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European Union
Working for the
European Commission
Interpretation
Interpreter training
A postgraduatetype programme is considered to
be the most appropriate way to train high-quality
conference interpreters. The benchmark is the
European Masters in Conference Interpreting.
See EMCI: http://www.emcinterpreting.org
All new Member States and Candidate Countries
now have postgraduate programmes, often as a
direct result of assistance from the EU interpreting
services.
ec.europa.eu/dgs/scic/international-cooperation/
interpreting-for-africa/index_en.htm
European Union
Freelance interpreters
Many of the conference interpreters working
for the European Institutions are freelances on
contract. There is no nationality requirement for
freelance interpreters; all languages worldwide
may be considered. To work for the European
Institutions as a freelance interpreter you need
to be registered on the joint freelance list after
passing an accreditation test. These are held
regularly in Brussels, in Member States or in
Acceding and Candidate Countries.
Staff positions
In order to guarantee equal access for all
citizens of the Union, recruitment is based on
a selection process of open competitions run
by EPSO, the European Personnel Selection
Office (see http://europa.eu/epso), which lead
to reserve lists of successful candidates.
Permanent interpreters and administrative staff
are recruited from these lists.
The open competitions for conference
interpreters are organised according to staffing
needs in the individual interpreting units of
the three institutions (European Commission,
Court of Justice of the EU and the European
Parliament). In order to qualify, candidates must
meet a number of conditions relating to their
qualifications and language knowledge.
Following a pre-selection process, candidates
will be invited to an assessment centre where
their general competencies and interpretation
skills in consecutive and simultaneous
interpretation are tested.
Under certain circumstances, interpreters may
be recruited as temporary staff on a fixed-term
contract.
EU Interpretation in figures
1100
500-600
3,000
18,000
270,000
staff interpreters
freelance interpreters / day
accredited freelance interpreters
meetings/year
interpreter days/year
European Commission
The European Union, bringing together 28 Member States and some
500 million people, has always seen its great diversity of cultures and
languages as an asset. Language is one of the key features of cultural
identity and from the outset, the Institutions of the EU have sought to
reflect the Europe they serve by being diverse and multilingual.
Multilingualism is a policy firmly rooted in the EU Treaties and it has
very practical implications. It allows the citizens of Europe to address
the Institutions in any of the 24 official languages. It makes legislation
directly accessible to all, in a language they can understand. It means
that debate and decision-making can be followed by all, irrespective of
nationality and language knowledge.
Interpreters are at the front line of multilingualism, working to
ensure that language is no barrier to understanding in Europe. The
3 interpreting services of the EU from the European Parliament, the
European Commission and the Court of Justice are the worlds largest
employer of conference interpreters. Whereas translators deal with the
written word, interpreters make sense of the spoken word.
They understand what is being said in one language and render that
same message accurately and almost instantly in another. Enabling
communication and facilitating dialogue, interpreters act as a bridge
between cultures and often find themselves at the very heart of the
decision-making process.
The Interpreting Service of the European Commission ensures that the
people working in the Institutions can communicate with each other
and with the citizens of Europe. Working in Brussels and Luxembourg,
and everywhere else meetings are held, the interpreters bring the
policy of multilingualism to life and thus play an essential role in
guaranteeing the accessibility and transparency of the EU.
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