* If you're considering becoming a reviewer or are interested in learning more about the requirements, please take a moment to review the details provided here.
As a reviewer, you play a critical role in shaping the content that gets sent to our clients and, in many cases, ends up being read by huge audiences on the web. Your expertise and experience must shape the work that’s already been done by our community into a polished, refined piece that communicates effectively and is a perfect rendition of the source text. If you’ve been revising for a while, you’ll already know what a reviewer needs to do to ensure the quality of the translation before it is sent to our clients.
The Reviewer Role
A reviewer facilitates the end process for refining translation documents before they are delivered to the final customer. Before being assigned to a reviewer as a complete document (such as FAQs or website/marketing content), it's essential to understand that the text has undergone division into smaller parts and has been worked on by multiple editors. Therefore, the quality standards for reviews are higher compared to regular tasks.
The primary responsibility of a reviewer is to assess the post-edited portion of the text, going beyond mere proofreading. Reviewing involves thoroughly revising a translation to ensure it aligns with the intended purpose by comparing the source and target texts and making necessary corrections. This differs from proofreading, where the focus is mainly on the target text to identify errors, primarily in the target language rather than translation errors.
What's expected from a reviewer
The standards we expect from reviews are high, and it’s why you get more time to complete them. Don't rush: we expect you to use that time to scrutinize the text with an extremely high level of attention to detail.
For example, failing to miss a machine translation hallucination would be a mistake in a post-edition task. In a review, though, it’s a really critical error precisely because the level expected is higher, but also because it’s likely to end up being published immediately after you submit the review.
As a side note, we advise you to give preference to editing reviews on desktop browsers over mobile. This will allow you to work easier and spot mistakes that otherwise you might miss. Working on a reduced-size screen can compromise your visualization and the quality of the final work and in time it can actually harm your eyes.
Having said this, there are always ways in which you can enhance the quality of your work, and we’re always looking to find new ways to help with this. After reviewing clients’ feedback, we’ve gathered some insights which can help you avoid the most common mistakes. In this article, we'll explore some practical ideas for enhancing your work, building on the strengths you already possess to make sure your skills are the best they can be.
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Client's instructions
Before starting to work, please make sure you read the client’s instructions and the glossary. When looking over reviews and issues that customers have raised, one of the most frequent things that come up is where there is a specific client instruction that is not taken into account on the job. This is very easily avoided with a readthrough - after all, it takes less than a minute to read them. Moreover, the instructions may change without warning, as we aim to improve them based on a regular assessment. So please make sure you are aligned with the latest version of them. -
The glossary terms
The glossary terms weigh a lot in determining the quality of your translation. Please make sure you've read them thoroughly and that they are used accordingly in the translation. -
Fluency
Achieving a fluent, native-sounding translation is paramount to resonating with the target language audience. Reviews serve as the final quality check before the text is delivered to the client and, often, directly published on their website. Given that the text undergoes editing by various editors before reaching the reviewer, it's crucial to ensure that the review results in the highest possible quality output.
During the review process, it's essential to step back from the structure and wording of the source text, eliminating unnecessary repetitions and identifying potential false friends. Additionally, part of achieving fluency involves identifying and rectifying any stylistic, spelling, or punctuation errors that may have been overlooked during the human post-editing stage. -
Terminology
Try to understand the type of content you are working with and the terminology needed. Terminology-related issues are the second-biggest area of severe errors, after localization. If you are not comfortable with the content, you can consider skipping it and choose one you are more likely to be familiar with, enjoy, and are sure you can deliver at the highest standard. Additionally, if you are not specialized in a specific field, but are curious and want to gain information about it, you can read journals, attend industry events, or talk with people specialized in that area. -
Have a look at client's website
Go to the client’s website to check for commonly used terms. This is especially important if you are working for this client for the very first time. Going to their website to check what terms are more preferred than others will help you gain an overall understanding of what is expected from the translation. It’ll also save you time when you can’t decide what terms you should go for. -
Research
When in doubt, do some research. If checking the client’s website hasn’t made everything clear, we recommend you do additional research on the topic you are revising. This will help you not only now, but also when you’ll encounter the same or similar subject in the future. We allocated plenty of time to revision tasks, so you don’t have to stress about it when doing your research. If you want to learn how to do your research more efficiently, please check this article. It contains three overarching videos, so you can sit back and relax while learning something new. -
Cultural differences and sensitivities
Try to be aware of cultural differences and sensitivities. There’s no surefire way to build this knowledge, but a key part of being a translator is that you are expected to understand nuances and work these into your translation. -
MT hallucinations
Spot and correct MT hallucinations. This is particularly important as they are often unnoticed and result in the most frequent complaints we get from our customers. The most common types of hallucinations represent numbers, names, dates, and negatives. So please, pay attention even to the terms you would take for granted as correctly translated by the MT. It’s important to check both the source text and the target text and see if you can spot any mistakes. -
Consistency
Given that each segment undergoes editing by different editors, it's imperative for the reviewer to uphold consistency across all segments. This includes maintaining uniformity in translation choices and style. For instance, if the term "email" appears in multiple segments, it should be translated consistently throughout. Additionally, consistency in tone of voice is crucial. It's important to ensure that the final result reflects a unified tone, particularly for longer texts worked on by multiple editors. -
Formatting tags
Be aware of formatting tags and how to use them. As a reviewer, it’s likely that you’ll receive tasks with formatting or markup tags, and it’s important that you learn how to use them like a pro. Check out our guide here for more information. -
Segmentation and splitting issues
Be aware of segmentation and splitting issues which may have impacted the overall quality of the MT output you're working on. We understand that working segment by segment is a necessity on Polyglot, but please bear in mind that, if a sentence is split in a way that hinders quality, it is your responsibility to fix it in the best way possible. -
Number and dates
Ensure accuracy in numbers and dates. One critical aspect often overlooked in the review process is the accuracy of numbers and dates. While machine translation systems are powerful, they might occasionally falter in converting numerical information precisely. Therefore, it's imperative to meticulously inspect and, if necessary, correct any discrepancies in figures, percentages, or dates. Ensure that the translation accurately reflects the intended numerical information, tailored to your target language, maintaining precision and clarity. This meticulous attention to detail ensures a flawless final output and avoids potential misunderstandings arising from inaccuracies in numerical and chronological data. -
Check the result multiple times
It’s one of the oldest rules of translation: check your work thoroughly. Chances are you’ll find something on the second read-through. If you have the time, it is recommended that you take a break from the task (even a short one) and then come back to it, so you can look at it with a pair of fresh eyes. - To keep up with the ever-changing industry, you need to be dedicated to continuous learning and improvement, staying up to date with language trends, technology, and translation best practices. You can join free or paid webinars, conferences, and workshops. ProZ has a monthly calendar listed, where you can find valuable content covering many fields and with different purposes.
Ensuring Continued Access to Review Tasks
Unlike tasks, reviews don't undergo the usual evaluation process. Once completed, reviews are directly forwarded to our clients, who regularly provide feedback on the received work. The quality of reviews is monitored through client reports and ongoing assessments conducted by our Community Ops team.
To maintain access to reviews, reviewers must continue editing tasks to ensure recent work is evaluated. If a reviewer receives an evaluation rating below 4.0, or if a consistent pattern of suspicious behavior is detected during quality checks, access to reviews will be revoked.
It's important to note that maintaining a rating of 4.0 or higher for paid tasks doesn't guarantee retention of the reviewer role. In cases where persistent negative customer feedback is received, or if a reviewer consistently disregards client instructions or language guidelines, we will intervene by providing feedback. However, in severe instances, access to reviews may be revoked, and in rare cases, access to the platform may be terminated altogether.