بخصوص امتحان ATA من اللغة العربية إلى الانجليزية

What does the certification examination consist of?

An ATA certification examination is a three-hour, open-book, proctored exam that offers the candidate three passages of about 225 to 275 words each (actual text for passages with English as a source language and the English equivalent for passages with English as a target language). Two of these passages must be translated. Passage A is required. Candidates must choose either Passage B or Passage C (but not both).

Passage A must be translated. It is a general text that expresses a view, sets forth an argument or presents a new idea. Examples: a newspaper editorial, an essay, a non-fiction book.

Passage B may be technical, scientific or medical in content. It may be written by an expert, but not for other experts in that field. Examples: a patient education brochure, operating or installation instructions, an encyclopedia article.

Passage C may be financial, business or legal in the broadest sense. It may be written by an expert, but not for other experts in that field. Examples: a contract or lease, a financial report, a government regulation.

Each type of examination passage is chosen in such a way as to avoid highly specialized terminology challenges requiring research. There are indeed terminology challenges, but they can be met with a good general dictionary and a general specialty dictionary (medical, technical, legal, financial).

In addition to the text to be translated, each examination passage includes Translation Instructions, specifying the context within which the translation is to be performed (text source and translation purpose, audience, and medium) and providing specific instructions such as “use U.S. English” or “translate xxx as XXX.” Translation Instructions can be thought of as reflecting the client's expectations, were the examination a real-life translation assignment.