ATA Exam Will Cost More in 2019
Thread poster: Arturo Delgado
Arturo Delgado
Arturo Delgado  Identity Verified
United States
Local time: 05:20
English to Spanish
May 24, 2018

I recently learned from the NY Circle of Translators and from a student I helped prepare for the ATA Certification Exam (English to Spanish) that the exam will cost more starting next year (January of 2019).
It is good for me because my price for helping individuals prepare for the exam is going to sound even more reasonable now -I don't know if the ATA practice test will cost more too-, but I still think the ATA is not making it enticing to attempt to get the certification. Some people t
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I recently learned from the NY Circle of Translators and from a student I helped prepare for the ATA Certification Exam (English to Spanish) that the exam will cost more starting next year (January of 2019).
It is good for me because my price for helping individuals prepare for the exam is going to sound even more reasonable now -I don't know if the ATA practice test will cost more too-, but I still think the ATA is not making it enticing to attempt to get the certification. Some people think it is too expensive to become a member, obtain the certification and retain it through continuing education courses.
Currently, the exam costs $300 (with a 15% daunting pass rate)

Any opinions/comments?

Arturo A. Delgado
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DarwinE
DarwinE  Identity Verified
United States
Local time: 04:20
Spanish to English
+ ...
Just pushing me further away. May 24, 2018

I remember when I first considered getting the ATA credential in college it was expensive, but somewhat reasonable. (Correct me if I'm wrong but wasn't there a time where you didn't have to be a member to take the test? They just charged you like an extra $30 for non-members?) It looks like the ProZ PRO is a more reasonable goal now as far as credentials here in the USA. I wish we had something else on a national level like they do in Brazil with ABRATES.

Even after all the trash t
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I remember when I first considered getting the ATA credential in college it was expensive, but somewhat reasonable. (Correct me if I'm wrong but wasn't there a time where you didn't have to be a member to take the test? They just charged you like an extra $30 for non-members?) It looks like the ProZ PRO is a more reasonable goal now as far as credentials here in the USA. I wish we had something else on a national level like they do in Brazil with ABRATES.

Even after all the trash talking I've heard about ATA (i.e. simply paying for recertification instead of motivating members to earn CEUs) I was still considering getting it because it would look nice next to my CMI credential but if the increase is true I think i'll pass.
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Dylan J Hartmann
Dylan J Hartmann  Identity Verified
Australia
Member (2014)
Thai to English
+ ...

MODERATOR
Is that all? May 24, 2018

$300 is less than half of what the NAATI exam cost!

 
LEXpert
LEXpert  Identity Verified
United States
Local time: 04:20
Member (2008)
Croatian to English
+ ...
Not that expensive, all told May 24, 2018

Lots of interesting info if you check out the ATA's website. For example, as of Jan. 1, 2017, membership is no longer required to take the exam, so the net cost for just taking the exam will still be less than what it has been in the period before that.


Even after all the trash talking I've heard about ATA (i.e. simply paying for recertification instead of motivating members to earn CEUs)


I'm not sure what you mean by that. Currently, recertification requires BOTH the requisite CEUs (20 hours every 3 years) and a modest recertification processing fee. However, there are many low-cost or basically free options to accumulate these hours (including through ProZ virtual events).

Providing a secure testing environment for the increasing number of keyboarded exams is also expensive. For example, several proctors are required instead of just one for handwritten exams. And that 15% pass rate is an average of all combinations, which tends to be skewed by a few high-volume combinations that attract many unqualified candidates.


 
DarwinE
DarwinE  Identity Verified
United States
Local time: 04:20
Spanish to English
+ ...
Yes and no May 24, 2018

I see the the website reflects what you said. I must be thinking of a different certification

LEXpert wrote:

Lots of interesting info if you check out the ATA's website. For example, as of Jan. 1, 2017, membership is no longer required to take the exam, so the net cost for just taking the exam will still be less than what it has been in the period before that.



According to the FAQ on their website:

Do I have to be a member of ATA to take the certification exam?
Yes. You must have an individual membership established to sit for ATA's certification exam. Learn more about ATA membership.


 
Vanda Nissen
Vanda Nissen  Identity Verified
Australia
Local time: 19:20
Member (2008)
English to Russian
+ ...
Yes, I am jealous too May 24, 2018

Dylan Jan Hartmann wrote:

$300 is less than half of what the NAATI exam cost!


The exposure is also better...


 
The Misha
The Misha
Local time: 05:20
Russian to English
+ ...
ATA can go to hell May 25, 2018

It is an irrelevant, self-serving organization that, now more than ever, seems to be out of touch with the times.

For what I do, ATA with its certifications is a total non-issue. I never wanted or needed anything from them and I am sure I never will.


Liviu-Lee Roth
 
LEXpert
LEXpert  Identity Verified
United States
Local time: 04:20
Member (2008)
Croatian to English
+ ...
Correction May 25, 2018

Darwin Escobar wrote:

I see the the website reflects what you said. I must be thinking of a different certification

LEXpert wrote:

Lots of interesting info if you check out the ATA's website. For example, as of Jan. 1, 2017, membership is no longer required to take the exam, so the net cost for just taking the exam will still be less than what it has been in the period before that.



According to the FAQ on their website:

Do I have to be a member of ATA to take the certification exam?
Yes. You must have an individual membership established to sit for ATA's certification exam. Learn more about ATA membership.


Darwin, you are correct: It actually says:
As of January 1, 2017, eligibility is no longer required to register for the ATA certification exam.

I misread "eligibility" as "membership", sorry! I do know that there is frequent discussion of de-coupling the membership requirement from certification, so this may still happen in the future. At a minimum, it seems to me that it would be reasonable to not require membership to take the exam, but to require it for recertification.


 
RobinB
RobinB  Identity Verified
United States
Local time: 04:20
German to English
Decoupling May 27, 2018

Please note that the ATA Certification Exam will be open to non-members starting in 2020.

 
RobinB
RobinB  Identity Verified
United States
Local time: 04:20
German to English
Price of certification May 27, 2018

Arturo Delgado wrote:

I recently learned from the NY Circle of Translators and from a student I helped prepare for the ATA Certification Exam (English to Spanish) that the exam will cost more starting next year (January of 2019).
It is good for me because my price for helping individuals prepare for the exam is going to sound even more reasonable now -I don't know if the ATA practice test will cost more too-, but I still think the ATA is not making it enticing to attempt to get the certification. Some people think it is too expensive to become a member, obtain the certification and retain it through continuing education courses.
Currently, the exam costs $300 (with a 15% daunting pass rate)


The current price is less than the cost of offering the exam, so it's perfectly reasonable for the ATA to increase the price to the break-even point. There is no justification for the ATA membership at large to subsidize the exam. Even at $500, the cost of the ATA exam is on a level with comparable professional association exams (for example, the ITI) and, as was already pointed out, lower than NAATI.

Even if the 15% pass rate is an average over all language combinations, I doubt very much if there's any major language combination with a pass rate much over 20%. Again, this puts the ATA exam on a level with, for example, the ITI exam. If you find that daunting, then perhaps you should take a practice test to see if you're ready to take the exam itself.

Finally, retaining certification through CE/CPD points is standard practice in many professions in many countries.


 
Arturo Delgado
Arturo Delgado  Identity Verified
United States
Local time: 05:20
English to Spanish
TOPIC STARTER
Thank You Jun 1, 2018

Thank you very much for all your comments.
Arturo


 
Irina MacRae
Irina MacRae  Identity Verified
United States
Local time: 05:20
English to Russian
$525 to take a test Jul 18, 2019

It's $525 for the exam today and $80 for a practice test if you are a member ($120 for non-members)

Liviu-Lee Roth
 


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ATA Exam Will Cost More in 2019







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