Interpreter Training Course

Two courses are offered: Introduction to Interpreting and Advanced Interpreting.

Izumi Suzuki, the instructor for both courses, is a working conference interpreter. She is the only California state-certified court interpreter residing outside of the State of California. Izumi has extensive experience in simultaneous interpreting, having interpreted at numerous conferences and meetings domestically and internationally. She is one of only a few interpreters who is certified “in both directions” (Japanese into English/English into Japanese) by the American Translators Association (ATA). Her workshops and lectures have been well received at MiTiN (Michigan Translators/Interpreters Network), and IJET (The International Japanese-English Translation Conference). She also has been invited to present annual master classes to the staff of a Tokyo interpreting agency.

For more about Ms. Suzuki, please click here to visit the “Our Staff” webpage.

Interested parties may attend one meeting of the course at no charge. Please click here to contact us about any questions you have regarding interpreting courses. You may also call us at 248-344-0909 or contact us by e-mail.

Offered on Saturdays,  10 a.m. – 11:30 a.m., at our office. Class meetings are sometimes cancelled when the instructor is out of town or unavailable.

Designed for working interpreters and those whose work requires comprehension of specialized/technical English and Japanese.

Emphasizes acquisition and strengthening of practical interpreting skills, through mock interpreting, using materials from actual interpreting situations.

Course objectives and content

To enhance basic grammar, syntax, vocabulary, and comprehension skills in both English and Japanese, and to master expressions that typically arise when interpreting.

To improve ability to accurately capture the main idea of a passage spoken in English, Japanese, or both.To learn to quickly grasp the main idea of a sentence at first glance, and then give an oral interpretation of it (sight translation).

To practice shadowing, retention, and other interpreting techniques, including:

    • Practice in consecutive interpreting technical content from business (including the auto industry and other fields), law, and so on.
    • Acquisition of simultaneous interpreting skills (using Hendrickx Method, etc.)

Enrollment Process

  1. Inquiry

    • Please contact us by phone or e-mail.

  2. Sample Class

      • We will notify you of the next available sample class and send you the homework for it.
      • The first class is free.

    At the Sample Class

    • Full participation is required.

Course Participation

Attendance

    • You will receive an email with homework for a particular class about a week before that class meeting.
  • In the email, we will ask you to notify us by a specific date whether or not you will attend. Please let us know if you will attend or not by that date.

Payment of Tuition

    • There is no initial enrollment fee. Participants are charged for the classes they attend.
  • Please pay by cash, check, or credit card. We can provide invoices and receipts as required.

Withdrawal

  • There is no formal withdrawal process. Please let us know at your earliest convenience when you plan to stop attending.