FIT Professional Ethics & Quality Assurance Standards 3 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: A translator is asked to certify a translation they did not personally produce but only reviewed. According to professional ethics, the translator should:
- Sign and certify it if the review was thorough
- Refuse to certify work they did not produce, as certification implies personal responsibility (Correct answer)
- Certify it and add a note that it was reviewed, not translated, by them
- Certify it only if the original translator is unknown
Correct answer: Refuse to certify work they did not produce, as certification implies personal responsibility
Certification attests to the translator's own work; certifying another's translation without disclosure misrepresents authorship and professional responsibility.
Question 2: Under quality assurance best practices, what is the purpose of a 'back-translation' in regulated industries?
- To create a bilingual document for the client
- To verify the accuracy of a translation by translating it back to the source language independently (Correct answer)
- To reduce costs by reusing existing translations
- To meet FIT membership requirements
Correct answer: To verify the accuracy of a translation by translating it back to the source language independently
Back-translation, typically by an independent translator, helps identify meaning shifts in the original translation, particularly in clinical and pharmaceutical contexts.
Question 3: If a client pressures a translator to soften negative findings in a translated audit report, the translator's ethical obligation is to:
- Adjust the language since the client is paying
- Maintain accuracy and refuse to alter the substantive meaning (Correct answer)
- Ask a senior colleague whether softening is permissible
- Translate it twice — one accurate version and one softened version
Correct answer: Maintain accuracy and refuse to alter the substantive meaning
Altering substantive meaning at a client's request compromises the integrity of the document and violates the translator's duty of accuracy.
Question 4: Which practice best supports continuous quality improvement in a translation workflow?
- Delivering translations without revision to save time
- Maintaining a translation memory and glossary updated after each project (Correct answer)
- Varying terminology randomly to keep translations fresh
- Relying entirely on client feedback rather than internal review
Correct answer: Maintaining a translation memory and glossary updated after each project
Translation memories and glossaries capture approved terminology and stylistic decisions, ensuring consistency and efficiency across projects.
Question 5: A translator receives a subpoena for client communications. Before disclosing anything, the translator should primarily:
- Provide all documents immediately to comply with the law
- Consult legal counsel and notify the client while assessing confidentiality obligations (Correct answer)
- Destroy the documents to protect client confidentiality
- Refuse the subpoena on the grounds of translator-client privilege
Correct answer: Consult legal counsel and notify the client while assessing confidentiality obligations
Legal process can override confidentiality, but the translator should first seek legal advice and inform the client to allow them to contest the subpoena if appropriate.
Question 6: According to quality assurance principles, a 'revision' step in translation differs from 'proofreading' in that revision:
- Only checks spelling and punctuation
- Compares the translation against the source text for accuracy and completeness (Correct answer)
- Is performed by the same translator who produced the draft
- Is optional for certified translators
Correct answer: Compares the translation against the source text for accuracy and completeness
Revision is a bilingual process comparing target against source for accuracy, while proofreading is a monolingual check of the target text for language errors.
Question 7: FIT guidelines on professional conduct state that translators should avoid actions that bring the profession into disrepute. Which of the following would most clearly violate this principle?
- Declining an assignment due to subject-matter unfamiliarity
- Publicly guaranteeing 100% error-free translations in advertising (Correct answer)
- Charging premium rates for specialized legal translation
- Joining a professional association to gain credentials
Correct answer: Publicly guaranteeing 100% error-free translations in advertising
Guaranteeing zero errors is a false and misleading claim that deceives clients and undermines trust in the profession.
FIT Professional Ethics & Quality Assurance Standards 3
A translator is asked to certify a translation they did not personally produce but only reviewed.
According to professional ethics, the translator should: