Possible extremely high volume free translation "test" - is it a scam? Автор темы: Eric Stone
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Eric Stone
Тайвань
Local time: 15:37
китайский => английский
Hey everyone,
Just got solicited to do a subtitle translation test which would be "less than 20 minutes," which to me seems to suggest it would at least be about 2000-2500 words. Is this somehow normal for subtitle translation tests? In my experience, I've never seen any tests that were higher than 200-600 words.
Of course, most people are probably aware of the scam where an agency sends out high volume free translation tests to a bunch of different freelancers and ... See more Hey everyone,
Just got solicited to do a subtitle translation test which would be "less than 20 minutes," which to me seems to suggest it would at least be about 2000-2500 words. Is this somehow normal for subtitle translation tests? In my experience, I've never seen any tests that were higher than 200-600 words.
Of course, most people are probably aware of the scam where an agency sends out high volume free translation tests to a bunch of different freelancers and then tells them the failed or didn't get the job for some other reason, resulting in a totally free translation. After all, you send out a twenty minute translations "tests" to 3 translators, you've already got a free 1 hour translation which could be worth hundreds of dollars, right?
Anything I'm missing here? ▲ Collapse
| | | | Onur Inal 
Австрия
Local time: 09:37
английский => турецкий
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| Ask them pay | Aug 29, 2016 |
I don't know if it is a scam or not but a test translation, as you have said, should not be more than 300-500 words. To translate 2000-2500 words is a couple of hours work and this should not be done "for free". My suggeston is that you'd better tell the client that your limit/policy for a test translation is XXX words and you can translate 2000-2500 words only if they pay for it. Also, you'd check the client's blueboard record, website etc. to see how serious and reliable they are. Good luck!
| | | | Jean Lachaud
США
Local time: 03:37
английский => французский
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| 2000 words in 20 minutes?! | Aug 29, 2016 |
Are you sure of your calculations???
Shihaoheng wrote:
Hey everyone,
... "less than 20 minutes," which to me seems to suggest it would at least be about 2000-2500 words. ...
| | | | Samuel Murray
Нидерланды
Local time: 09:37
Член ProZ.com c 2006
английский => африкаанс
+ ...
Shihaoheng wrote:
Just got solicited to do a subtitle translation test which would be "less than 20 minutes"...
Perhaps they meant that the entire test would take you 20 minutes, and not that you have to subtitle 20 minutes of audio.
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| Searching for information about the solicitor | Aug 31, 2016 |
Based on what I have heard from colleagues, a test like this would be no longer than five minutes. It seems to me that subtitling twenty minutes is equivalent to have a completed job done, if you take into consideration that the length of some series, for example, would be nearly twenty to twenty-two minutes.
You should search for more information about the agency in the Blue Board or other professionals who have already worked with them. I wish you good luck and success on your jo... See more Based on what I have heard from colleagues, a test like this would be no longer than five minutes. It seems to me that subtitling twenty minutes is equivalent to have a completed job done, if you take into consideration that the length of some series, for example, would be nearly twenty to twenty-two minutes.
You should search for more information about the agency in the Blue Board or other professionals who have already worked with them. I wish you good luck and success on your job! ▲ Collapse
| | | | | It is a scam, most likely. | Sep 1, 2016 |
I was once asked to translate a "test sample" by a translation company which, as it turned out, cut the text they got from a client, and asked a number of translators who responded to the ad (on Proz, by the way) to do the other samples. And, yes, you guessed it, they almost succeeded in getting the whole job for the client done for free.
| | | | Klaus Baumann
Дания
Local time: 09:37
немецкий => английский
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| Most probably scam | Sep 1, 2016 |
I think the translation of 200-300 words in enough for test. 2,000 is a whole small project.
| | | | nordiste
Франция
Local time: 09:37
английский => французский
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| one hour working time maximum for free test | Sep 2, 2016 |
I am not sure what these 20 min mean in your case for subtitling, but as a rule of thumb a free test should not take you more than 1 hour of your time ; which means 300-400 words or so for a "normal" written text, just make the conversion for audio or video material.
Tell the client that you won't work more than 1 h on their test - or they should pay you. If they insist, it is probably a scam or a client which pay very poor rates.
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jbjb
Эстония
Local time: 10:37
эстонский => английский
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A typical subtitling test is 5-10 minutes of material, can take 1-2 hours of your time (for beginners).
It is never a single continuous piece of video. You would have a few minutes from a TV series, a few minutes from a film, a few minutes from a director's cut commentary, all mixed together. Usually very different topics and very text-heavy.
So if the test is really 20 minutes from a single video, it's a sign of trouble.
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