Freelance interpreter/translator resume examples from 2026
Land interviews using Zippia's AI-powered resume builder.
All resume examples
How to write a freelance interpreter/translator resume
Craft a resume summary statement
A well-written resume summary is basically an elevator pitch. You are summing up your skills and experience in a few sentences to wow recruiters, hiring managers, and decision makers into giving you an interview. Here are some tips to putting your best foot first with your resume summary:
Step 1: Mention your current job title or the role you're pursuing.
Step 2: Include your years of experience in freelance interpreter/translator-related roles. Consider adding relevant company and industry experience as relevant to the job listing.
Step 3: Highlight your greatest accomplishments. Here is your chance to make sure your biggest wins aren't buried in your resume.
Step 4: Again, keep it short. Your goal is to summarize your experience and highlight your accomplishments, not write a paragraph.
These four steps should give you a strong elevator pitch and land you some freelance interpreter/translator interviews.Please upload your resume so Zippia’s job hunt AI can draft a summary statement for you.
List the right project manager skills
Your Skills section is an easy way to let recruiters know you have the skills to do the job. Just as importantly, it can help your resume not get filtered out by hiring software. Here is how to make the most of your skills section and make sure you have the right keywords:
- Look to the job listing. You often need to include the exact keywords from the job description. Take note of the skills listed for the job.
- Put all relevant hard and soft skills in your skills section.
- Be specific. If you are too broad, you may not be giving the best picture of your skills and leave the hiring manager uncertain of your abilities.
- Be up to date. Software names change and companies merge. Don't look out of touch by being careless.
- Be accurate. Spelling and even upper or lowercase can dramatically change meanings. Make sure you are correctly listing your skills.
Here are example skills to include in your “Area of Expertise” on a freelance interpreter/translator resume:
- Medical Appointments
- Healthcare Professionals
- Vice Versa
- Interpretation Services
- Mental Health
- Sign Language
- Social Services
- Translation Services
- Language Services
- Social Security
- English-Spanish
- Literature
- Target Language
- ASL
- Medical Interpretation
- Facilitate Communication
- Physical Therapy
- Government Agencies
- NYC
- Birth Certificates
- Law Firm
- Court Proceedings
- Subtitles
- Hindi
- Public Schools
- LEP
- USCIS
- Simultaneous Interpretation
- Creole
- K-12
Zippia’s AI can customize your resume for you.
How to structure your work experience
Your employment history is arguably one of the most important parts of your resume. It shows you have experience and foundation in your field to successfully master the freelance interpreter/translator position. Here is how to most effectively structure your work experience:
- List your most recent experience first, followed by earlier roles in reverse chronological order. Employers care about your most recent experience the most.
- Start with your job title, company name, city, and state on the left. Align dates in month and year format on the right-hand side.
- Include only recent, relevant jobs.
How to write freelance interpreter/translator experience bullet points
Your resume is your chance to show your biggest accomplishments. Don't just list your job responsibilities, instead take the opportunity to show why you're really good at what you do. Here is how you do that:
- Start with strong action verbs like managed, spearheaded, created, etc. Your goal is to show what you did and verbs will help demonstrate your contributions.
- Use numbers to quantify your achievements. Did you save time with a new report? Increase revenue? How large was the team you managed?
- Keep it concise. You're highlighting your achievements. Consider if all details you are sharing are relevant, or can be written more efficiently.
Here are effective examples from freelance interpreter/translator resumes:
Work history example #1
Freelance Interpreter/Translator (Part-Time)
Panasonic Electric Works Corporation of America
- Edited/translated telecommunications training and installation manuals.
- Translated and interpreted both verbal and written communications between the company and different manufactures located in Brazil
- Translated technical, legal and human resources related documents and interpreted in meetings, supporting communication between Japanese and American representatives.
- Answered general office telephone line and scheduled and confirmed appointments and meetings.
- Cooperated in teams to facilitate communication between English-speaking and Korean-speaking audio engineers at musical concerts.
Work history example #2
Freelance Interpreter/Translator
CyraCom
- Provided assistance to teacher to facilitate the learning and communication environment between children and parents.
- Averaged over twenty medically-related communications per day from doctors and hospitals across the United States.
- Certified according to the ACTFL proficiency guidelines for Persian/Farsi equivalent to 4+ on ILR scale.
- Established accurate, smooth and seamless communication process between two parties including explaining cultural differences when needed.
- Served as a liaison between providers and LEP patients according to their cultural backgrounds.
Work history example #3
Technical Translator
Brunswick County Sheriff's Office
- Developed automation test scripts in Python using Selenium IDE to test web application components.
- Interpreted documents, conversations and related data in Hindi, Urdu, Tamil, Malayalam and Arabic.
- Improved documentation by establishing and supervising processes for customer communication, and by fully completing all administrative paperwork for each unit.
- Maintained product documentations to ensure it is current and relevant * Gathered requirement and developed Team SharePoint site
- Assisted students with computer based questions regarding Microsoft Office and other internet applications.
Work history example #4
Interpreter And Translator
GOOD SAMARITAN HEALTH SYS FLORIDA
- Facilitated daily cross-cultural communication between patients, family members and others, along with medical providers and staff.
- Analyzed and prioritized incoming communications by determining which methods were producing more important and mission relevant information.
- Interpreted with combat/patrol team communications with local populace in Dari and Pashto.
- Provided accurate and idiomatic translations of general and technical material using correct syntax and expression from and to Somali.
- Translated audio and text from English to Romanian and Romanian to English for the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
Zippia’s AI can customize your resume for you.
Add an education section to your resume
- The highest degree you have achieved.
- TWhere you attended school, and the dates (Although if you graduated some time ago, leave the date off to avoid ageism)
- TField of study
- TAny honors, relevant coursework, achievements, or pertinent activities
Here are some examples of good education entries for resumes:
Bachelor's Degree in english
Ohio State University, Columbus, OH
2001 - 2004
Master's Degree in business
DeVry University, Oakbrook Terrace, IL
2010 - 2011
Highlight your freelance interpreter/translator certifications on your resume
Certifications can be a crucial part of your resume. Many jobs have required certifications.
Include the full name of the certification, along with the name of the issuing organization and date of obtainment.
If you have any of these certifications, be sure to include them on your freelance interpreter/translator resume:
- Certified Translator
- Certified Medical Interpreter (CMI)
- Certified Medical Interpreter - Spanish (CMI)
- Certified Interpreter
- Medical Assistant
- Certified Billing and Coding Specialist (CBCS)