DelinguaLAB

As the ninth edition of the DelinguaLAB programme came to an end, the 14 LAB participants looked back on what they had learned over the past three months. 

DelinguaLAB is a programme for promising future talents. The programme has been a great success – it is intended for students who have just graduated or are in the final stages of their studies and are interested in working in the language service industry. 

The benefits of LAB go both ways: we find new top talent for the industry while also providing the participants with important know-how and access to the job market. We educate the participants about the realities of the industry and give them tips on where to focus. 

DelinguaLAB is usually organised twice a year, in the spring and autumn. Previous participants have found their own place in the industry and are now working as project managers, localisation managers, translators and interpreting coordinators, for instance. The main focus of the programme is to share information about the industry’s requirements and career alternatives, and also advise participants on how to build their own personal brand and stand out from the crowd. “Specialise and stand out” sums up very well the core of the programme. 

A week in a project manager’s shoes

Tommy Nylund, Timo Suuronen, Petra-Maria Miettunen and Mika Heiskanen, who all participated in this autumn’s programme, each completed a one-week internship as part of the LAB. During their time at the office, they got to see what daily life in a privately owned translation agency is like and what tasks are included in the working day of a project manager.  

The students thought the internship period was a useful experience, and they would not have minded continuing it for even longer. They found working at a translation agency interesting and hectic, in a good way, and the experience provided them with an opportunity to ponder their own career choices. 

“The internship provided concrete lessons on how a privately owned translation agency works and how wide the range of customers and translation-related tasks really is,” says Timo, describing his internship experience. 

A programme that teaches industry realities

The impression of the translation industry provided by university studies can be quite different from reality. According to many LAB participants, their own perceptions of the industry changed and interest in working in the field grew during the programme. The students’ next steps will be to work as freelance translators as light entrepreneurs. 

“Just a while ago, I was wondering if this industry was really for me. However, I’m happy to say that I’m now feeling much more positive about it. The programme made me realise that this is what I want to do in the future,” says Petra-Maria.

All of the students agreed that they were positively surprised to find out that the sector is in fact growing. The language service industry is by no means dying, even though the participants have heard talk of this during their studies.

“The amount and hectic nature of the work came as a pleasant surprise to me. Project managers work with a lot of different tasks,” says Tommy. 

It is a common misconception that the work of translators is at stake in the future . In reality, the same possible threat has been discussed for decades. There is plenty of work in the industry, although the form of the work will change over time.  

LAB participants’ tips on maintaining and developing language skills:

• Read as many different texts as possible, both in a foreign language and in Finnish.
• In addition to reading, it is important to actually use the language. Write a diary, participate in language clubs, update social media or try creative writing, for example.
• Keep yourself up to date with new words and language developments.
• Learn to translate the idea of a text, especially when translating marketing texts. Do not just translate word for word – pay attention to meaning and effect.
• Interpreting makes a translator faster and translating makes an interpreter more careful. Mastering both skills makes the use of language quicker and more fluent.

Aimed at language service industry students who are nearing the end of their studies or who have recently graduated, DelinguaLAB is an internship programme that we usually organise twice a year. Through the programme, we look for future talents and diamonds in the rough for various roles in the language service industry, such as project managers, translators and interpreting coordinators.  

We provide LAB participants with knowledge and skills that can only be acquired by working in an industry company. The programme acts a gateway and offers valuable insights into industry tasks and tools. Depending on the situation, we provide translators with jobs, which we compensate in line with industry practices and, through the LAB programme, it’s possible to secure an internship at our office in project management or other tasks. We believe that sharing information about jobs in the language service industry gives us something of value in return: new professionals who are ready to take on roles that would otherwise be difficult for graduates to access. 

This autumn, DelinguaLAB kicked off for the ninth time – the first LAB was organised in 2018. Over the years, DelinguaLAB has acquired near-legendary status, and LAB alumni have been in good demand in working life.  

DelinguaLAB alumni reflect on their experiences 

We interviewed a few of our LAB alumni, Tiia, Taru and Sohvi, about their experiences, the lessons they’ve learned, their current situation and the impact the LAB programme has had. Few people get to really familiarise themselves with the language service industry during their studies, and it can be difficult to gain work experience in the industry. “I applied for the DelinguaLAB programme because it presented an opportunity for me to get to know the industry better in a safe environment and to immediately get to work with actual translation assignments,” says Taru. “I wanted to gain work experience and make working life connections before the end of my studies,” continues Tiia. That is precisely why we created the programme, so that students could become familiar with the sector, too.  

The purpose of the programme is also to present a realistic picture of the language industry. “My perception was perhaps a little outdated, so an update was definitely what I needed. At the university, they painted a rather bleak picture of working life, but through the DelinguaLAB programme, I got to see that there’s still plenty of work out there,” says Sohvi. Globally, the language service industry is growing at an annual rate of 6–7%, so there is indeed demand for competent professionals. Universities still focus heavily on just translation and interpreting. However, in addition to translators, other experts are needed in the industry as well, such as language technology professionals, project managers, vendors and interpreting coordinators. Among other professionals, these are what we’re looking for through the LAB programme. 

Through the programme, our alumni have learned concrete lessons and gained tangible benefits. “The lectures were extremely useful. Through the programme, in just a few months, I gained a lot of work experience as a translator and loads of tips for my future working life. For example, I learned about the importance of networking, the differences between translation agencies and light entrepreneurship and about the various practices related to translation,” says Taru. Sohvi says she has learned a lot about the entire language service industry and the tools used in it: “I learned about the translation process and what that includes, and what kinds of translation needs and implementations exist at present. I was also able to take advantage of the skills learned in the programme in my daily work in project management at Delingua.” 

We love to hear about what’s happening in the careers of all our DelinguaLAB alumni after they complete the programme. Many have ended up in very interesting positions. These include freelance translators as well as linguists working for the government or even international companies. Many also complete assignments for us, and they’ve said that it was easier to take the step to becoming a freelance translator after the programme. “It was easy to set up as an entrepreneur knowing that you already had one customer,” says Tiia. Currently, Delingua’s localisation team employs two LAB alumni, Sohvi as Localisation Coordinator and Ari as Localisation Manager.  

Greetings to all LAB programme participants 

Our alumni encourage anyone interested in the industry to apply to join the programme. “You should apply, even if you don’t know anything about the language service industry, as you may find a new direction for your career!” says Sohvi. Taru recommends the DelinguaLAB programme to anyone who is interested in the language service industry and wants to try their hand at everyday translation work. “Translation agency internships are definitely the most important part of a translator’s studies. Good luck to everyone participating in the current LAB programme – make the most of the opportunity and don’t forget to try new things!” says Tiia. 

“Are you going to be a teacher or a translator?” Back in the day, those were usually the only two alternatives suggested. Universities also did not prepare their academic language students for other types of jobs. If we’re being honest, that type of training is still hard to find. At Delingua, we decided to do something about it. 

For several years now, we have been involved in teaching An Introduction to the Language Industry, a course aimed at enhancing the working life skills of translation students at the University of Helsinki. Encouraged by the positive experiences from that course, last year we decided to launch our own talent development programme for new graduates and students in the final stages of their studies who have the potential for a career in language services. Now, two six-month programmes have already been completed and the third #DelinguaLAB started in April 2019. 

#DelinguaLAB participants are introduced to language service industry topics that are barely touched upon at the university, such as translation project management, translation memory and term management tools, multilingual search engine optimization, the coordination of interpreting services and the sales and marketing of language services. We share our knowledge and give tips on how to move ahead in one’s career or how to get started as a translation entrepreneur. 

Hands-on learning 

#DelinguaLAB is designed to give participants a taste of what it’s like to work in the language industry. This is why, in addition to contact teaching led by Delingua’s professionals, we assign actual jobs to LAB participants and pay them in line with industry practices. 

We believe that sharing valuable information about jobs in the language service industry gives us something of value in return: new professionals to take on roles that would otherwise be difficult for graduates to access. In a way, #DelinguaLAB is like a long recruitment process for us that we hope will be rewarded with new resources and great characters to join our team. 

Digging for Diamonds 

“You could say we’re always looking for diamonds in the rough,” says programme lead Susanne Väisänen. In this rapidly growing industry, there is demand for language technologists familiar with structured content, project managers with ability to manage stress as well as talented specialised translators. 

And we have found those diamonds. One such find is Ari Gröhn, who first joined Delingua as a trainee through #DelinguaLAB and was later recruited as a Localization Coordinator. According to Ari, who is pleased to have found a job through the programme, “#DelinguaLAB is a way to see from the inside what the language industry consists of and what skills are required to succeed. What is more, Delingua is also a great place to work.”