Courses on linguisttraining.com
Thread poster: Fausto Mescolini
Fausto Mescolini
Fausto Mescolini  Identity Verified
United Kingdom
Local time: 23:13
English to Italian
+ ...
Jan 23, 2019

Hello.
I would like to know whether any of you (translator or interpreter) has ever taken a course on linguisttraining.com and what was your experience.
Thank you


 
Samuel Murray
Samuel Murray  Identity Verified
Netherlands
Local time: 00:13
Member (2006)
English to Afrikaans
+ ...
No, I haven't Jan 23, 2019

Fausto Mescolini wrote:
I would like to know whether any of you (translator or interpreter) has ever taken a course on linguisttraining.com and what was your experience.


If I understand correctly, they're offering to help you prepare for an exam. They appear to be backed by a well-known, established translation company, so it all seems legit. However, one thing that struck me was that I could not find out for which language combination they offer the DipTrans course. Even right up to the point where you pay for it, that crucial bit of information is not revealed. I highly doubt if a generic non-language-specific translation course can adequately prepare you for an exam like the DipTrans.

Some of the claims must be taken with a grain of salt as well. For example, they imply quite strongly that if you take their course (and pass the exam), then the course is equivalent to a master's degree. No course with "18 lessons" (duration of lessons never mentioned), and "20 translation exercises" of 3900 words in total will give you anything remotely equivalent to a master's degree. The truth is that the DipTrans diploma is a "master's degree"-level diploma, so if you pass the exam, all you've really done is passed an exam at the level of a master's degree.

Obtaining the DipTrans is fine, but it doesn't say anything about the type of training you received, because it's simply an exam that you take after you've taken a training course somewhere else. Ask yourself if you wouldn't get more value for money by simply attending a year-long course at one of the local universities. It'll cost you more, but you may get more out of it.

On the DipTrans page they claim "Linguisttraining.com (by Talking Heads) was named best in the country for getting the best exam results in the UK (Nuffield Trophy for Best Group Entry)", but that is misleading as well. It was the agency that got the trophy, and they got it for DPSI (once, in 2013), and not for DipTrans. The award was not for the best exam results either, but for being the "best group entry" (no amount of googling helped me figure out what that means). That said, it's just a small lie -- they did win a nice award, after all.


[Edited at 2019-01-23 19:56 GMT]


 


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