American Translator's Association

[To assist us in bringing this matter to a close, you must give us a reason why you are rejecting the responseIf no reason is received your complaint will be closed as Answered] Complaint: [redacted] I am rejecting this response because:The response from ATA is not satisfactory to me or the many exam takers who are highly qualified but also aware of these tacticsIn translation circles, it is well known that the ATA fails a disproportionate amount of test takers for arbitrary reasons (reported by those who paid to see a copy of their test)Their assertion that they can't return tests is falseThey will return your graded test but ONLY if you pay to challenge it and then pay AGAIN to see the actual testFurthermore, if you want to retake the test, you have to wait for the next year, which then requires a renewal of the membership (more money) and then pay once again for a new testYou cannot take the test if you're not a member.The fact that they make it near impossible to see our corrected tests makes it very hard for us to see where we failed and how we can improveHowever, it is also common knowledge that if you take the test another or times, you will most certainly passThis is nonsensical, since our language skills do not change during that period of time, so the notion that we improve greatly the more we take the test also seems false.I particularly have taken issue because at the time of the test I felt very comfortable as a translator and considered this one of the easiest translation tests I have takenThe ATA is simply not being accountable and their secrecy concerning test results is proof of thisThis is also an expensive test and a considerable strain for people that pay for themselvesThey are taking advantage of people in exchange for certificationI am already certified with another company and don't intend to continue paying to take this test over and over until the ATA has extracted enough money from meThe ATA is poorly managed, antiquated and openly hostile about these issues Regards, [redacted] ***

Thank you for the opportunity to respond.Please find below the original message that American Translators Association Certification Committee Chair David Stephenson sent the complainantThanks and take careWalter B***, CAEExecutive DirectorAmerican Translators Association----[ATA Certification
Program Manager]Caron M*** has informed me, as chair of ATA’s Certification Committee, of your correspondence with herI would like to address several of the points that you’ve raised in connection with your exam experience. The reason we do not return marked exams to candidates is that if we did so, we would then have to discard the respective passages, since they would become publicPassage selection is an extremely time-consuming task for graders (for which they receive no compensation), and it’s simply impractical to come up with a unique passage set for each of the approximately candidates who take our exam each year.Passage security is also the reason that we do not have reviews and appeals done until the next exam yearThe restriction as to one try per exam year is because a repeat candidate would receive the exact same passages on a second try in any given exam year. Our policy of not returning marked exams is not nearly as unusual in the credentialing field as you seem to believeA large number of entities do not return exams (e.g., the *** *** ** *** and the *** *** ** *** ***), and some don’t even reveal a point score range, as we do; candidates are told simply that they passed or failedIn any event, this is the system that we have, and you were made fully aware of that before you registered for the examI agree with you that handwriting the exam is antiquated, and after several years of pilot testing we are rolling out a new computerized model this year (see ***
You allege that ATA and its graders are deliberately failing candidates in order to collect as much money as possibleHowever, ATA loses money on each exam we administer, and the association loses even more on each review and appeal that is conductedThe shortfall is covered by general membership duesIf anything, ATA has a strong financial interest in passing as many candidates as possibleWhat prevents us from doing so is our adherence to detailed and consistent standards.The Certification Program provides rigorous training in these standards for our 100+ graders, who are themselves top professionals in their fieldsGrader teams typically spend hours examining new passages and deliberating on translation challenges and on acceptable and unacceptable approaches to those challengesI know each of the Spanish-to-English graders personally, and I have absolute confidence in their fairness and competence in applying our program’s standards in their grading.I’m truly sorry that you’re embittered by this experienceThere is no conspiracy and no “shakedown” hereAnd no one is “at our mercy,” because certification is purely an optional credential for working in the United States.Sincerely,David--David *S***, CTLegal & Business TranslationsGerman, Dutch & Croatian into English (ATA-certified)Serbian & Bosnian into EnglishChair, ATA Certification Committee***@***.com

[To assist us in bringing this matter to a close, you must give us a reason why you are rejecting the responseIf no reason is received your complaint will be closed as Answered]
Complaint: ***
I am rejecting this response because:The response from ATA is not satisfactory to me or the many exam takers who are highly qualified but also aware of these tacticsIn translation circles, it is well known that the ATA fails a disproportionate amount of test takers for arbitrary reasons (reported by those who paid to see a copy of their test)Their assertion that they can't return tests is falseThey will return your graded test but ONLY if you pay to challenge it and then pay AGAIN to see the actual testFurthermore, if you want to retake the test, you have to wait for the next year, which then requires a renewal of the membership (more money) and then pay once again for a new testYou cannot take the test if you're not a member.The fact that they make it near impossible to see our corrected tests makes it very hard for us to see where we failed and how we can improveHowever, it is also common knowledge that if you take the test another or times, you will most certainly passThis is nonsensical, since our language skills do not change during that period of time, so the notion that we improve greatly the more we take the test also seems false.I particularly have taken issue because at the time of the test I felt very comfortable as a translator and considered this one of the easiest translation tests I have takenThe ATA is simply not being accountable and their secrecy concerning test results is proof of thisThis is also an expensive test and a considerable strain for people that pay for themselvesThey are taking advantage of people in exchange for certificationI am already certified with another company and don't intend to continue paying to take this test over and over until the ATA has extracted enough money from meThe ATA is poorly managed, antiquated and openly hostile about these issues
Regards,
*** ***

[A default letter is provided here which indicates your acceptance of the business's response. If you wish, you may update it before sending it.]
RevDex.com:
I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID ***, and find that this resolution is satisfactory to me.
Regards,
*** ***

We already responded to his requestWe are processing the refund.If you have any questions, please contact me.Thanks and take careWalter