Credential Verification Issues
Thread poster: Marina Steinbach
Marina Steinbach
Marina Steinbach
United States
Local time: 02:22
Member (2011)
English to German
Jan 6, 2012

Hello,

I really don't understand this. I have submitted my diploma from a public commercial college in Hamburg, Germany from 1985 for the language combinations English to German and German to English.

A ProZ staff member has asked me to "report these credentials as monolingual unless I have documentation to provide otherwise". What does that mean?

Shall I now only report credentials for the following?

1. Monolingual
... See more
Hello,

I really don't understand this. I have submitted my diploma from a public commercial college in Hamburg, Germany from 1985 for the language combinations English to German and German to English.

A ProZ staff member has asked me to "report these credentials as monolingual unless I have documentation to provide otherwise". What does that mean?

Shall I now only report credentials for the following?

1. Monolingual English
2. Monolingual German
3. Monolingual French
4. Monolingual Spanish

These are a more languages than I wanted to have verified, but if this is one of the ProZ rules...

Or do I now have to contact my old school (after more than twenty years!) to have them confirm that I have learned how to translate?

Would it make sense to also have my German "Abitur" (university entrance diploma) verified? That would have been my next step.

I would appreciate to receive the opinion of my fellow colleagues here (especially from Germany with a similar background).

Cordially,

Marina
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Katalin Horváth McClure
Katalin Horváth McClure  Identity Verified
United States
Local time: 02:22
Member (2002)
English to Hungarian
+ ...
Credentials on ProZ means translation related credentials Jan 6, 2012

Marina Steinbach wrote:

Hello,

I really don't understand this. I have submitted my diploma from a public commercial college in Hamburg, Germany from 1985 for the language combinations English to German and German to English.

A ProZ staff member has asked me to "report these credentials as monolingual unless I have documentation to provide otherwise". What does that mean?


I think your best approach is to ask the staff member to clarify what she/he meant, and what kind of additional documentation they want, BUT my guess is that your diploma does not say that your degree is in translation, and that is the core problem.
ProZ only allows the listing and verification of translation related degrees - as much as I would like to get my other diplomas listed as professional credentials (relevant to the field I work in), I cannot do that at the moment.

I found this in your public resume:
"I graduated as a State-Certified Secretary in Foreign Languages at a commercial college in Hamburg, Germany."
I am not sure what the exact name of your degree is, but if it does not say "translation", or if your major was not a specific foreign language, the diploma by itself may not be accepted as a translation (bilingual) credential.
You can list an ATA-certification as a bilingual language credential without problem.
There are many other language exams that will be quickly verified by staff.

Check out the FAQ, too:
http://www.proz.com/faq/695#695


 
Miloš Stojadinović
Miloš Stojadinović  Identity Verified
Serbia
Local time: 07:22
Member (2011)
Serbian to English
+ ...
Hope this can help Jan 6, 2012

I had a similar problem when I wanted to have my credentials verified.

I submitted my diploma and its translation, after which my credentials were verified only for English language (monolingual), since, according to my diploma, I am a Bachelor of Arts (Anglicist) in Philology (Anglistics).

I had to find sylabi for the translation courses I took, and translate them. After that, my credentials were verified for my language combinations.

I suggest you visit y
... See more
I had a similar problem when I wanted to have my credentials verified.

I submitted my diploma and its translation, after which my credentials were verified only for English language (monolingual), since, according to my diploma, I am a Bachelor of Arts (Anglicist) in Philology (Anglistics).

I had to find sylabi for the translation courses I took, and translate them. After that, my credentials were verified for my language combinations.

I suggest you visit your university and request course description sheet or sylabi and submit those (maybe you faculty offer these online?).
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Marina Steinbach
Marina Steinbach
United States
Local time: 02:22
Member (2011)
English to German
TOPIC STARTER
Does learning languages really not include translation? Jan 7, 2012

Katalin Horvath McClure wrote:

Credentials on ProZ means translation related credentials


Hello Katalin,

I do not think that only translation related credentials are accepted. I checked out the FAQ, as you recommended, and have found the following:

10.1 - What is a "credential"? [Direct link]
Credentials at ProZ.com are degrees, certificates or diplomas issued by formal institutions upon completion of a translation or language course, or passing a language or translation-related test. These institutions may include educational institutions (universities or schools, for example) or translator organizations (ATA, for example),among others.


Katalin Horvath McClure wrote:

I think your best approach is to ask the staff member to clarify what she/he meant, and what kind of additional documentation they want, BUT my guess is that your diploma does not say that your degree is in translation, and that is the core problem.


I have asked the staff member to explain why I should report these credentials as monolingual, but it was already Friday evening in Europe, so I suppose that I will not receive an answer before next week.

Katalin Horvath McClure wrote:

ProZ only allows the listing and verification of translation related degrees - as much as I would like to get my other diplomas listed as professional credentials (relevant to the field I work in), I cannot do that at the moment.


As I have attended a commercial high school and afterwards a commercial college, it would make sense to have my professional credentials in economics verified, but that is not what I am asking for.

Katalin Horvath McClure wrote:

I found this in your public resume:
"I graduated as a State-Certified Secretary in Foreign Languages at a commercial college in Hamburg, Germany."
I am not sure what the exact name of your degree is, but if it does not say "translation", or if your major was not a specific foreign language, the diploma by itself may not be accepted as a translation (bilingual) credential.


Of course my diploma is in German. It has been issued by the Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg. It states: "Ausbildung zum fremdsprachlichen Sekretär / zur fremdsprachlichen Sekretärin".

Perhaps if I list the fields of study, then the education becomes more clear:

Theory: Economics and secretarial studies (in German!), accounting (in German!), English, French, Spanish

Praxis: Word processing, German stenography, English stenography, French stenography, Typewriting

The Germans also call this profession "Fremdsprachensekretär / Fremdsprachensekretärin".

The English translation of this profession might be "multilingual secretary" or "foreign language secretary". I do not know what you call this in the US, as I mainly went to school and worked in Germany.

Katalin Horvath McClure wrote:

You can list an ATA-certification as a bilingual language credential without problem.


I didn’t think that I would first have to pass the ATA certification to have my diploma verified.

Katalin Horvath McClure wrote:

There are many other language exams that will be quickly verified by staff.


Many other exams, but just not the one I passed in Germany.

Does learning languages really not include translation?

Greetings from Florida!

Marina


 
Marina Steinbach
Marina Steinbach
United States
Local time: 02:22
Member (2011)
English to German
TOPIC STARTER
Great idea, Miloš! Jan 7, 2012

Miloš Stojadinović wrote:

I suggest you visit your university and request course description sheet or sylabi and submit those (maybe you faculty offer these online?).


Hello Miloš,

Unfortunately, I cannot visit this public foreign language school in Germany, because I now live in the United States. But, you’re idea to find the school online is great!

Thank you,

Marina


 
Miloš Stojadinović
Miloš Stojadinović  Identity Verified
Serbia
Local time: 07:22
Member (2011)
Serbian to English
+ ...
... Jan 7, 2012

Marina Steinbach wrote:

Miloš Stojadinović wrote:

I suggest you visit your university and request course description sheet or sylabi and submit those (maybe you faculty offer these online?).


Hello Miloš,

Unfortunately, I cannot visit this public foreign language school in Germany, because I now live in the United States. But, you’re idea to find the school online is great!

Thank you,

Marina


Try sending them an email, I'm sure they will be kind enough to reply with attached documents.

As for the issue of certifying non-translation related credentials, I have seen many colleagues with Cambridge exams who verified their certificates (CAE, CPE,...).


 
Tomás Cano Binder, BA, CT
Tomás Cano Binder, BA, CT  Identity Verified
Spain
Local time: 07:22
Member (2005)
English to Spanish
+ ...
Bilingual means translation in Proz.com Jan 7, 2012

Indeed I think there is a mistake in my own profile, since my Cambridge CPE certificate is listed as bilingual English to Spanish, as is my certificate of the Spanish Escuela Oficial de Idiomas. I will request that this is corrected, since the only credentials that should be bilingual in my profile are the ATA certification and the Diploma in Translation with the Institute of Linguists.

Thinking about your case, my sister happens to have a very similar certification (if not t
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Indeed I think there is a mistake in my own profile, since my Cambridge CPE certificate is listed as bilingual English to Spanish, as is my certificate of the Spanish Escuela Oficial de Idiomas. I will request that this is corrected, since the only credentials that should be bilingual in my profile are the ATA certification and the Diploma in Translation with the Institute of Linguists.

Thinking about your case, my sister happens to have a very similar certification (if not the same; I should ask her), obtained in Hannover some 25 years ago. I do not think that her credential can be considered a translation credential, despite the fact that she has translated piles of stuff in her different jobs as executive's secretary with leading German companies in Spain.

As far as my judgement about this goes, bilingual credentials in Proz.com should be reserved for translation credentials.
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Marina Steinbach
Marina Steinbach
United States
Local time: 02:22
Member (2011)
English to German
TOPIC STARTER
The school still exists! Jan 7, 2012

Miloš Stojadinović wrote:

Try sending them an email, I'm sure they will be kind enough to reply with attached documents.


Will do! I'm so excited that the foreign language school (Staatliche Fremdsprachenschule Hamburg), where I went to for one year in 1985, still exits – even at the same address Mittelweg 42 a in Hamburg!

Miloš Stojadinović wrote:
As for the issue of certifying non-translation related credentials, I have seen many colleagues with Cambridge exams who verified their certificates (CAE, CPE,...).


Here at ProZ.com?


 
Miloš Stojadinović
Miloš Stojadinović  Identity Verified
Serbia
Local time: 07:22
Member (2011)
Serbian to English
+ ...
... Jan 7, 2012




Here at ProZ.com?




Yes, check out Tomas's profile.


 
Tomás Cano Binder, BA, CT
Tomás Cano Binder, BA, CT  Identity Verified
Spain
Local time: 07:22
Member (2005)
English to Spanish
+ ...
Indeed Jan 7, 2012

Marina Steinbach wrote:
Miloš Stojadinović wrote:
As for the issue of certifying non-translation related credentials, I have seen many colleagues with Cambridge exams who verified their certificates (CAE, CPE,...).

Here at ProZ.com?

Yes indeed. I had my Cambridge CPE verified a long time ago, but as I have said it should not appear as a bilingual certificate. I have already submitted a job ticket to proz.com so that this is reviewed. I really think they should appear as monolingual certificates.


 
Katalin Horváth McClure
Katalin Horváth McClure  Identity Verified
United States
Local time: 02:22
Member (2002)
English to Hungarian
+ ...
Bilingual and monolingual credentials Jan 7, 2012

Marina,
Yes, you can have language exams and degrees in linguistics and such verified, as they are all language related, but they may not be all verified as BILINGUAL credentials.
That was my point.
It seems that at the moment staff is ready to verify your German diploma as a monolingual credential (in German, I assume). I am not sure for what language pair you wanted to use this diploma as a verified credential, but it seems to me staff wants more evidence that your degree cer
... See more
Marina,
Yes, you can have language exams and degrees in linguistics and such verified, as they are all language related, but they may not be all verified as BILINGUAL credentials.
That was my point.
It seems that at the moment staff is ready to verify your German diploma as a monolingual credential (in German, I assume). I am not sure for what language pair you wanted to use this diploma as a verified credential, but it seems to me staff wants more evidence that your degree certifies your translation abilities in that language pair (from the given source language into the given target language).
I am not saying that I necessarily agree with how the process is run, especially that I am not sure about all the details, neither that I consider the monolingual vs. bilingual issues clear-cut, all I am saying is that this is probably the logic behind the email you got.

Katalin Horvath McClure wrote:

You can list an ATA-certification as a bilingual language credential without problem.


I didn’t think that I would first have to pass the ATA certification to have my diploma verified.


I did not say you have to pass the ATA exam to verify your diploma. These are two completely different issues.
I brought up the ATA exam as an example of a bilingual credential that would be easily verified by ProZ staff, as that is a clear-cut translation exam from a given language into another given language, just to illustrate my point.

I hope this makes it clear what I wanted to say.
Katalin
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Credential Verification Issues






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