I’m Katie and I am the newest member of the Veritas team! I am delighted to have been offered a job here at Veritas, taking over from Michela whilst she is on maternity leave, as Sales Administrator.

In the past I have worked in a variety of sectors including; events management, retail, and education, but I am most pleased to finally be in an environment which is in my interests and which I have worked towards. I like to bring everything I have experienced to each new role I undertake and am looking forward to my time at Veritas, within a team with such passion for all things language related. As soon as I began my time here, it was obvious that all members of the Veritas team are so devoted and fanatical about the world of languages, I am truly impressed and cannot wait to get to know you all!

I am a graduate in BA Linguistics and Spanish and have been looking to join the language services for the past year. I spent a year abroad teaching English in my third year at university in Teruel, Spain, a very small city in the region of Aragón. This improved my Spanish language skills enormously, as there were only a handful of English speakers in the town. During this time I was employed through the British Council, like many language students, to a bilingual secondary school and learnt a huge amount about myself, mainly ...

At Veritas, we’re always talking about our strict requirements for linguists, so you already know that any translators we deal with are the cream of the crop, but what do we look for aside from professional qualifications? As we pride ourselves on providing professional translation services, it’s vital that our linguists are the best. Whether interpreting, translating, or carrying out one of the many other services we offer, we have to make sure they are representing Veritas in the best way possible. Here’s what we look for, to make sure this happens:

• Honesty is really the number one point. If a job is too technical, or the deadline too short, we rely on our translators to tell us if there’s something they can’t do. New translators sometimes agree to take on any kind of project, when it’s beyond their expertise or working capacity. This is one of the many reasons why we require all our translators to have a minimum of 5 years experience providing professional translation services. Our translators know the industry inside-out, and won’t ever make false promises.
• Reliability comes a close second. We rely on our translators to be quick to respond to any requests our customers may have, and to meet all deadlines agreed with them. If a translator is not reliable, we don’t work with them.
• Professionalism is just as important. Our translators and interpreters’ behaviour reflects ...

Is it true that anyone who speaks a second language has the necessary qualities to work in translation or interpreting? Certainly not! Translation and interpreting are very demanding skills, which require extensive training and practice before they can be mastered. At Veritas, we hand pick the best translators around the world to work for us, and we have a very strict recruitment process to make sure that our translators can supply a service of the highest quality.

First of all, experience plays a key role in choosing people for translation or interpreting roles. We believe it is important to use only trained professionals, who have developed skills within a specialist field. They should also have experience in translation software and be conscious of deadlines.

Referees play a key role in assessing the actual skills of a translator or interpreter. We request at least two referees from past employers who are active in the translation industry, to prove that the person is as exceptional as they claim to be on their CV. This step of the process assesses whether what freelancers say on their CV is true.

As we want to assess all aspects of prospective sub-contractors, it is necessary for translators to submit at least one translation sample for every language combination they work in. This is done so that experienced staff within our translation company ...

The translation industry is one that is constantly changing and evolving, thanks to the vast numbers of new digital tools that are being introduced into the marketplace. Despite this, it’s important to remember that translation is a centuries-old craft that requires a high level of human skill. As a result, a company providing professional translation services needs to ensure that it recruits highly skilled and capable staff, yet at the same time provides opportunities for continued development over time. So what are the criteria a good translation company should look for in prospective employees?

At Veritas, when employing a new member of staff, our first question will be ‘Does this person have an education in language and, more importantly, does this person have an education at all?’

We insist that an education in languages is vital in order to provide professional translation services. All our staff are required to have a degree related to languages, such as modern languages, interpreting or translating, and are always encouraged to improve their skills where possible. Some staff members might continue their education and do a Master’s degree, or they might try to gain a translation software certification.

Although it might seem obvious that people working in the translation industry need a background in languages, the number of translation companies whose CEOs do not have any language skills is surprisingly ...

Hundreds of entries were submitted for our University Challenge contest this year, and the competition was fierce! However, there can be only one winner from each category, and here they are:

ES>EN – Christopher Smith, Aberystwyth University
“Without a doubt, a dream job is being able to get paid for doing something you love, and I have a feeling that many translators can accomplish this with Veritas.”

EN>ES – Sonia Arroyuelo, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona
“Having your name on my CV would be an excellent starting point for my first foray into the world of professional translation.”

CYM>EN – Mair Roberts, University of Oxford
“I strongly believe that it is in translating that it is possible to share the wealth of the country on an international level.”

FR>EN – Jennifer Green, Swansea University
“Veritas is a translation agency that is run by qualified translators, rather than business men and women, and would therefore be an ideal environment in which to undertake an internship.”

IT>EN – Jacqueline Casey, University of Bath
“I think that the opportunity of working with and being advised by expert professionals is invaluable.”

RUS>EN – Thomas Rowley, University of Oxford
“The chance to make valuable contacts is attractive as I start to build a career.”

EN>IT – Carla D’Amato, Universita degli Studi dell’Aquila, Facoltà di Lettere e Filosofia
“Too often translation is considered by non-experts to be a purely mechanical activity, which can ...