How to Join
Apply to join by accessing our application form. Your application must be followed up by posting in the printed and signed form using ordinary post only* with certified copies of relevant qualifications, including transcripts showing courses and grades, to the address on the form. We also encourage applicants to include a passport-type photograph for their membership card should they be accepted as a Member or Affiliate - this may also be emailed in .jpg format.
If you wish to download and print off an application form click here. Please PRINT your email address very clearly.
PLEASE READ THE IMPORTANT NOTES before proceeding.
IMPORTANT NOTES:
- Uncompleted applications will lapse after 2 months. Please POST your signed application form with supporting documents as soon as possible after lodging the online form.
PLEASE USE ORDINARY MAIL, *DO NOT USE REGISTERED MAIL, TRACKED PACKAGE OR COURIER (not even NZ Post's own courier service).
- APPLICANTS MUST LIVE AND WORK IN NEW ZEALAND, or have previously lived in New Zealand and retain significant existing links to New Zealand.
- QUALIFICATIONS MUST BE IN ENGLISH, so you may need to obtain certified translations
- Please DO NOT SEND YOUR CV - this is not a job application; experience must be backed up by documentation from employers, see: http://www.nzsti.org/faq/#experience
- TRANSLATOR membership is LANGUAGE-DIRECTION SPECIFIC. Translation direction will be INTO THE NATIVE LANGUAGE unless qualifications are held that are NZSTI-approved for acceptance for translation in both directions.
- Applicants without NZSTI-approved qualifications (or suitable extensive high-level experience) will only qualify for Observer status. See Membership Types below and the information on the 'Courses in NZ' page.
- Each application for membership is considered on an individual basis by the national council of the NZSTI, and results in admission to any one of the following three classes of membership: FULL MEMBER, AFFILIATE, or OBSERVER
Upon receipt of your documentation* we will confirm receipt of your application which is then submitted to the membership committee for consideration and recommendation. For information about what to send in with your application click here*.
Once approved, we will send you relevant documentation and an invoice for the fees due. Once your fees are received in full your membership will be activated. Please note: fees are not payable until you have been accepted into the appropriate level of membership and invoiced accordingly.Click here for a list of membership fees.
NZSTI's rigorous system of qualification approval and colleague endorsement ensures high performance by any Member.
MEMBERSHIP CATEGORIES:
MEMBERS (Full Members) are those members with any one or more of the following:
- an approved degree in translation or interpreting - for approved New Zealand courses/qualifications see
Courses-in-NZ - courses must be completed qualifications at recognised NZ tertiary institutions, with a minimum of 120 points and Level 7. (Please note: these NZ qualifications are accepted for the translation direction INTO Native Language only.) - a pass in a National Accreditation Authority for Translators and Interpreters (NAATI) Professional Translator or Interpreter examination (formerly Level III)
- other equivalent qualifications and/or experience may be considered at the Council's discretion, for example:
- published translation work (which acknowledges the name of the translator)
- at least 5 years full-time employment as a translator or interpreter within an organisation that provides supervision and professional development
- in exceptional cases, a well documented outstanding record of self-employed translation work or interpreting assignments at a very high level (e.g. conferences, high-level political meetings)
- for further information click here
AFFILIATES are those persons whose qualifications do not qualify them for Ordinary Member status. Generally Affiliates will have attended one-year or part-time training courses to obtain qualifications in translation and/or interpreting studies. Any one or more of the following shall qualify applicants for Affiliate status:
- NAATI Para-professional examination, (formerly level II) as the overall benchmark;
- Successful completion of one of the NZ Courses listed on our website as being accepted for NZSTI Affiliate Status see
Courses-in-NZ - courses must be completed qualifications at recognised NZ tertiary institutions, with a minimum of 30 points and Level 6. (Please note: these NZ qualifications are accepted for the translation direction INTO Native Language only.)
- The Auckland University Postgraduate Diploma of Translation Studies or Master of Professional Studies, with pass grades below the grade required for Membership.
- A three-year language degree with a certified significant translation component, equivalent to part-time translation studies.
- Other equivalent qualifications and/or experience may be considered at the Council's discretion, for example:
- at least 3 years full-time employment as a translator or interpreter within an organisation that provides supervision and professional development
- well documented evidence of at least 7 years regular and extensive work as a self-employed translator or interpreter
- for further information click here
OBSERVERS are those persons who have an interest in the society and profession, but do not have any NZSTI-approved qualification in either interpreting or translation. Observers are not considered to be qualified practitioners, and therefore, under the Society’s constitution, may not use the title Translator or Interpreter, or describe themselves as a 'translator' or 'interpreter'. For full details, consult section 10.7 of the NZSTI Constitution.
To request further information about the application process, or request additional information about the society itself, please contact the national secretary (click here)
