There are multiple certifications available to ASL interpreters. The questions you need to ask yourself are:
1.) What kind of work do I want to do?
2.) Where do I want to live?
3.) Do I want to travel with interpreting?
These questions are important, as it will help you determine which test is best for you to take.
Options of exams:
Educational Interpreter Performance Assessment (EIPA): This certification will provide you certification for K-12 work only. This certification doesn't permit you to work outside the scope of education. This assessment is Nationally recognized in most states and is scored from a 1-5 range. The minimum requirement for the State of Missouri is a 4.0. More information can be found at the following: https://eipa.boystown.org
Continuing Education Units (CEUs) are required by Boys Town but may not be required by individual states.
Board for Evaluation of Interpreters (BEI): This exam was developed by the University of Arizona and the State of Texas. Texas now owns the rights to all testing material and leases it out annually to a few states for proctoring. The only exams permissible to proctor outside the State of Texas are BEI Test of English Proficiency (TEP)-written exam, and the BEI performances exams: BASIC, ADVANCED and MASTER. Texas does offer a Certified Deaf Interpreter (CDI) exam (currently on hold), and a Trilingual exam. If you are interested in either of those exams, you must take those in the State of Texas. Otherwise, the general BEI exam is currently proctored in the following states: Missouri (on hold), Illinois, Michigan, Texas and Michigan.
This exam is a state exam, that was not intended on being a national exam; however, over the last ten years, this exam has become more widely used and is recognized by multiple states.
For more information on the BEI exam, please visit: www.mcdhh.mo.gov for State of Missouri requirements for proctoring, and/or Board for Evaluation of Interpreters Certification Program | Texas Health and Human Services
CEUs are required to maintain this certification. Renewal number of hours and time length of cycles are determined by each individual state that recognizes it. *Please note that the state where you obtain this certification is "who" you need to renew with.
Quality Assurance Screening Test (QAST): This exam as created from a collaboration of five states; Kansas, Missouri, Arkansas and Oklahoma. This was one of the first exams available in the early 1990's and was deemed invalid to stand up in court for accuracy, per a study done by Galluadet University. In 2014, the Missouri Commission for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing (MCDHH) decided to change to the BEI system. However, all interpreters with this certification were grandfathered in. Arkansas still actively proctors this test, and it is still deemed an acceptable and recognized certification in the Midwest. For more information on the proctoring of this exam, please visit Deaf & Hard of Hearing – AR Division of Workforce Services under QAST tab
CEUs are required to maintain this certification. Renewal number of hours and time length of cycles are determined by each individual state.
Center for the Assessment of Sign Language Interpretation (CASLI), under Registry of Interpreters for the Deaf (RID): Formally known at the National Interpreter Certification (NIC) exam, RID oversees the CASLI exam. This is still a nationally recognized certification in all states. This certification allows you to travel both domestically and internationally. This exam, once passed, has strict requirements for Continuing Education Units (CEUs) and requires an annual membership to be paid to RID. For more information on this exam please visit: Exam Preparations – Center for Assessment of Sign Language Interpreters
コメント