Training for Translators

Classes for translators and interpreters

Classes for translators


Corinne McKay

Getting Started as a Freelance Translator starts Monday

The next session of Getting Started as a Freelance Translator, my flagship course for aspiring and beginning translators, starts Monday. Over the past 13 years, this course has helped over 500 translators learn how to launch and run a successful freelance business; join us for four weeks of self-paced video lessons, live question and answer sessions, and individual feedback on your resume and introductory e-mail, marketing plan, rates and billable hours, and online presence.

Registration is $380, with a $15 discount for ATA members (use coupon code ATA at checkout). A past student in this course commented, “This course was exactly what I needed – it offered a structured, bite-sized and realistic approach to topics every potential full-time freelancer needs to consider. Corinne’s honest and unbiased feedback helped me to focus on my goals and plan the next steps in my freelance career.”

We’ll dive in to the foundations of freelance translation on Monday; read the full description or register on my website.


Corinne McKay

Translation Workshop: French to English–open for registration

Thank you so much to everyone who responded to my recent survey about translation technique courses. The response to that survey was overwhelmingly positive, and I’m excited to announce that the first class–Translation Workshop: French to English is open for registration.

The class will run for eight weeks starting April 23, and the focus is on individual feedback from expert translators on eight practice translations, divided into four specialization modules. The (incredible!) lineup of instructors and specializations is:

  • Michèle Hansen (medical)
  • Karen Tkaczyk (sci/tech)
  • Judy Lyons (financial)
  • Tom West (legal)

Each instructor will teach a two-week module in their specialization, including two weekly live sessions and one weekly practice translation, on which you’ll receive the instructor’s individual feedback. The course is open to French to English translators at any level, who want expert feedback on their work in these specializations. It’s limited to 15 people to allow plenty of time for one-on-one comments.

Registration is $525 until March 23, and $675 after that if spots are still available. ATA members can use the code ATA at checkout for $15 off either of those prices. I’m really looking forward to being the administrative facilitator for this session, and I hope to see some of you there!


Corinne McKay

Beyond the Basics of Freelancing: starts Monday

My online course Beyond the Basics of Freelancing is for mid-career translators who want to:

  • earn more money
  • enjoy their work more
  • avoid stagnation
  • market to better clients

The next session starts on Monday (February 19) and runs for four weeks. It’s fully online and open to translators anywhere in the world, in any language combination. Registration is $410 and includes self-paced video lessons, two live question and answer sessions each week (recordings provided if you can’t attend live), and individual feedback on four homework assignments. You can also e-mail me whenever you want during the class, to make sure that you get all of your questions answered.

Spanish and French to English medical translator Jason Willis-Lee took the last session of this course, and sent me this feedback (used with his permission): At the start of this year I decided to invest in myself and take Corinne McKay’s course Beyond the Basics of Freelancing. The course was fantastic, full of lots of interesting materials and useful tips and tricks on how to move forward with our businesses. I was particularly struck with how generous Corinne is with her time and how she makes herself available on conference calls, inviting questions to answer and debating business issues with fellow translators. If you are wondering how to move up a gear in your business and take it to the next level, studying the BBF course is an excellent way to help you do that.

If you’d like to join this session, click here to read more or to register!


Corinne McKay

Winter class discounts end December 31

I’m offering four online courses for translators this winter, and discounted registration rates for them end on December 31. After that, registration for my full-length courses increases from $380 to $410, so it’s a good time to sign up and put the expense on your 2017 accounting! ATA members can use coupon code ATA for $15 off these prices, and past students can use coupon code ALUM for $15 off as well (those can be combined: just apply both of them).

A student in my Marketing to Direct Clients class recently left this comment on the end-of-course survey:

“If you are a translator looking to take your business to the next level, I cannot recommend Corinne’s courses more highly! I was impressed by how generously Corinne shared her knowledge and expertise with her students and I truly appreciated her positive and down-to-earth approach. The pace of both courses was just right, and the assignments were relevant and interesting. Corinne’s individual feedback on my homework was priceless! I also appreciated being able to ask her anything and everything during the class calls.”

Here’s the lineup for January-April, and note that the quick-start session of Getting Started is open only through December 31.

Special: quick-start session of Getting Started as a Freelance Translator, my flagship course for beginners. For beginning and aspiring translators who want to learn the basics in a quick-start format. Includes self-paced video lessons and a one-hour individual consulting session with me. $195 ($180 for ATA members), registration open through December 31, 2017.

Breaking Into the Book Translation Market, for translators who want to translate fiction or non-fiction books, for traditional publishers or for self-published authors. Next session begins January 15, 2018. $380 ($365 for ATA members) through December 31, 2017; $410/$395 after that. Note that this session is already filling up; sign up soon if you want to participate.

Beyond the Basics of Freelancing, for mid-career freelance translators who want to enjoy their work more, earn more money, and avoid career stagnation. Next session begins February 19, 2018. $380 ($365 for ATA members) through December 31, 2017; $410/$395 after that.

Marketing to Direct Clients, for translators who want to identify, contact, and work with direct clients. Next session begins April 2, 2018. $380 ($365 for ATA members) through December 31, 2017; $410/$395 after that.

Thank you for another year of great discussions about the language professions (believe it or not, Thoughts on Translation will turn ten in February!), and I wish all of you a wonderful 2018.


Corinne McKay

Survey: online translation technique classes

Based upon requests from readers and students, I’m in the early stages of developing some language-specific translation technique classes (i.e. “Become a better translator: German to English”) to be offered in 2018. If you are interested in this type of course, please take a short survey that I’ve prepared. This will help me assess the demand for these types of classes, and understand what people would like to get out of them. The survey is just five multiple choice questions and then a comment box, and doesn’t require any personal information from you. Thank you!