Translation and Proofreading jobs

[Andreea88]

Hello Everyone,

 

I know that this is probably an old and many times discussed topic, but I hope anyone here will be able to give me some advice. 

My friend and I are doing a language course at East China Normal University in Shanghai, and we have are living on a Confucius Scholarship which is obviously not enough, as much as we try to minimize our expenses. We have graduated from an UK University, in Translation and Interpreting, but it seems extremely hard to find a job in the field, unless its full time. I was considering that we could do a little bit of translation or even some proofreading of student's papers,working for an agency,newspaper or any other company that would allow you to work from home, in order to have a little bit more money. I mean in the end, this our degree, this is what we love doing..but where can we find these jobs?? I find it very hard to believe that with all the change that is happening in China people don't need translators, and they only need teachers. 

Does anyone know any forums, blogs or websites? Even if they are in Chinese, I am sure we could sort it, because we are upper intermediate in Chinese, but with all my browsing of google, baidu and many others, I really couldn't find much thing. 

 

[Basil]

Apply to translation agencies to do proofreading.

 

The first task when starting translating in China is to get a good grasp of Chinglish, otherwise project managers will frequently find fault with your work.

[Lu]

we have are living on a Confucius Scholarship

...

unless its full time

...

proofreading of student's papers,working for an agency,newspaper or any other company

...

this our degree

Consider paying a lot more attention to your own writing before trying to become a proofreader. Unnecessary mistakes are just a shame.

[Andreea88]

Well ~Lu, stress and worries lead to many things, and when I simply ask questions I don't tend to check every sentence I write, I try to leave that for work. But thanks for pointing that out, will be more careful in the future. Thanks for the advice ;)

[Basil]

I agree with Lu.

 

Stress and worry can lead to sloppiness, but it's a red flag when that sloppiness affects your grasp of your mother tongue, especially when you profess to wish to start a career in which that grasp will be your bread and butter.

 

Be prepared to feast on cheap sliced and pale margarine for a while...

[Andreea88]

I am well aware that in any career you have to start from the bottom, and you have to make sure you build something you can stand on in the future. My mother tongue is not English, but I also see no reason for which I shouldn't be building my career around it. My question was very simple, and I was just asking for advice, as many other people are doing here.

[Basil]

If your mother tongue is not English, then you can make better money than most through translation.

[Basil]

To obliquely answer your question about where to find these jobs....

 

I just did a search on baidu, and within one second, over a hundred companies were visible in Shanghai.

 

How?

 

The clue is ...visible...

[Lu]

I currently work as (among others) an editor, for the Chinese part of the content of a certain online resource, and the mistakes I am expected to notice include things like căo or xǐao. I need to know what is right and wrong, and I also need a sensitive eye to make that kind of thing jump off the page and grate. And because of that I would rarely if ever make such mistakes myself. (And I usually don't proofread English, because I know I'll miss things.)

Anyway. If correcting students' papers is something you'd like to do, find the students' messaging board, either online or in a library or some such, and post a note there. Finding professional customers is a bit harder, you can try networking, or finding a local translation bureau to work for. Also consider translating to your mother tongue (or from your mother tongue to English).

[roddy]

Welcome to the site, Andrea. I'd just keep an eye on the usual foreigner-in-China jobsites. In Beijing it'd be thebeijinger.com, I'm not sure what the equivalent is in Shanghai. Although I'm not sure it matters, as you might be doing it online. Try somewhere like here. 

 

It'd be fantastic if you could tell us a bit about your experiences at ECNU - you can imagine how valuable first-hand reports are for new and prospective students. 

[Basil]

Maybe we were a bit hard...

 

Baidu maps ...翻译公司上海... hundreds of companies 

[Kenny同志]

The first task when starting translating in China is to get a good grasp of Chinglish, otherwise project managers will frequently find fault with your work.

 

I am just a little curious. Are you speaking from your personal experiences, Basil?

[Basil]

Fraid so. I used to do subtitles for CCTV. Real headache sometimes.

[Kenny同志]

I understand. I  am quite sure some non-native English speaking Chinese translators have the nerve to educate you on your own language.

 

deleted

 

Reason: non-relevant

[Kenny同志]

Back on topic.

 

@OP

 

If you are looking to correct/polish papers, you can advertise your services here.

 

http://emuch.net/bbs/index.php

[Andreea88]

Its not that I don't welcome critique, but one of the many reasons for which I started the topic is because the advice of someone who has lived here for a long time, is always better and much more appreciated than what we find on baidu, google,etc. There are many jobs obviously on baidu, but unfortunately, I learned from my experience that you also have to be extremely careful with who you work for. Thus the: 'does anyone know..', from their own experience. Because two years ago, I worked with a school, teaching English ( so obvious, no? ), and when I gave the manager 1month's notice, because I couldn't commute anymore,for 2hours every day, she decided not to pay me ..with a contract and all, so who should I have complained to in this huge country?? And even though, I still stand tall as an optimistic person, I also have my doubts about working as a freelancer in here, because in the end, that's kind of what it is. There are obviously also serious companies, but who need people full time, and many of them require experience in the field. But when are you ever gonna gain the experience, if nobody is giving you a chance??

[Basil]

andreaa

Paragraphs please...

[Andreea88]

It'd be fantastic if you could tell us a bit about your experiences at ECNU - you can imagine how valuable first-hand reports are for new and prospective students.

 

 

I'd be more than happy to share with everyone a little bit of what i've learned in ECNU. Although this is my second year here, and I must say that the teaching method has completely changed from 2years ago when I was here, or maybe I just had better teachers back then. But even so, I studied Chinese in several countries in Europe, and even though its a little bit obvious, I find the school in here, the best for teaching and learning Chinese. I also have other friends, who studied at different universities in here in Shanghai, and only by looking at them, i felt that we were doing a little bit more in ECNU, or maybe just the teachers are more involved in here. In 1year,2sem in ECNU my Chinese level went up really really fast. And I can't say that I was doing a lot of Chinese outside school. I was teaching English,and with my friends I was speaking in any other language I know, but Chinese. So my improvement came strictly from those 4hours of Chinese that I was doing every day.

[roddy]

If you have time, maybe you can post something in more detail - how has the method changed, etc - in the topic I link to. 

[Andreea88]

~Basil,

You paragraph my work, while I carry on with the  Chinese Presentation that its due tomorrow Tell me your price and I'll make a quick transfer