Marianne Tiamson 4m 1,011
The views of this article are the perspective of the author and may not be reflective of Confessions of the Professions.
The COVID-19 pandemic has done much to change the way that we work, including opening many more people’s eyes to the benefits of telecommuting roles. Back in 2017/18, around a quarter of Americans worked from home at least occasionally. Fast-forward to 2020 and the pandemic has seen half of the workforce carry out their duties from home.
If you’re one of those who has discovered the benefits of working from home, it could be time to work on your CV and start applying for telecommuting roles. CV translation can help you do so, as we’ll explain below.
Why use translation when seeking telecommuting roles?
There are various reasons why it makes sense to use document translation services to enhance your CV when seeking telecommuting roles. Say you speak a second language really well but aren’t quite as confident when it comes to writing in it. You might be ideally suited to providing phone-based customer support services (for example) but a poorly written CV could be letting you down. CV translation can deliver a word-perfect version of your CV in your second language, to ensure you get a foot in the door.
Or perhaps you’re a developer who knows code inside out and back to front, but you don’t write well enough in your second language to present your skills as fully as you would like. CV translation can again be enough to start that initial conversation with an employer so that you can let your skills shine forth.
Your CV is likely to be the very first chance that employers have to start getting to know you. If it’s littered with typos and grammatical mistakes, then you’ve already got an uphill struggle in front of you. CV translation services can also help to proofread and edit your CV if you’ve attempted the translation yourself but aren’t convinced that you’ve done it to a professional standard.
How to use CV translation to enhance your prospects
If you’re ready to make your CV be the best that it can be, you’ll need a decent CV translation service. Ask your contacts for recommendations and search online for document translation services with good reputations and plenty of experience.
How do you translate a CV? Your appointed translator will ask you to furnish them with an electronic copy of your CV. They will then work through each section, converting the details into the target language. The translator will likely have queries for you during the process, as they may need to clarify some of the points included on your CV so that they can translate them accurately. The faster you can respond to their queries, the quicker your CV translation will be.
Once complete, the translator will send you your CV electronically. This will most likely be in the same format in which you supplied it to them originally. If you need it in another format – as a PDF, for example – then it’s important to specify this when you initially discuss your CV translation requirements.
The CV translation process should take around 48 hours to complete, though this varies from one service to another. Cost can also vary considerably, so it’s worth shopping around. The language that you need can impact the cost of the work (languages with fewer translators will cost you more), as can how urgently you need it. Most document translation services will offer an expedited translation service, for a price.
Where does CV translation fit with applicant tracking systems?
Whether you’re applying for a telecommuting role or any other kind of work, it’s possible that your CV will go through an applicant tracking system (ATS). This means it can be either accepted for further consideration or dismissed out of hand before ever being read by human eyes.
So how do you deal with applicant tracking systems as part of your CV translation? The key point is that you need to tweak the CV after the translation and not before. If you get your CV ATS-ready in the original language and then translate it, there’s no guarantee that the translated copy will deliver quite what the foreign-language ATS is looking for. As such, the translation needs to come first.
Remember that CV translation is about more than just language
Having to tweak your CV to suit foreign-language applicant tracking systems isn’t the only consideration to bear in mind when you’re applying for telecommuting roles. You’ll also need to take a look at the document’s formatting and overall presentation.
There are two elements to this. Firstly, you need to ensure that the translated copy fits your CV format as neatly as the original language did. Different languages use different amounts of words to say the same thing, so a sentence that fits neatly into a box in English won’t necessarily do the same once it’s been translated into French. As CVs tend to present information in neatly ordered snippets, it can be quite fiddly to ensure that your translated document mirrors the look of the original. Languages that read in a different direction to your native tongue may also need special attention when it comes to the way that you present them.
The second point to consider here relates to the local formatting and presentation conventions of your target audience. Different countries have different expectations of what a CV should look like. Some, for example, will expect you to include a photo of yourself as standard on your CV; others will not. Understanding differing expectations and requirements of this nature when you apply for telecommuting roles will allow you to shape your CV accordingly and increase its chances of ending up on top of the right pile.
Decent document translation services should be able to help with all of these parts of the process.
Once you have your accurately translated and beautifully presented CV, it’s time to start applying for telecommuting roles and enjoying the lifestyle benefits that they bring. Good luck!
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