On a mild November day, after refuelling with delicious food, drinks and catch-up chats, the ITI East Anglia Network contingent arrived at the University of Essex to meet a group of students for the now bi-annual Meet the Professionals event.

Starting with a brief introduction of the ITI, the East Anglia Network and our individual professional experience, we then spoke to the various groups, answering all their questions.

The students were a mix of both postgraduates and undergraduates, studying languages, translation and interpreting, and linguistics. Their interests ranged from the best career moves and lifestyle choices for the future to very practical advice on day-to-day translation and interpreting practice.

We were asked if a Master’s degree in T&I is really needed to find work and what qualifications are best to have; if working in-house or freelancing is better at the beginning of your career; how working in-house first could help to establish yourself later as a freelancer; what it is like being self-employed with children, and how a career in translation could fit in with the digital nomad lifestyle.

On a more practical note, we answered questions about different ways of charging for the services provided (per word/hour/minute, or on a project basis), how the minimum fee rate is advisable but not always accepted, how to choose our specialisms (and how sometimes they choose us or we stumble upon them in any given moment), how to consider the professionals from other industries that are in our lives as consultants, or even proofreaders if they know our languages and have worked abroad in their field, and how hobbies and our knowledge can pave the way to a new specialism.

Finally, the inevitable AI/MT question popped up and curiosity about if/how to use AI for ancillary tasks, how to manage, leverage and control the online information available. We also touched on how to manage the widespread misconception that AI is good enough without a proper language professional’s intervention, and the pressure our industry is facing, focusing on the perceived positions of clients, agencies and LSPs, and translators and interpreters.

Underlying the importance of always providing the best quality, using the best resources, thoroughly researching the subject of every job at hand, and always honing your research skills for every university assignment now and for every job in the near future, we hope to have equipped the students with useful tools to start their career with the best foot forward.

Thanks to our member Donatella Fornari for her blog post about this amazing event and also a big thank you to Natalia Rodríguez Vicente from the University of Essex and our Outreach Coordinator Frances Clarke for their organisation!