What Does It Take To Become A Japanese Medical Translator?

Medical translation is one of the most regulated and demanding types of translation, with highly strict regulatory requirements. A small error may jeopardize a patient’s health and the company’s image, leading to litigation and costly fines. Therefore, if you are looking to become a Japanese medical translation provider (translator), there are numerous requirements and qualifications you need to meet.

In today’s post, let’s find out what it takes for you to become a certified Japanese medical translator. We will also share some useful tips that will help you get more medical translation jobs for the Japanese language.

How To Become A Japanese Medical Translator?

To become a Japanese medical translation provider, you should meet the following requirements and qualifications.

#1. Excellent Japanese Language Expertise

It goes without saying that the prerequisite of becoming a Japanese medical translator is the ability to have excellent language commands of the source language and Japanese. To be more specific, a Japanese medical translation provider should be a Japanese native who is fluent in the source language of the documents that need translating.

Because a Japanese medical translator must spend time reading through different medical resources and studying related materials to the project they are working on before starting the translation process, you will need to have a full grasp of medical jargon in both languages.

#2. Translation Certifications

For medical translators in general, qualifications and certifications are of great importance. These credentials attest to an in-depth knowledge of medical terminology and an absolute comprehension of use, which is required for anybody to become a sought-after Japanese medical translation provider.

As a result, a Japanese medical translator must have gone through professional training, better still, a Bachelor’s Degree in translation and/or the medical profession. It might be highly beneficial if you have a degree or have completed a medical assistant program.

Furthermore, in order to function as a medical interpreter, you must be certified by the National Board of Certification for Medical Interpreters (CMI).

#3. Medical Expertise

To work as a Japanese medical translation provider, you must have a strong background in the medical field linked to the material you are translating. A Japanese medical translator should also be aware of the medical legislation of Japan. The authorisation of drugs and medical treatments is governed by rigorous rules in the majority of countries. Any error you make in the translation may cause delays in product distribution to your client’s customers or result in the refusal of selling a certain medicine in the Japanese market.

Thousands of medical terms are used in the medical industry, although they are seldom interchangeable. To make your job easier and increase the accuracy and consistency of your Japanese medical translation, you should follow the medical terminology glossaries from your client or suggest and help them create one if they haven’t prepared it.

#4. Translation Experience

With so many clinical trials being conducted across the world and the great potential of the Japanese medical market, Japanese medical translation services are in high demand. When looking for a medical translation partner to assist with medical-related documents, customers would prefer to choose a Japanese medical translation provider that has long experience in translating Japanese medical content and is well-versed in international and Japanese medical standards and rules.

Therefore, to become a Japanese medical translator and get more translation jobs, the fact that you have prior experience working in the medical field is of great importance. If you are a newbie, you can increase your abilities via self-study and simply begin with small-scale Japanese medical translation tasks or volunteer to translate documents for medical non-government organizations or events.

Tips For Getting More Japanese Medical Translation Jobs

There are a few things you can do as a Japanese medical translator to broaden your expertise and increase your chance of getting more translation projects.

#1. Read Medical Books and Journals

One of the best methods to increase your medical knowledge is to read medical journals and books. You should bookmark all exceptional websites since you will be undertaking a lot of studies for a new Japanese medical translation project. It is equally critical to invest in high-quality medical dictionaries and medical translation books in Japanese.

#2. Take Classes

Taking online courses can help medical translators enhance their subject-matter understanding and terminology. Some of these courses are self-paced, enabling you to start whenever you like, while others start on a set day. If you missed the start date but the course is still continuing, you can join up and examine the course materials. If the course has concluded, you can “watch” it to be alerted of future sessions.

On Coursera, EdX, and FuruteLearn, you may discover a variety of informative medical programs from top colleges.

#3. Gain More Experience

It may be tough for new Japanese medical translators to get work at a recognized healthcare facility or a suitable business. Because in this line of work because experience is essential.

But don’t worry, you can’t start with modest steps. It is best for newbies to begin with non-critical projects such as translating product information or summarizing product qualities. Consider translating marketing materials for pharmaceutical or medical device firms as well. You may be able to translate case histories, patient information, diagnoses, and other documents as you develop familiarity with the job.

Following that, you might opt to volunteer with non-profit organizations such as The United Nations, Translators Without Borders, and Translations for Progress. These projects provide you with real-world experience, which you can include in your CV, and you can even request testimonials from clients after each task to assess your talents.

To Wrap Up

Being an expert in medical translation may appear challenging, but with a deeper grasp of the prerequisites listed above, you are entirely capable of attaining this job with enthusiasm and persistence.

If you think you are qualified to be a Japanese medical translator and want to get real-world experience working on challenging translation projects from a professional Japanese medical translation services agency like GTE Localize, send your CV to vm@gtelocalize.com to become a part of our talented medical translator team.