Freelance Interpreters, Translators and Post-Editors/Proofreaders

Job Posting Organization:
The Organization for security" style="border-bottom: 1px dotted #007bff !important;">Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) is the world’s largest regional security organization, comprising 57 participating States. Established to foster peace, security, and stability in Europe, the OSCE operates on a consensus basis, where all participating States enjoy equal status. The organization focuses on a range of security issues, including politico-military, economic and environmental, and human dimensions. The OSCE's Secretariat plays a crucial role in supporting the organization's operations and initiatives, ensuring effective communication and coordination among member states. For more detailed information about the OSCE and its structure, please visit their official website at http://www.osce.org/secretariat.

Job Overview:
The primary objective of this assignment is to establish and maintain a roster of qualified freelance interpreters, translators, and post-editors/proofreaders who can provide high-quality linguistic services between English and Albanian languages, and vice versa. This roster will serve as a pool of pre-vetted language professionals who may be engaged on Special Service (consultancy) Agreements as needed. The selected experts will contribute to the effective implementation of the OSCE’s mandates by delivering ad hoc, need-based services in various areas of expertise. These services include providing consecutive and/or simultaneous interpretation during official meetings, conferences, and seminars, as well as delivering accurate translations of official documents, reports, and other written outputs. Additionally, they will be responsible for post-editing and proofreading to ensure grammatical correctness and adherence to OSCE terminology and standards. The assignments will be consultancy-based and will vary in duration, ranging from a few days to several weeks or months, depending on project requirements.

Duties and Responsibilities:
Under the supervision of the Supervisor/Hiring Manager, the successful candidates will be tasked with the following duties:

• Provide accurate simultaneous and/or consecutive interpretation between English and Albanian during OSCE meetings, conferences, and events, ensuring faithful delivery that reflects the speaker’s intent and tone.
• Prepare in advance by reviewing background materials and relevant terminology, and effectively use interpretation equipment and online platforms for both on-site and remote events.
• Maintain professionalism, confidentiality, and impartiality at all times while delivering interpretation services punctually and to the required quality standards.
• Translate official OSCE documents, reports, correspondence, and training materials from English into Albanian and vice versa, ensuring linguistic accuracy and adherence to OSCE style and formatting standards.
• Conduct terminology and background research to ensure context-appropriate translations, while observing strict confidentiality and maintaining impartiality.
• Review translated texts for grammar, spelling, punctuation, and style accuracy, performing quality assurance and revision as required.
• Ensure consistency in terminology, tone, and formatting in line with OSCE standards, and verify proper use of official names, titles, and references.
• Deliver all assignments within established deadlines and quality benchmarks, ensuring high-quality outputs that meet OSCE standards of accuracy and professionalism.

Required Qualifications:
Candidates must possess a first-level university degree in interpretation/translation studies, linguistics, or a related field, or a first-level university degree in areas relevant to the OSCE mandates, along with a mandatory professional certification in translation or interpretation. They should have an excellent command of both English and Albanian, with one as a mother tongue and the other as an active language, demonstrating the ability to accurately translate complex texts in both directions. A minimum of five years of professional experience in translation, interpretation, and post-editing/proofreading is required, preferably within international organizations or similar multicultural environments. For interpreters, a minimum of 30 working days of professional interpretation services over the past three years is necessary, with at least 10 active working days per year. Proficiency in Computer-Assisted Translation (CAT) tools and the ability to deliver high-quality translations under tight deadlines are also essential.

Educational Background:
The educational background required for this position includes a first-level university degree in interpretation/translation studies, linguistics, or a related field. Alternatively, candidates may hold a first-level university degree in areas relevant to the OSCE's three mandates, provided they have a mandatory professional certification in translation or interpretation. This educational foundation is crucial for ensuring that candidates possess the necessary skills and knowledge to perform the linguistic services required by the OSCE.

Experience:
Candidates should have a minimum of five years of professional experience in translation, interpretation, and post-editing/proofreading. This experience should preferably be within international organizations, governmental institutions, or similar multicultural environments. For interpreters, it is essential to have completed at least 30 working days of professional interpretation services over the past three years, with a minimum of 10 active working days per year. This level of experience is necessary to ensure that candidates can meet the demands of the role and deliver high-quality linguistic services.

Languages:
The mandatory languages for this position are English and Albanian, with one being the mother tongue and the other an active language. Candidates must demonstrate an excellent command of both languages, with the ability to accurately translate complex texts in both directions. Proficiency in additional languages may be considered an asset, but it is not explicitly required for this position.

Additional Notes:
The consultancy-based assignments will be issued on an as-needed basis, and the duration of each assignment will vary depending on project requirements. Engagement under this roster does not constitute a continuous or full-time contractual arrangement, and there is no guarantee of assignments. Candidates are requested to indicate their proposed rates for the foreseen services in the pre-screening section of the application. The OSCE reserves the right to make final remuneration decisions based on the complexity of tasks and deliverables, as well as the degree of technical expertise required. It is important for candidates to confirm in their application that they can provide services in their individual capacity, not as part of a business entity, unless they clarify otherwise. The OSCE is committed to diversity and inclusion within its workforce and encourages qualified candidates of all nationalities and backgrounds to apply.