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Guide to COVID-19’s Impact on Increased Needs for Language Specialists

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Ofer Tirosh
Guide to COVID-19’s Impact on Increased Needs for Language Specialists

The COVID-19 pandemic has changed individual businesses and entire industries across the world. For some sectors, such as entertainment and leisure, it has been an absolute disaster. However, there are also some industries that have seen a dramatic increase in business as a result of the novel coronavirus outbreak. 

 

The role of the medical interpreter in global pandemics 

 

Then there are those industries that have seen a shift in what customers want from them within the industry. The language services sector is an interesting example of this. The COVID-19 pandemic has led to a significant increase in demand for medical translation services, with the role of the medical interpreter being extremely important in helping health services around the world to battle the disease. 

 

What is the difference between translation and interpretation? In brief, translation deals with written language while interpretation deals with spoken language. In each instance, the language professional converts one language to another – it’s the way that they do so that differs. Can you be both a translator and an interpreter? Yes, provided you have the right language skills and sufficient soft skills (attention to detail, self-motivation, and so forth). 

 

Within the healthcare sector, there has rarely been a time when the entire global community has had to pull together so rapidly, though outbreaks of diseases such as SARS and the Ebola virus have certainly provided some experience of doing so. This need to share information swiftly and accurately across international borders has pushed up demand for medical interpretation and translation services. 

 

At the same time, individual countries have had to issue medical information to their citizens, including those who speak minority languages. Again, this has increased demand for health sector translation. 

 

Travel translation services take a back seat 

 

At the same time, demand for translations within the travel industry has dropped off significantly, as businesses from airlines to hotels batten down the hatches and desperately await the return of some kind of normality. Airline share prices had plummeted by almost 25% by early March 2020 due to the outbreak, with the International Air Transport Association (IATA) projecting a financial impact for global passenger business review of between $63 billion and $113 billion. Business as usual has been well and truly canceled. 

 

Which languages are in high demand for translators?

 

The level of demand for the translation of particular languages has changed as the pandemic has increased in severity. Initially, Mandarin translators were busy relaying China’s experiences to the rest of the world. Next, Italy was under the spotlight, giving rise to plenty of calls for Italian translation. Spain and France have also hit the headlines, while Brazil (at the time of writing) is the latest country to see its infection rate spiral out of control, with a resulting bump in demand for Portuguese translation services. 

 

However, it’s not just the countries that the coronavirus has hit hardest that are experiencing high demand for the translation of certain languages. Medical professionals around the world are also keen to learn from countries that have succeeded in bringing their infection rates under control. Taiwan, Germany, Denmark, New Zealand… all of these and more have shown the power of swift, decisive action in dealing with the COVID-19 crisis. As such, other countries have been examining their actions closely in order to learn from them. Behind the scenes, helping all of this to occur, is an army of translation specialists and other language professionals. 

 

Language industry employment opportunities – future trends

 

What kind of jobs can a translator get? All manner of jobs if their language skills are up to the challenge! Right now, translators with medical experience are in plenty of demand, but medical translation is not the only type of translation service that companies need. 

 

Plenty of companies have had to completely overhaul their marketing strategies and activities in order to cope with the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. For companies that provide products and services in more than one language, this has created an urgent need from new marketing translation work, from social media translation to website translation. As such, established marketing translators are well placed to connect with businesses that need urgent support. 

 

Of course, language industry employment industries don’t just relate to translation. From content writing in multiple languages to multilingual desktop publishing services, there are a whole host of jobs that businesses will need as they pivot their activities in response to the COVID-19 crisis. 

 

Interpretation is one such service, with businesses around the globe needing to communicate with suppliers, manufacturers, logistics teams, and their own staff and customers in their native language. Professional interpretation services can assist with this. 

 

How do I start my career as an interpreter? In a nutshell, you’ll need to demonstrate your qualifications and language skills, then find some clients. A quick, brochure-style website detailing your qualifications and showing some videos of you interpreting shouldn’t take too long to set up, while you can also find work through interpreting companies and online freelancing sites. A mix of these with your own direct marketing activities should mean you can establish yourself as an interpreter fairly quickly. 

 

It’s also well worth approaching agencies of your local justice system in order to move into court interpreting if you can offer legal expertise. Legal interpretation is constantly sought and fairly pandemic-proof, as criminals will continue to be prosecuted after the COVID-19 outbreak. In the UK, for example, the number of quarterly completed service requests for language interpreter and translation services stands at around 40,000. That’s plenty of potential for work for those who have the right skills. 

 

The translation and interpretation jobs that clients are seeking will continue to shift as the COVID-19 pandemic progresses. However, that’s the case during business as usual anyway, as different trends impact the translation industry. To make the most of those trends, language professionals just need to keep one eye on the future and to ensure that the services that they offer are in line with those changing needs. 

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Ofer Tirosh
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