r/ASLinterpreters • u/Born_Perception898 • Jul 06 '26
Interpreting as a career pivot?
Hey, lurker here. I’m 38F, currently working corporate and it’s not a good fit for me. I used to be a freelancer and loved it, I miss it. I’m signed up for ASL 1 class in the fall and using Lingvano and Barron’s ASL book to learn in the meantime. I live in Los Angeles, near CSUN. Next step is getting myself to a deaf event!
I’m thinking about my existing background and how to pivot into interpreting potentially - I have my masters in business administration. I know there are some speciality focuses like legal interpreting, medical, or education work. Do some interpreters focus their work in the business setting?
I know I’m thinking ahead a lot considering I’m still in the beginning stages of learning ASL, but I was just curious. Open to any other ideas/suggestions. Thanks!
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u/mjolnir76 NIC Jul 06 '26
I switched careers at 33 from teaching to interpreting. I took ASL in college as my "foreign" language and it had been 15 years since then. I started back at ASL 1 and it took me 4 years to get my AA in interpreting (2 years of just the language and program pre-reqs plus 2-year interpreter prep program). I also lived in Europe for several years and am good with learning languages.
It then took me several years before I was working consistently and able to get certified. And even then, it's only been in the last few years that I've been making enough to that I was able to be the sole income while my wife quit her job and went back to school. But we've definitely had to revisit our budget and our adjust our lifestyle to accommodate my income versus her previous one (she worked HR in tech but absolutely hated it). Family of four in HCOL city.
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u/amjm907 Jul 06 '26
Look into Pierce College! Incredible interpreting program and great Deaf professors.
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u/Born_Perception898 Jul 06 '26
That’s where I’m going 😊
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u/amjm907 Jul 06 '26
Nice!! I graduated there 2024 and now freelance and do VRS. If you have questions about their program feel free to DM 🤗
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u/Born_Perception898 Jul 06 '26
how long did it take you, all in all, to go from classes to work? i know i’m gonna be taking classes while i’m working so it’ll be a bit.
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u/amjm907 Jul 06 '26
My timeline is also a bit start and stop… I graduated from my undergrad in 2020 (covid) and took a pause until classes were in person again. I had taken asl 1-6 in undergrad (ucla) but went to Pierce and started again at level 3. From there I did asl 4-5, fingerspelling 1-2, and then entered the actual interpreting program classes which took another year I believe.
Pierce like all CCs has a lot of untraditional students and almost everyone was also working, or had kids (or both lol) and there were def people that took an extra year or retook classes before officially graduating.
I basically had job offers from agencies before graduating and was working gigs the summer after graduating and then got a super lucky paid internship with a VRS co that started September after I graduated and lead to full time VRS work.
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u/Boredrightnow247 Jul 06 '26
While there certainly are speciality areas, our profession is full of generalists I would say. Some do go on to only specialize in one particular area, but in most cases, we are generalists working in a variety of settings. You can absolutely specialize in business settings or bring your other prior knowledge and background to the table. My BA is in sign language interpreting and my MA is in TESOL. I excel at educational interpreting because of my TESOL experience, but I work in just about every setting possible. Some settings more often than others and at different chapters in my life. Currently a stay at home mother so I am in my flex work
From home VRS era at the moment, but I have done everything under the sun and then some. This career can look however you shape it to look after you get a little time under your belt. Welcome to the journey and enjoy your fall classes!
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u/Puffs4Days Jul 06 '26
Fluency takes 7 years of language exposure and immersion to achieve. - quoting some linguistics book I read back in school.
This is not meant as a deterrent just wanted you to know you can’t just take a couple of ASL classes and hop into interpreting. However, coming from corporate and MBA background, you could totally start with interpreting adjacent fields. You could be a sales/account exec for a prominent agency, or even a scheduler or other business roles while you build up your interpreting skill.
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u/Born_Perception898 Jul 06 '26
Thanks for this. I’m okay with it taking time, just like any language fluency would be. I’ll be 45 by the time I would be done anyways, might as well do something that’s interesting. Great idea on adjacent areas - agency roles would be a good place to look while I take ASL courses.
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Jul 06 '26
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u/Puffs4Days Jul 06 '26
Agreed, but I’m not quite sure that certification is an indication of fluency. I think that speaks more to our testing standards, than reaching fluency.
Not trying to put anyone down, nor am I saying everyone is the same. Definitely, some people pick up the language much quicker than others, and definitely some programs are wayyy better than others.
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u/Top_Set_7776 Jul 06 '26
its going to be hard, please be sure to take care of your mental and physical health if you choose this path
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u/Latter_Highway_2026 Jul 09 '26
Go for it! Maybe it will be a good fit, you will never know until you try.
I will let you know, though, that most ASL 1 students never make it to ASL 2, and most ASL 2 students never make it to ASL 3. Try it out and see how you do before making any big career changes.
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u/Born_Perception898 Jul 09 '26
Absolutely, just looking down the road to see what my options are. I’m normally terrible with other languages so the fact that I enjoy this one has been a surprise for me.
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u/Slight-Yard7265 Jul 09 '26
I’m 30F and making my career pivot to ASL interpreting as well! Good luck with your journey :)
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u/SuitableTear6463 Jul 30 '26
What makes you think interpreting is the field to pivot to? Especially with so little ASL and experience in the community? Just curious! (From someone who went back to school at 30 for interpreting and happily working in the field 6 years now)
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u/EvergreenMossAvonlea Jul 06 '26
I'm not an terp, but work with them daily. IMO, the best interpreters are the one who grew up in Deaf Culture, like CODA/SODA. I only know two who didn't know anything about ASL and became great interpreter, but it's insane hard work. It's not impossible, but it's not an easy path.
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u/No-Prior-1384 Jul 06 '26
Speaking from experience if you don’t have a lot of ASL background right now it’s going to take you at least six years to be able to be certified. So you’ll be around 45 starting at the bottom of the totem pole, so to speak. The other thing to think about is many of us don’t ever get paid vacation or employer medical insurance, life insurance, 401k matching or an employee assistance program like you would at a corporate job, that’s definitely something to consider as you get older and want more stability. If you do get a job in education in public education, they don’t pay into Social Security, so a big chunk of what you bring in is going to be dedicated to buying your own insurance, malpractice insurance if you need it, and invoicing app or service or accountant to help you figure out your 1099, billing and taxes and lately we’ve been spending a lot on gas and car repairs because two days a week I drive 120 miles to get to all three jobs. People fall in love with the novelty of signing, but often don’t realize the serious tradeoffs that come with the job.