An associate asked me about studying to be a Korean translator recently. He did so in the context of trying to get a job in Korea. Unfortunately, while translation is a noble profession and one that pays well and for which there's a demand for good talent, it is not a job to take if you want to improve your reputation in Korea or get a high-paying job here. This is how I replied to my associate's question:
"Korean professionals don't respect translators; it's as simple as that. I've sensed it for years from many people, but got a rude wake-up call from my Korean accountant recently. He's a fellow student at Hanyang and we'd had classes together. I went for tax advice to him about a year and a half ago and a couple months ago I went back to him to register my business in Korea.
When I mentioned how much I make, he just about fell out of his seat and responded, "Oh, I thought translation was just what unemployed people do!"... and it turns out that the advice he gave me a year and a half ago was wrong... because he had taken me so lightly knowing I was a translator, he hadn't bothered to properly consider my situation. Just figured that if I said I was a translator, I surely wasn't making enough to worry about Korean taxes and blew me off...
So, that pretty much sums up what a translation degree will do for you in the Korean business world. In the mind of Koreans, it two steps up from English teacher... This, incidentally, is why I went back to school in Korea... so I could stop telling Koreans I'm a translator and start talking to them about serious subjects. :-)
Sorry to sound so negative... it's just that I've been through it myself already... And by the way, Americans DO respect translators...
Steven"
