The Code of Ethics exam is just around the corner, March 9th to be exact, and if you are just as nervous as I was, keep on reading.
I always become very stressed out about writing exams; I try to avoid them at all costs. However, sometimes they are unavoidable such as the Code of Ethics (C of E) exam you need to take if you want to become a member of the Association of Translators and Interpreters of Alberta (ATIA) and eventually a certified Translator/Interpreter. I was especially nervous about this exam since the passing rate is below 50 percent. Many people I talked to failed this exam the first time, and sometimes the second time as well.
The exam I wrote (it is subject to be revised and changed by the Association at regular intervals!) consisted of 20 questions with multiple choice answers. The passing mark is 80 percent which means you can have only four incorrect answers. Each question will give you a specific scenario, and from there you have to form your answer. You will have a limited amount of time to write this exam.
I am very fortunate to have passed this exam the first time! I am not gloating about it—ok, maybe a little—but the message is: If I can do it, you can too!
How did I prepare for it? A month or so before the exam I started reading the C of E every single morning as I sipped my first cup of London Fog. I took notes, and I became very familiar with its content.
I also took the webinar? that was offered by ATIA, and I have to say this was extremely helpful. It allowed me to think about the rules and regulations of the C of E from a different perspective. Since the webinar was live, we were able to have discussions, questions, and exercises. The week following the webinar, I reviewed the exercises we did and the reasoning behind the answers.
When it finally came time to write the exam, I knew I was prepared and felt confident. Of course, once I sat down to write the exam my heart started to pound loudly, my mouth was extremely dry, my vision became blurry, and my mind was completely blank. After a few minutes, I regained my composure and proceeded to write the exam. I found most of the questions straightforward and the ones I had doubt about, I left blank to come back to afterward. When writing this exam, it’s important to always think of the question in reference to the C of E and not just what you imagine the correct response should be. Once I finished, I went back and made sure I had answered all the questions and quickly reviewed the answers.
If you are writing the C of E on March 9th, start reading it every day now, take notes, and become very familiar with it. Invest in the webinar?because it can be the deciding factor on passing this exam. Once you are there writing the exam, take a deep breath and trust that you are prepared to pass this exam, and answer well.
Good luck! I know you can do it!
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??Paulina Ponsford was born in Chile and has lived most of her adult life in Canada. She worked as an Accountant for thirty years in the Oil and Gas industry in Calgary. At the same time, she always wanted to connect with people at a different level and for this reason, she became a volunteer Fitness Instructor and later on a Certified Facilitator in the area of human interaction. Paulina is now preparing to become a Translator and Interpreter in the languages of English and Spanish. Paulina also loves to travel and embraces what different cultures have to offer. She is also an avid reader and some of her favorite authors are Paulo Coelho, Khaled Hosseini, Mark Mustian, and Isabel Allende. If you would like to know more about Paulina, check out her blog at www.paulinaponsford.com where she shares some of her thoughts, insights, and experiences.