ASL-English Interpreting at Keuka College
Did you know the number of deaf and hard of hearing Americans who are entitled to "qualified interpreters" exceeds the population of every state except California?
According to the National Association of the Deaf (NAD), more than 28 million people in America depend on ASL-English interpreters to help bridge the gap between those who are deaf and those who can hear. Interpreters work in schools, hospitals, businesses, judicial settings, conferences, national parks, and government agencies.
The U.S. Department of Labor reports that the demand for nationally certified interpreters is significantly greater than the number of professionals in the field and that demand has recently been intensified, thanks to the introduction of at least nine video relay service (VRS).
Employment of interpreters and translators is projected to increase 24 percent from 2006 to 2016, much faster than the average for other occupations. This growth will be driven partly by strong demands in health care and homeland security.
Our Program
Our ASL-English Interpreting program is geared toward hearing students
who wish to make a difference in the lives of those who are either
unable to, or have difficulty, communicating aurally.
Once you graduate, you'll have the necessary preparation to pass Level One of the National Registry of Interpreters for the Deaf (RID) interpreting certification exam. Interpreters who pass the written part (Level One) of certification are considered "pre-certified." Starting in 2012, a bachelor's degree will be required for interpreters to take the certification exam.
Keuka College's ASL-English Interpreting program will teach you to be both bilingual and bicultural; you will learn to communicate with above-average proficiency in American Sign Language and English. Additionally, more than 756 hours of hands-on experience will assist you in applying your classroom learning to the real world.
ASL interpreters must be fluent in English and ASL, which combines signing, finger-spelling, and specific grammar. ASL has its own grammatical rules, sentence structure, idioms, historical contexts, and cultural nuances. ASL interpreting, like foreign language interpreting, involves more than simply replacing a word of spoken English with a sign representing that word.
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