Hello! I am currently a Junior at the University of Pittsburgh, majoring in Linguistics and minoring in Italian. I am also applying for the Business dual major and am considering obtaining the Arabic Certificate.

I've had an interest in interpreting/translating for awhile and have done informal interpreting/translating for my parents since I was young.

I knew that this is what I wanted to do in the future when I had an opportunity to volunteer interpret for a group of football coaches visiting the Pitt football team from Japan. This was my first experience with formal/semi-formal interpreting (practice sessions, interviews with coaches and players, tour of facilities, etc) and though I was nervous, I was able to do well and enjoyed being a part of bringing two groups together.

Shortly after this experience, I was able to obtain a paid opportunity to interpret for a Japanese journalist. He was visiting a group of children of Vietnam veterans who were second generation victims of Agent Orange and Dioxin exposure. This group of people was meeting for the first time and trying to create a nonprofit organization for other children of Vietnam veterans, and the journalist was interviewing them as part of a series of interviews with victims of war. Before this opportunity, I had not been aware of the ongoing effects of the use of Agent Orange during the Vietnam War, and felt that this was a difficult but valuable learning experience in educating myself about the different groups of people who live in this world. We spent 3 days interviewing and getting to know this kind and courageous group of people from all across the US and I felt honored to be a kind of bridge that filled the gap between the group and the journalist.

Having been able to interpret twice and knowing that this is what I wanted to do, I began planning a future in interpreting/translating and researching schools, websites, communities, job opportunities, requirements for this career. I hope that I will be able to learn from this site and community and one day be an experienced interpreter/translator.

Thank you for your time.