How To Find Medical Interpreter Jobs
Medical interpreting is a rewarding career that directly impacts the lives of many. As such, proper training is essential to stay up to date with relevant medical terminology, and to hone the skills necessary to render an ethically correct interpretation.
Most individuals hope to find medical interpreter work right after completing a medical interpreter training course, but are unsure of how to find it. The task can seem monumental.
Many look to the training programs themselves to help with job placement; however, as of now there is no set standard regarding medical interpreter requirements. As such, hospitals and medical care facilities will have their own requirements and tests for hiring interpreters.
Due to the lack of a unified standard, interpreter training programs will not be able to guarantee job placement at any one medical establishment, and thus will not necessarily provide job placement programs.
So where do you look?
At Language Connections we pride ourselves in training our students to be job ready, so while we do not guarantee placement we do like to provide our students with resources where they can begin searching once their training is complete. Below we’ve listed some common places where medical interpreter jobs are posted.
Resources For Medical Interpreter Job Postings
General Resources:
- Craigslist.org
- Indeed.com
- Monster.com
Translation and Interpretation Specific Resources:
- Translatorscafe.com
- Proz.com
Hospitals:
Many hospitals have language departments responsible for the hiring of medical interpreters. Contacting this department directly for more information is certainly one way you can begin your job search.
Language Connections has also established many relationships with hospitals in the New England area. When they have demand for medical interpreters in a specific language, they often reach out to see if we can supply support. In these instances we provide the information of our top students to the medical facilities (note that program coaches can also be used as references when applying for jobs).
We also regularly post opportunities for medical interpreter jobs on our website to give our students a potential starting point for finding work. You can learn more about available positions on our Interpreter Job Ads page.
Translation and Interpreting Agencies:
While you aren’t guaranteed medical interpreter work right away through an agency, it could provide a relatively steady stream of projects over time. Depending on the size of and demand received by an interpreting agency submitting a resume is not enough to guarantee work – following up with the hiring department may be required due to high volumes of interpreters applying.
Some agencies specializing in telephonic interpreting or video remote interpreting can be good options for a single, paid position.
Preparing For Medical Interpreter Job Interviews
As with any job, preparing for the interview is one of the most important parts: from the way you dress, to your ability to confidently demonstrate your knowledge.
Again, you can expect each medical facility to have its own process for interviewing potential interpreters. Some may be straightforward with a hospital staff member asking interview questions related to medical interpreting experience, and others may be more demanding requiring a full language assessment.
Since each job interview will be different the best way to begin preparing is by researching how a standard medical interpreter interview is conducted at each of the different places to which you’re applying.
Company review sites such as glassdoor.com can be helpful accumulations of others’ past interview experiences, what kind of questions were asked, and whether or not they received a job offer.
It is likely that you will be asked to demonstrate experience providing interpreting services. If you have not done any paid or pro-bono jobs in the past, you can leverage the knowledge you gained through your medical interpreter training program.
What If I Feel Like I Need More Training?
Continuous training is very important to maintain your skills when working as an interpreter – whether it is before your first job, or after you’re well established in your career.
As the medical field continuously advances, new treatments and concepts are developed. This means that the knowledge and terminology bank is always expanding. If you do not stay on top of these developments you may find yourself one day grasping for words in the doctor’s office, trying to explain a complicated medical concept you’re unfamiliar with.
As the global community becomes more aware of the importance of highly skilled and trained medical interpreters, the knowledge requirements will become stricter and additional training will likely be required (it is currently required to maintain national certification as a medical interpreter).
While basic medical interpreter training programs will teach you the skills to interpret properly and the common medical terminology needed to begin your career, getting a head start with more training is always a plus.
Language Connections offers an Advanced Medical Interpreter Training Program that builds off of the skills learned in our Fundamentals of Medical Interpreting Course. Along with covering a more expansive list of medical concepts and terminologies, the course also helps students prepare to take the National Certification exam (required by some employers).
With extensive training under your belt, and by knowing the right places to begin your search, finding your first medical interpreter jobs doesn’t have to be such a monumental task!
Get the necessary, in person training in order to become a competent professional interpreter. Register now for one of our interpreter training programs: Medical Interpreter Training, Legal Interpreter Training or Community & Business Interpreter Training.
See the course schedule here: Schedule >>>
Contact us for more information:
Phone:(617) 277-1990
Email: support@languageconnections.com