ustedes dos se merezcan que aguien les quite su diner asi por asi, habiendo prestado servicio a la comunidad y arriesgado sus vidas por todos nosotros, si ustedes necesitan alguna ayuda les podre ayudar con lo que sea necesario,si es material lo que necesitan yo se los proporcionare.
ahorren su dinero para su futuro que sera mejor invertido.
zavala esta en lo correcto, y recuerden que un diploma de la mejor escuela o la mejor universidad no valdra absolutamente "NADA" lo que vale es la certificasion estatal.
yo tengo dies años trabajando como interprete y es mi unica fuente de dinero,ah y nunca he necesitado de certificasion, hasta ahora que he decidido trabajar con el estado y despues con el gov. federal,
si necesitan mas info estoy a su servicio, como ustedes dos lo estubieron para la comunidad.

My question remains un-answered. Anyone pass the last round of oral exams?? Anyone know of someone? I wonder how many took it and how many actually passed.

i know for sure that around three hundred took it in november, but a very, and i mean very small number will or have passed, in october i understand that around two hundred and fifty took it and only twelveassed it, i warn you, this are just fugures floating around, and should not be taken seriously, even thou ther are scary. but what the heck! lets keep trying.
saludos a todos y que pasen una feliz navidad, hopefully we will keep in touch for next year and share our experiences.

Wow! Felicitaciones a todos aquellos que ya pasaron el examen, tanto escrito como oral. Que nervios! Y tambien felicitaciones para aquellos que con entereza, se siguen preparando y tratando de pasarlos. Estoy por unirme al grupo. Es decir, al grupo que se empieza a preparar para tomar los examenes. Por lo mismo, agradeceria cualquier consejo, ayuda, o guia que se me pueda dar al respecto para prepararme. Estoy empezando por mi cuenta hasta que llegue al punto donde tenga que tomar alguna clase o curso. Hoy encontre por casualidad este foro, pero me encanto ver la solidaridad entre los usuarios. Muchas Gracias! Y felicitaciones!!!
Pa. Estudie hasta los 15 años de edad en Guatemala y aqui termine un bachillerato en la Universidad de California. Asi que creo que tengo elementos basicos, pero claro, necesito aun mucha preparacion. Es intimidante, pero como dicen por ahi: " No hay peor lucha que la que no se da". Saludos a todos!

Hi IMR , best thing to do FIRST , go to The Supreme Court web-site...there is all the information you need... then check out the Thompson Pormetrics web-site also... that will give you the  big picture to start with ...

Thank you Ms. Maria Moreno. I did all that already. I am wondering if anyone has bought and studied the materials from ACEBO/HOLLY MIKKELSON and if they actually prepare you for the Certified Interpreter tests. Thank you!

to IMR, YES and YES!!!!!
The Acebo products are the best available for oral exam prep.
However, do not feel limited if you don't have them yet. Watch and listen to news shows from Mexico and South America. Interpret as you hear the news. You can record yourself and see if you make sense..Another thing, while the Acebo books and cds are full of terminology, the exam also tests for things you won't find in books. It also uses plenty of everyday language from all regions just to see how much Spanish you know: idiomatic expressions, rarely used terms for everything from food, to vehicles, to storage units etc. So keep your ears open, a good Spanish/English dictionary handy, and don't give up.

Carlos, Muchisimas gracias por tu propuesto de ayuda y apoyo a nuestros esfuerzos, para prepararnos lograr con exito, ese Examen que todos en este foro deseamos. Egualmente quiero ofrecerles la sabiduria y aptitud laboral adquirido durante anos de servicios en la fuerza del orden publico del condado de Ventura. Gracias Carlos, Feliz Navidad & "Bring on the new year"..

Thank you Future Interpreter in Pacoima. I greatly appreciate your advice. It is great! If you don't mind me asking a bit more about the ACEBO products, did you use the "Interpreter's Edge" (Third Edition 1995) or with the "New: Edge 21: An Interpreter's Edge for the 21st Century" products? I greatly appreciate your input and help. I appreciate anyone else's input and help as well. FELIZ NAVIDAD Y MUY, MUY, MUY PROSPERO Y FELIZ AÑO NUEVO!!!

Hola, IMR, Para andar de entremetido, this info might be of help to you. Our class used "The Interpreter's Companion" by Holly Mikkelson fourth edition: 2000, also an ACEBO product which was recommended reading by Introduction to Court Interpreter's class. It contained invaluable information for me. Contact this forum if you have any other questions. Buena suerte!

Thank you JH Zavala in Ojai, California. Nada de entremetido! Al contrario, agradezco cualquier consejo que se me pueda dar. One other person also highly recommended it to me. I saw a copy of the Third Edition and it was more like a glossary/dictionary. Is that the case of the Fourth Edition 2000? MUCHAS GRACIAS POR SU CONSEJO Y RESPUESTAS!!!