In-House Vs. Freelance Translation Career

by Toby Mason Consultant

The translation industry has experienced a major shift over time. As companies are increasingly expanding their operations into new geographic locations, more and more students and aspiring translation professionals are entering the market.

However, when it comes to pursuing a career in translation, professionals have two major options. They can either work as in-house translators or as freelance translation professionals.

Let’s examine both of these options from various perspectives to find out which pathway can work best for you.

Flexibility

Flexibility of working hours is typically the top reason why most people prefer being freelance translators. Freelancing allows you to decide when, where, and how long to work for. This enables you to adjust your schedule as per your preference to create the right balance between your work and personal life.

On the other hand, a full time translator has to stick to a Monday to Friday, 9-5 routine. With an in-house job, you have to follow the work schedule, which may eventually become monotonous and boring.

Income

One of the major advantages of working as an in-house translator is that it guarantees a fixed amount of money at the end of the month, as opposed to freelancing.

Besides, as an in-house translator, you are likely to receive benefits including sick leaves, annual leaves, medical insurance, and pension. These benefits are not available in a freelance career, which may sometimes cause financial stress in the event of an emergency.

Despite its downsides, freelancing can be far more rewarding than a full time job. As the income in is directly proportional to the efforts you make, translators can easily increase their earnings either by working extra hours or taking more valuable projects.

Projects

As a freelancing translator, you can choose the projects according to your qualifications, liking, or area of expertise. This means, if you are offered a project on the topic you are not familiar with, you have the option to turn it down. This may also offer you a chance to explore a greater variety of topics, if you are willing to work on multiple subjects. You can easily select the job considering your education, expertise, and training to expand your knowledge base.

On the contrary, an in-house translator has little or no liberty to turn down the projects assigned to them.

If you are considering becoming a freelance translator, check out a wide variety of freelance translation jobs at TranslatorPub today.