ATA Certification Program

Practice Test for the ATA Certification Exam

Overview

As a service to its members who are interested in taking the certification exam, the ATA offers a practice test program. It is designed to provide a practical introduction to the nature of the exam and how the graders mark, as well as an indication of whether the candidate has a reasonable chance of passing the exam. You must be an individual member of ATA to participate in the practice test program. Passages submitted by non-members will not be graded.

What is the practice test?
A practice test consists of one passage from a previous year's certification exam. Unless you request otherwise, the subject matter of the passage will be general. (The other available categories are science/technology/medicine, law/business/finance.)

You may request more than one passage provided you pay the appropriate fees ($50 per test passage). There is only one passage available in each category per language combination.

How is the practice test similar to the certification exam?
The graders of the practice test are also certification exam graders. They will apply the same grading standards they use when grading the certification exam. As with the certification exam, the anonymity of the graders is respected. Your anonymity will also be respected in that you will be assigned a code number to use on all pages of the translation. Do not put your name or membership number on your practice test pages.

The practice test should be completed by hand in ink or dark pencil on the lined paper included in the packet.

How does the practice test differ from the certification exam?
Whereas the certification exam is not meant to be a learning exercise, the practice test is an opportunity to receive feedback about the type of errors that the graders identified. It should give you a pretty good indication of how you might perform on the examination. The certification exam is not returned to the candidate. The practice test is returned, along with errors marked by the grader.

Whereas the certification exam is graded by two graders, and by a third grader if the first two graders do not agree on whether to pass or fail the candidate, the practice test is graded by just one grader.

Although the practice test instructions encourage candidates to simulate the conditions of the certification exam, the two exams are taken under quite different circumstances. The certification exam is a proctored three-hour exam averaging 1½ hours per passage. The time constraint for the practice test is whatever the candidates decide to impose on themselves. Whereas for the certification exam the translator must use only the resources at hand, with the practice test, translators are on their own and may use any resources they find useful. No electronic equipment of any kind is permitted during the certification examination.

If you are planning to take the examination, simulating the certification sitting will offer you the most benefit. Simulating the certification sitting means translating the entire passage in 1½ hours and writing the translation by hand. By doing this, you will be in a better position to judge whether that time limitation or other constraints will pose a problem for you.

Furthermore, you must follow the format of the certification exam by writing on every line of the paper provided and leaving the margins free on all sides. This will make it possible for the grader to make corrections.

Because the conditions for taking the practice test are different from those for the certification exam, passing the practice test does not guarantee that you will pass the certification exam. However, failing the practice test may mean that you are not yet ready for the certification exam. Both the practice test and the certification exam test whether or not the candidate can demonstrate professional translation skills in addition to language fluency. It is also important to remember that each practice test is only one passage from the examination and a candidate must pass two passages, the mandatory general passage and a passage in a different category, in order to pass the examination.

Why do people fail the practice test?
Major causes of failure of the practice test are the same as those for failure of the certification exam: major omissions, major mistranslations where the meaning of the original is lost, or an accumulation of target-language writing errors. Exams taken from the candidate’s mother tongue into a second language account for a high percentage of failures.

Why should members take the practice test before applying for the certification exam?
From a purely practical standpoint, at $50 per passage, the practice test is a good investment to see if the candidate is prepared to take the examination, which costs $300.

The markings by the grader will enable you to judge more realistically whether you should take the exam at this time, and may help your chances of passing if you do.

How do members apply to take a practice test?
Any individual member of ATA in good standing may take a practice test. Practice tests and exam registrations may be submitted along with membership applications. Send your payment for $50 per passage to the ATA Headquarters along with a practice test request form. You should receive the test packet within a few weeks. Return the original passage and your translation, together with a self-addressed postage-paid envelope ($0.63 U.S.) in which your test will be returned, to ATA Headquarters, 225 Reinekers Lane, Suite 590, Alexandria, VA 22314. You may want to keep a photocopy of your translation for your records. The graders are not staff members, but active translators around the country and overseas, so please allow 6–8 weeks for receipt of the evaluation. Only overseas candidates may fax completed practice tests to Headquarters (703) 683-6122.