By Ana Clara Teixeira Caribé
I first saw the Modlingua Summer Internship in a ProZ post, and what caught my eye was that it was online. For me that was essential: I could not leave Brazil for an internship, and I had not found any online programme until then.
I sent my documents and heard nothing, so I assumed my credentials were not good enough. Then I saw another call for the programme on Facebook, asked a few questions and applied again. This time the answer came at once, and I was in.
Not what I expected
I expected translation tasks. The internship turned out to be broader: it is about what the industry expects from a professional. Once I accepted that, I approached the work with a different mindset.
The assignments
- Professional profile. My first attempt missed the point and had to be redone. With help from other interns' samples I got it right the second time.
- AI writing tools. I wrote about how Grammarly improves content and saves editing time. I translate from English and Spanish into Brazilian Portuguese, so I rarely write in English, and the tool catches the small slips I make.
- Transcription. I transcribed Dr. Gabriele Sauberer's interview from her visit to India, where she welcomed the Indian Translators Association (ITAINDIA) as a new partner. She is known as "the Terminology Guru", and terminology is close to my heart. A 10-minute video takes at least an hour to transcribe; as a beginner it took me four, dealing with accents, audio quality and several speakers.
- Subtitling. We subtitled the same video. Subtitling is technical, with spotting, segmentation and pause lengths to manage. Interviews are harder than films because the speech is spontaneous and there is no script to check against.
- Globalization, localization and internationalization. These began as economic ideas. In translation, localization means giving the text a local dress, and new translators need to understand it.
- Video scripts. I wrote one on Lawrence Venuti, whose book The Translator's Invisibility argues that fluent, "invisible" translation undervalues translators and their fees. A second script profiled Barack Obama.
- Volunteer task. A creative transcription of Dr. Sauberer's interview. As a journalist used to facts, creativity was the hard part.
What I gained
My English writing was reborn. Before, it was limited to short client messages. Building up from 600 to 1,500 words was a real challenge. I also learned about working across cultures. Even addressing the Director as "Sir", which sounds very formal to a Brazilian, was a lesson.
The online format suited me: I could work at my own pace. My one wish is for more interaction between interns. A task done with a partner would help everyone leave with at least one new friend.
Conclusion
The internship was short but intense, and it mattered for my new career. The tasks gave a well-balanced view of the translation industry, and I am grateful for the opportunity. Language services today go far beyond word-for-word work, as Modlingua's quality translation services show.
