WRITTEN TEST OF ENGLISH-SPANISH LANGUAGE PROFICIENCY AND LEGAL TERMINOLOGY
This guide provides an overview of the content of the written exam. Applicants are strongly encouraged to read the descriptions for each section and review the test question examples carefully to become familiar with what to expect on the exam. The written exam consists of 75 multiple-choice questions. Applicants will have 90 minutes to complete the written exam which is designed to assess the following:
I Translating Written Material (English to Spanish & Spanish to English)
II Grammar and Language Usage (Spanish & English)
III Vocabulary (Spanish and English) – Synonyms & Antonyms
IV Reading and Understanding Written Material
Format A - Paragraph Comprehension (Spanish & English)
Format B - Sentence Completion (Spanish & English)
V Legal Terminology (English)
Qualified court interpreters possess native-like mastery of both English and Spanish and have the ability to do consecutive, simultaneous interpreting and sight translation of court-related documents in a courtroom setting. To improve knowledge of court-related legal terminology, there are many excellent glossaries and other resources available to interpreters in publications and on organizational websites such as:
http://www.ncsc.org and
http://www.najit.org . Applicants can also reference a copy of the UCS Court Interpreter Manual and Code of Ethics which contains a legal glossary and extensive practical information useful to both current and prospective court interpreters that is available on the NYS Unified Court System’s website at:
http://www.nycourts.gov/courtinterpreter/index.shtml
The questions that follow are for illustrative purposes only. These examples represent different types and formats of questions that applicants may encounter on the written multiple-choice test. Test questions that appear on the actual test vary in difficulty and may be easier or more difficult than the questions illustrated.