Event report by Nadine Gunsilius & Lea Reinicke (MA Conference Interpreting at the University of Central Lancashire) following our student session over Zoom on 17 March 2021.
A Talk Full of Opportunities
For us as newcomers to the industry, this professional talk given by the NWTN was extremely insightful and provided us with a solid introduction to our future field of work. It featured many working members of the network as well as the former chair, who all took their time to get us familiarised with what networking actually means.
The NWTN is a community akin more to a family than anything else. They make sure to know their members and engage with possible newcomers; always ready to answer questions and give important advice on how to start or what not to do. This resulted in a comfortable atmosphere, where you are not afraid to ask or reach out for help, no matter if you have experience in the industry or not.
All members come from different walks of life and bring different experiences with them. Hearing what made them struggle and what got them to where they are now, is truly inspiring and motivating for students who want to start working in the middle of a pandemic. The talk involved the professionals revealing further tips and tricks for the industry, which included useful networking platforms and how to continuously work on your professional development.
It is a wonderful opportunity for students, as the student membership for the NWTN is free. It thus provides an engaged community and great support before you enter the market. Not only do talks like these benefit newcomers as they hear about the experiences of other interpreters and translators, but the NWTN also provides workshops that allow a more stable start into the industry. We will definitely make sure to attend those and would recommend to anyone in the industry to do the same!
