NAATI has recently made some refinements to ensure a better candidate experience for those seeking to become a Certified Interpreter. This is part of our commitment to continuous improvement and ensuring our testing system remains a valid and reliable assessment of a candidate’s abilities.
All Certified Interpreters need to demonstrate competency in the following tasks:
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- Consecutive dialogue interpreting
- Sight translation
- Consecutive monologue interpreting
- Simultaneous monologue interpreting
From 2023, to demonstrate these skills and become a Certified Interpreter, candidates must pass the following two tests with NAATI:
These tests can be completed in any order; however, a Certified Interpreter credential will not be issued until a candidate passes both tests.
What has changed?
Previously, the CI test required candidates to complete the following tasks in a single test session:
- 2x consecutive dialogues of about 17-20 minutes each
- 2x sight translations of about 200 words (one in each direction)
- 2x consecutive monologues of about 300 words (one in each direction)
- 2x simultaneous monologues of about 300 words (one in each direction)
Does this affect the test fee?
The cost of obtaining a CI credential has not increased because of this change. The total cost is split between the two tests and candidates will be invoiced separately for each test fee at the time of booking. The cost of each test can be found here: Forms & Fees – NAATI
How do I apply?
If you want to become a Certified Interpreter, you should read the information about becoming certified here to understand the training and prerequisite requirements, and also the information about the Certified Interpreter test here. You need to create an account in myNAATI and apply for Certified Interpreter.
If you meet the prerequisite requirements, NAATI will make you eligible to sit both the Certified Provisional Interpreter and Certified Interpreter tests. If you pass both tests, you will be granted a Certified Interpreter credential.
Why has NAATI made these changes?
Since the launch of the Certification System in 2018, NAATI has rolled out certification testing in more than 60 languages and will be continuing to offer more over the coming years. We have accumulated a significant amount of data in that time, with several thousand tests now complete, which provides the opportunity to conduct the first refinement of the system.
As part of its commitment to proactive continuous improvement, NAATI launched a Continuous Improvement Program in March 2021.
The primary aim is to undertake an in-depth analysis of the Certification System to ensure it remains fit for purpose, and to ensure that NAATI’s certification tests remain valid, reliable and practical to run. The program focuses on non-specialist certification tests:Certified Translator (CT), Certified Provisional Interpreter (CPI) and Certified Interpreter (CI).
The initial consultation process and data-collection phase has been completed. This involved gathering data through comprehensive surveys of NAATI Examiners and test candidates, an inter-rater reliability study, more than 200 examiner training workshops and 30+ hours of consultations with a dedicated CIP Working Group of experts.
One of the key recommendations was to split the CI test into two components as described above. Analysis of the pass rates for dialogue tasks across both CPI and CI tests has shown that candidates with similar levels of training achieve comparable results in these tasks, regardless of which test they sit. Additionally, feedback from candidates and examiners indicated that CI test days were too long as candidates were expected to complete 8 complex tasks. As such, we have decided to refine the delivery of the CI test to provide a better candidate experience.
In addition to reducing the load on candidates, this change also allows NAATI to offer live dialogue testing more frequently so that candidates are able to access testing sooner. Additionally, by conducting the CI tasks online it removes capacity constraints and waiting times for candidates on test day as we can test multiple languages and candidates simultaneously.
