I want to be an interpreter so badly. I learned sign language by seeing others do it as well and fell in love with it. I love doing it:) I love your channel, you are a great signer:)
Chances are your receptive skills will be what needs to be developed most. In the years I've been teaching ASL it seems that the receptive skills are the most difficult for most people to develop. I think I've only actually met one person who it was the other way around for and his expressive skills were the most difficult for him, but his receptive skills were sharp.
@@MusicInMotion67 i taught too, the receptive skills are the last to develop and the first you loose when you are no longer using sign language. I have been retired for 4 years and use the ASL videos i find on youtube to keep my receptive skills sharp.
my first ASL instructor did not tell us right away whether or not she was Deaf or hearing. eventually she told us she was hearing, but there was absolutely no talking allowed in the class even from day 1. it seemed hard a first, but it made us learn faster. luckily, I live in Austin, TX where there is a large Deaf community and there are Deaf events happening all the time that we were encouraged to attend to practice, and learn about Deaf culture.
[Jenna] Yeah going to Deaf events and getting involved with local Deaf communities are very important when learning ASL. I'm glad your teacher encourage that.
Thank you so much for answering my question! My parents really aren't enthusiastic about the idea of me becoming an interpreter. They think I'll get bored or that I won't be able to do much with it/support myself financially. Especially because I used to say I wanted to go to vet school. Anyway.. Thank you again for making my decision a bit easier! I really love watching your videos! X
Emnée van den Brandeler Emnée, I don't know about in your area, but as long as you find an area that has a good population of deaf people then you will find lots of work and you could always work for the government! You will never get bored interpreting because you are always learning new things and in all types of situations. Good luck to you and follow your dreams! :) Happy to help. Oh and btw people change their minds all the time on what they want to do, so don't worry about that lol.
I really loved your advice at the end...very practical. Start slow, get social and see how you like it...if it excites you then keep going!! I'm hearing and have had a fascination for ASL for a lonnnggg time (on a back burner of "interests", my mom was a speech path who would use basic signs when we were kids) and feel like the process in taking the next steps are unfolding. It's exciting and affirming to have found your channel! I'm looking forward to learning more about you!! Thank you!
Hi Jill My name is Erin and I am currently studying ASL at a community college in Philadelphia ... I'm just over a year Ito my studies and have completely fallen in love with not only the language but also the culture and community... I saw that you attended NTID and was so excited!! Through my ASL class I had to attend events and at one I met an awesome women (whose deaf) that works at RIT and she introduced me to the school!!! I just submitted my application to RIT 1. I missed NTID deadline and 2. So I can finish my criminal justice minor and begin my deaf studies minor while I wait for next falls application process to open. I was hoping I could speak you more about your time at NTID as well as your interpreting career!!! Thank you so much for your videos!! Love you and your wife!!! Erin
I really appreciate this video. I was going to take ASL in high school but they removed the class the year before I started. I recently went somewhere and a deaf person had an interpreter and I got the chance to talk a little the him through his interpreter and after I talked to the interpreter herself. I was so fascinated and excited by the language. Ive now decided to go to school for ASL and I found your channel. Im waiting to have the money for the first class but I just appreciate your videos. You and the other woman who is in your videos are really informative. I only pick up like 4 or 5 signs of hers a video but the language is beautiful and im looking for all the information I can. I really want to dig in. Im also thankful for this video because at 21 a lot of my hearing friends think its "too late" for me to start. youre proof that im not. so thank you
I want to be an interpreter for asl really badly! I am only 12 years old and I want to take classes at my local community center but classes don’t start until spring😩My friends mom is also a teacher for ASL so she has helped me a little bit in the past😊
wow, I think that is so AWESOME!!! Your story is very similar to mines as to why I want to become an interpreter. How cool, I am now in the process of applying to Galluadet for the fall 2017 semester, I hope I get in. My desire is to immerse myself in the language so that I can give good results as needed, happy New year.
I think it's something you also have to have a passion for. I was seven years old when I learned and then was away from it for many years, but I retained everything I'd learned. When I actually started ASL classes my Instructor was surprised of how much I knew for an ASL 1 student until she heard my story, but she was surprised that I hadn't lost it in all those years I didn't use it.
Absolutely! you are right! I don't judge at all and I do encourage others that are interested to learn more and take classes as well in ASL! its hard but it gets easy once you fully understand it and know how to us it correctly!
I just want to say thank-you so much for your videos! Especially the Deaf-Hearing relationship tips video! It really helped me understand the differences that a Hearing person and a Deaf person would have in the relationship. I'm soon going to meet this guy I've been talking to for some time and he is Deaf and I'm Hearing. I've been practising my signing (though I've never signed ever before) and I've even sent him a few videos of my attempts and he's pretty impressed! It's actually a lot of fun because it's so different and I've never really been exposed to ASL or signing/ and even Deaf culture but honestly thanks so much for your videos and you and your wife are SO adorable! :)
+ASL Stew - Thanks so much!! It means a lot! And haha, yes I'm definitely myself around anyone :). I think it is important to never fake anything or you know have a facade. But thanks again! and Happy New Year!!
I'm in the Bachelor program at University to become a (Norwegian) sign language interpreter, and I think it's so fascinating that after just one semester, I can keep a normal conversation with my (Deaf) teachers :) I really think it helped that my teachers are deaf, to be honest. Good job on the channel, it's amazing :)
just found your channel and subscribed :) i want to be an interpreter currently in asl 2 at college trying to make it my minor and teaching my major. but im having lots of trouble specially since my teacher is deaf and puts nothing online so if i miss something in class im screwed :/ and i dont have any deaf friends to help me. another big reason im worried ill fail is we need community hours but i dont know whats going on and dont know anything to go with me places with my anxiety and being a slow beginner im scared to go places and sign. im a cashier at walmart and sign to the deaf customers if i need to for basic stuff but in the past ive tried signing to people and when they find out im learning and am slow they ignore me :/ so i dont know what to do to get better :( i want deaf friends but not sure how to and how to get into the deaf community in my area.
***** Well first I'm happy to hear that you are learning sign language. If you are having trouble in class, then I would speak to your teacher. Tell him/her that you missed some information and could they go over it with you. I'm sure they would be happy to help. That is what the teacher is there for. When I started I didn't have any Deaf friends either. I was really scared to go to events too. Sometimes you just have to get over being scared and just do it. I would ask your teacher what resources there are in your area for Deaf events. You can look online if your area has a deaf club, or a club through your college. Maybe talk with your classmates to see if they are going to any events. I found that going with another person made me not so nervous. But again don't be scared to sign to Deaf people. They don't bite... . :) Good luck and I hope you get to become an interpreter! Let me know.
Your story is so interesting to me because my mother was a part-time interpreter when I was very young and my dad's sister tried to learn it too. I think, sometimes, passion is hereditary!
Wow, thank you so much for this video! I went through high school thinking that I wanted to be an interpreter, but my idea was always shot down by teachers. So now, I am two years into my bachelor's in psychology- not really a place to switch majors, or leave the school. Is it worth it to go back to school for interpreting after I complete my bachelor's?
Sarah Royal If you really want to become an interpreter then that's up to you. If you really enjoy psychology and want to pursue that then maybe incorporate sign language into that and work with Deaf people.
Fluency in ASL takes more than 2 yrs. 5 to 7 years is the iusualy numberive heard. You cud get very good nearly fluent and help with deaf ppl needing counsing...I would suggest psychology of deafness... study mores, and traditions...introductions, etc.
As a kid, I would see interpreters at school every now and then and I remember totally focusing on them. This was one of the only times I saw sign language anywhere, the other times being those videos online of people at fast food places using ASL lol. So it interested me but I never saw it being used for day-to-day conversation so I guess it just never occurred to me I could really learn it. Flash forward to this past school year, my staring at interpreters in school had continued throughout the years and I had wondered several times what it would be like to actually learn it. One day, I was scrolling through Netflix and decided to find a show to binge-watch. Behold my introduction to "Switched at Birth" and seeing sign language being used by ordinary people. So I've been trying to learn. I might even pursue a career that involves signing.
[Jill] Yes, I have heard many people say they were fascinated with sign language and that really started their journey. Good luck on your education and future!
Being an interpreter is a challenging job. Every session is different with unexpected events or outcomes. Every day provides a learning and development opportunity. It is very rewarding to help other people, even if you never meet them in person.
Wow thank you so much for this video! I first saw sign language when I was really young at church. They had a interpreter and I was very curious as to what he was doing (reminder: I was very young). Then in 5th grade I took this asl elective and all they taught us was songs and stuff. When I was 14 I discovered a show called switched at birth and they did sign Language and everything. It kind of just reminded me my love for sign language. I'm 15 now almost 16 and I'm almost 100% sure I want to be a sign language interpreter. I actually know enough to have a very basic conversation. Also tomorrow I'm starting a sign language course tomorrow at this community college. I'm so excited! I have never been this eager to learn something before and I think becoming a interpreter is the right thing for me.
I'm a 49 year old woman and learned sign language at the age of seven through a pair of sisters who were Deaf and wanted to become friends with my sister and I. I fell in-love with it and continued my sister forgot everything she had once learned and didn't know I remembered it until she'd seen me interpreting for my daughter's wedding. Anyway, although, I had gone many years of not using it when I moved down south (we had a very small Deaf/hh community which I never saw) I had never forgotten what I knew. I didn't learn ASL but SEE sign as a child. I finally met our local Deaf at my church and was invited to a Deaf dinner. When I went I was so nervous that I forgot everything I knew except fingerspelling lol I was terrified. I hadn't been around it for over nine years at that point and worried about messing up and looking stupid. So all night long I done what you never want to do which was fingerspell all night lol. The very second I shut the door to my car when I got in it to go home, everything came back to me. I was soooo mad. Well a few years later I felt God was calling me to the Deaf ministry which for me meant moving back to So. Cal where I lived before moving out there. I'm from N. California. Long story short, I ended up taking the Interpreting program through RCC and although I never got to finish it, my fluency came back rather easily once I was around it again as did my receptive skills. For me that's always been the one thing I've struggled to maintain. I've not been around my Deaf/hh friends on a regular basis in awhile and it's been a few years since my teaching days at my church so once again, my receptive skills are a little rusty, but only with some people. Is it just me or do you also find yourself having a difficult time understanding some people? It's almost as if they have such a strong "accent" for lack of better word, or their signing is so sloppy that it just doesn't make any sense and almost feels like it's sign from a different country. Some people such as yourself and your wife I have no issues understanding, It's very clear and easy to understand but some are so dang difficult and I've been doing this for 42 years now, so longer than you've been alive. Do you ever find yourself struggling with this also?
[Jill] Yes there are definitely some people that I don't understand as easily as others and it could be for varied reasons. I think this happens to everyone. Most people cannot understand everyone 100% of the time. Don't worry about that. Just always try your best and ask for clarification if you don't get it. :)
That's what I do. I have one friend (hh student) I met in my friend's sign language class she was teaching at our church. She needed another Interpreter at the church as well as another teacher in the class to help her so she asked if I'd do it. Anyway, this friend of mine who's mother is Deaf and his brother I think is hh as well grew up doing SEE sign. They were not culturally "D"eaf and it drove the local Deaf up the wall because his signing was apparently all over the place, so it was actually other Deaf within our community that he knew who got him to take the class, my friend, then later I was teaching at our church. They were always upset with him for not signing correctly well back to the original story, for the longest time I couldn't figure out why I struggled so much to understand what he was signing, until one day when we were chatting, I realised he had a tendency to switch his dominant hand from left to right throughout a conversation, he didn't have a "dominant" hand he used so it made it difficult at times to know not only what to expect, but what he was signing. For some reason, it made a huge difference. Once I figured this out I started getting onto him about choosing a hand and sticking with it as his dominant hand. Once he started doing that, I finally was able to have an easy conversation that I could also understand. The older signs, even the SEE signs never bothered me as they were what I grew up learning, but for some reason, his switching back and forth on his dominant hand really made it difficult for me.
I love your nail art in this video. I saw your one about tattoos and piercings, are there ever regulations on what you can wear on your nails while you're interpreting? Does it help, or detract from your signing? Just curious. I'm a new subscriber and have been binge watching your videos, you and Jenna are awesome.
+fortheloveofLDS Haha thanks. I don't usually wear nail polish when I'm interpreting. If I do ever, I wear neutral light colors. I don't want them to be distracting.
I want to be a interpreter in the future because I have a deaf older sister. I have been learning sign language since I was a very young child so I could learn how to communicate with my sister. Right now I'm thirteen years old, I get confused or mixed up with the American and Spanish sign language. 😂 So far I'm reading a book on ASL, using an app called "Marlee Signs", and asking my deaf sister on how to do some certain signs. ☺
[Jill] It sounds like you are doing great learning so far. As you get older, you will learn more and will improve over time. I'm happy to hear you are communicating with your sister. That's great! Good luck with your studies!
Hi Jill, I work in the medical field and through a client of mine started learning sign every day for the past few months. I love it! But at times feel discouraged because I feel like I have learned a lot but have trouble keeping up when I see conversations. I would love to see a 100 basic conversational sign video. Also I am aware of the culture and would love to be more immersed in it but not sure where to start other than taking asl classes. So if you have any additional suggestions that would really help me out! My ultimate goal is to become a Physician Assistant who can sign with my patients.
A Falcon My best suggestion is to yes take a sign language class. That will help you to get the basics of sign language. It will make it an easier process to learn if you have a formal environment. If possible take it from a Deaf professor. That is good for multiple reasons, such as they are a native signer so they can teach you more native nuances and such. Also, they will have access to the Deaf community. There is where you will become more comfortable signing and can interact more with Deaf people. If not then look into a local Deaf club and see if there are any events that you can go to and practice your signing. Hope that helps, and good luck on becoming a physician's assistant!
I'm currently learning British sign language 101 I hope thought after I complete this course I'll go on to do level 102, I first came interested in sign when I watch hear say, which is like a show that is on bbc and I was also fascinated, I one day hope that I'll be an interpreter myself, but Bsl courses are limited where I live which is really frustrating id love to learnt Asl one day too I've dreamed of going to school In America to do it but there isn't many exchange schools that would consider it, I just hope that I'm on the right path anyhow and I hope that one day I'll be fluent in either Bsl or Asl you're an inspiring person!
+HeartFallenstar Thank you so much! Just keep learning what you can. If school opportunities are limited then maybe you could try to work at a Deaf program or school and learn more there. See if it's possible to find a Deaf mentor. Someone who is willing to work with you and help you along the way. Many people learned and still are learning that way if school is not an option. I'm sure you will do great! 😄
+ASL Stew I am also learning BSL and am on the level 3 course with my exams in Feb/April/May this year. I recently got a job supporting deaf people, all of whom have additional needs. Although their signing skills are not necessarily the best, there are other support workers who are deaf and sign BSL fluently, so I can improve my skills by conversing with them. Opportunities in the UK are quite limited though, I hope to apply for the level 6 course in September and on completion of that I understand you can work as a TSLI (Trainee Sign Language Interpreter) whilst you study on the level 6 interpreting course in order to become fully registered.
+JC That sounds like a great thing to do. I worked at a Deaf school while in my interpreting degree to improve my signing skills. Sounds like you are on the right path to success. Good luck!
[Jenna] They do accept hearing students for certain programs like interpreting and education I believe. You can check out their website and find the right contact info to learn more.
I spent 2 yrs there.. loved it. Deaf people from around the world. ( My great - great.........great... back to Thomas Mathew on Martha's Vineyard. Knew sign language generations ago.
Hi Jill, what type of interpreting did you start doing? And what are you most comfortable doing now? Do you get particular assignments, especial events, medical, etc? If you want to interpret for doctors or for a especial college class, do you need a special degree?
+Escuela Lightroom en Español I started doing community work. I did a variety of jobs including educational, medical (basic things), and many others. Now I'm most comfortable with educational interpreting (secondary mostly) and VRS (just because I have done it for so long). If you want to mainly interpret for medical then you can get a medical certification (although I don't think it is required). If you want to work in legal (legally) then you need to get a legal certification.
Because I love your channel and watch all of your videos then get so many questions... (: I don't know if this is mentioned somewhere else or not, but you met Jenna after you became an interpreter, right? Also considering you started signing as an adult and how you sign so much because it's your job and it's such a big part of your life, do you ever get painful joints? I know it's always rougher on the body to learn sign later in life whereas when you're a young kid learning ASL as your first language, you adjust easier. (At least that's what I have heard.) Or have your arms, fingers, wrists etc. taken to the repetitive movement fairly well?? Thanks!!
+chemha55 Yes I was well into my sign langauge journey when I met Jenna. I do have issues with my wrists, but I notice it's more of a problem when I'm on my phone a lot or on the computer a lot. Also, my grandma had told me later on that our family has weak wrists... oh well lol.
I really really want to become an interpreter for the deaf because I have known ASL since I was 6 months old and I am pretty flueant. I am going to take some classes during the smer and I als work in a DHH class during the summer.
I'm actually in the same exact situation right now bc I'm a senior taking a sign language class at my community college and I'm applying to Uni of Rochester and Gallaudet right now, really nervous bc I'm hearing and only had one deaf friend who graduated last year, I'm just scared that if I went straight into a deaf college I wouldn't fit in, but it comforts me to know that someone was in the same boat as me at one point!
Rylee, I find it amazing that you, a hearing person, are applying for Deaf schools! Such an honor to work alongside them! I took ASL classes my sophomore, junior, and senior years of highschool at a community college, and now that I am graduated, I was accepted into that same community college interpreting program. I am telling you, interpreting is so very difficult, but it is amazing to you are interested in it. I applaud you for applying to Gallaudet and Rochester. My ASL teacher for the past three years went to Rochester and my interpreting instructor went to Gallaudet (and he is hearing) and they said they loved both. He said that it was hard at first for him to fit in, but as the first semester progressed, he made a lot of friends and they accepted him. He was no longer hearing, nor was he Deaf at that time. They thought of him as an ally, which is exactly what you want to be as an interpreter. I hope your college endeavors go well, and I know that I am a complete stranger to you ,but I want you to know that I am praying for you!! Interpreting is very difficult (and I can say this because I am in the program right now) but it is SO VERY rewarding. Also, I have MANY friends who went to Gallaudet and absolutely LOVED it. If you have any questions, let me know, I would be happy to help you as best as I can! ~Alexandria
Alexandria Grace thank you so much Alexandria, it means a ton!! I actually found out after class tonight that I have a local interpreter whose sister is the admissions director for HUG at Gallaudet so I'm definitely feeling more comfortable with applying!
I know I'm very late to finding this video and your channel but I was wondering if you could share why you decided to attend NTID rather than Gallaudet despite being accepted into Gallaudet? I'm curious about what helped you make such a decision. I'm sorry if this comes across as rude, I don't mean it to be. (I have ASD so it's difficult for me to try to comment on videos or talk in general really in relation to my difficulties with social cues and communication which is just one part of it.) I'm thinking that I want to go to school and study to become an interpreter then go get professional certification afterwards but I'm not sure where I want to go and seeing your thoughts would help me with this kind of thing. Thank you for your time.
[Jill] Sure I can explain why. As you know I was accepted into both and so I talked with my advisor/teacher at that time. She suggested that I attend NTID because of the school reputation. NTID is a more technical school and not as much as a "party" school. Gallaudet is a more of a social school. It is still great academically, but she just felt that my personality fit NTID better than Gallaudet. Either school is great. Just depends on what you what.
Thank you for all your information! I am a mom of 11 kiddos and I am turning 50 in 2020! I’ve been a stay home mom for 21 years but a now starting to figure out what I want to be when I grow up. Lol. I am interested in learning to sign and interpret. I’m a little overwhelmed with the steps I need to take. Are you suggesting to people to first take a sign class at a local college just to see if there’s an actual interest? And then if there is... then move forward with getting a certificate? Or I’d there an actual degree in asl? Sorry... my mind is a little mushy these days. Easily confused. Lol
Wow, that's awesome about the kids and turning 50! I would always say that you should see how you feel about learning a language and everything that's involved first. It is a life long path. There are many schools that have ASL/English interpretation degrees and some just have ASL related fields. Good luck!
I'm attending an ASL college program right now and am wanting to eventually become an interpreter. I'm really enjoying ASL but I'm curious though how to become involved in the Deaf community when most of my time outside of school and work is with my family and I'm not a big event kind of person. Also as an introvert I find social interactions a bit uncomfortable. I'm very friendly and am able to meet people but I'm a little shy and don't always start the conversation. If interpreters need to be more extraverted, then I need to really think about how I can get out of my comfort zone and if this is really the right path for me. Thanks.
Interpreters do not need to be there extroverted. I would consider myself an ambivert but more leaning towards introvert. Just try to attend smaller functions like maybe getting involved in your ASL club/Deaf club if you have one. Take a friend along to events if you are nervous. You don't have to be super involved... but still enough.. if that makes sense. Good luck!
You are a beautiful signer. That's so cool that you have signing in your genes :) I'm an interpreter as well. If you don't mind me asking, are you certified? Not sure what state you live in and what the state certification requirements are there?
brianaott Well thank you! Yes I am NIC certified (NIC Master). I believe the state I live in, New York, does not have a state certification, just NIC. I know each state is different, and some areas such as legal and sometimes medical will require certification even if no state requirements.
That's awesome! Good for you! I'm not NIC certified yet but I'm working on it! I'm just interpreting at a community college for now and some agency work which both have assessed my skills. Hopefully I will take the NIC soon! In CA, we also have the EIPA for educational interpreting as well.
brianaott Yeah I don't think age has anything to do with being certified. I feel you just do it when you are ready. I got certified a few months after graduating my ITP and many people said people just graduating couldn't do it. Well.... :p to that!
So my sound was muted when I played the video and I can't sign...I saw what it is like to want to watch something and not be able to because there are no subtitles or a typed up transcript. :/
I think it's interesting what you said about sign language being "genetic". My mom started learning sign language through a deaf friend (Troy Kotsur). She also went to school for the same reason as you did - deaf education - but didn't like the job and left. She had done some interpreting throughout college too to pay for stuff. Even though she didn't pursue a career with sign language, she still keeps herself immersed with the deaf community so I've always been surrounded by the culture and want to pursue a career as an interpreter myself. I actually decided this before I even knew that my mom had done interpreting; but yeah that was an unnecessarily long story for a simply point but I thought that was interesting :)
Do you have any suggestions on how to meet deaf people? I took sign language classes a few years ago and really want to get back into using it, but I don't know anyone to practice with.
jenlareine I would say you could look into any local Deaf organizations and see if they have any events you could attend. Also, local Deaf clubs. You could also see if any Facebook groups have people in your area that would want to get together to help practice sign with you.
haha I can relate to you! I feel like sign language is in my genetics as well. My grandma was deaf and knew sign language (although I never met her) and I have naturally been fond with deaf people :) can you be accepted in Gallaudet even if you're hearing? It's something I am wondering about because I am interested in being an interpreter or a TOD. Thanks!! Nice video :))
+Libby B. I'm not sure now, but I was accepted at Gallaudet years ago but chose NTID. They had (haves still?) a HUG (hearing undergraduate) program that accepts a limited number of hearing students every year for certain degrees (like interpreting). You can look into it and see. I'm sure they still have something like that. That's cool about your "genetic" link to the Deaf world.
Perhaps its genetics....I am a registered nurse and it wasn't until after I told my mom that I wanted to be a nurse that she told me about her brief work in community/ medical health...this was when she lived in Mexico so I'm not sure how her work would translate but it was for sure along the lines of a nurse...without all the schooling.
Hi! Just a little comment and question: Why did you put music while you are talking? x) It's harder to understand what you say. I'm trying to get everything by looking at you, but, as I'm beginning to learn LSQ, it's not that easy neither. Anyway, it's just a comment. I really like your videos too! :D
+jtwriter1 Well I add music as i think it's pleasing, but if it inhibits your learning you can try with the sound off. I do caption my videos so you can still understand what I'm saying. :) Good luck with learning LSQ. I don't know that but sounds funs to learn. THANKS!
+ASL Stew Oh! I didn't think of captions for that. Good idea, thank you! LSQ is the quebecker sign language. I'd like to become an interpreter too. ^^ Some signs are the same in ASL and LSQ, but not every one, so it's kind of confusing, haha. Anyway, your vids really help me. Thank you!
Wow that's awesome !! I'm really interested in going to school got American sign language I took it in high school and I know greetings and finger spelling . I want to be an interpreter but not for education ? What should I go into ?
[Jill] If you just want to work with Deaf people, then there are many jobs that are not interpreting. Here is a video I made about it. ruclips.net/video/KtXrzu-UyMw/видео.html
I would love to be a sign language interpret, I would have to do it online, because I work full time and I'm in my 40s, I heard about Gallaudet, I would to go there, but I have to do it online, I'm trying to get in a program or meet people
I do not think there are many online sign language interpreter programs because a good portions of the curriculum is one to one communication and actually using the language. Although online is a good resource there are many signs that do not lend themselves to a 2 dimensional medium like video. For gaulladet, as a hearing person, you have to have completed a certain number of classes in ASL as all the communication on campus IS in asl only. try looking for programs where you can meet with people face to face and learn the basics.
I have suspected Traumatic Brain Injury. I used to get very dizzy from watching a lot of ASL, and still do somewhat if I go over my limits. I learned ASL through books, videos, etc., but mostly books cuz they don't move.
+ASL Stew That's a part of my problem. I have Central Auditory Processing Disorder as a part of the TBI, and have faced a lot of misunderstanding and discrimination for having this. It's from baseball vs. head. I'm trying to help raise awareness. I know Braille and some ASL from this experience. ASL classes made me so dizzy I had to quit and self-teach.
+ASL Stew Almost no one has heard of my TBI diagnoses, including most of my doctors and the ASL interpreters I have encountered. CAPD is when the ears work fine but the brain messes up what you hear. I went through vision therapy for some of the brain-vision issues, am self-rehabbing currently.
+ASL Stew I don't want to fill up your comments section. A good intro book on CAPD is When the Brain Can't Hear. I forget the author's name. There's plenty of online info on vision therapy and TBI. Please let me know if you have any questions.
+amadmavworld It's fine you can comment as much as you want. :) I'm sorry to hear you seem like you are having a hard time. I have heard the auditory processing now that you mention it. That must be frustrating. I hope all goes well and you find what works for you. :)
I really would like to do my bachelor's in interpreting but I live in NYC and it doesn't have one and I have a one year old and a deaf husband who wouldn't like it if I left to study out of state. I'm currently doing my bachelor's in something else and I hate it. I'm thinking later I'll join a interpreting program when I finish my bachelor's but my husband is almost 40 and I'm 30 he thinks it's an waste of time. I feel so discouraged because it will take years before I can make a living of interpreting since I'm a bit older starting out
I like ur video I am still learning sign language too and I have a deaf boyfriend too we will be together for almost 5 years in august 18 how do u know if u like the same thing in common
tanya quinton Well I guess the only way to know if you like common things is to talk about what you like and see if they like it too. Congrats on your almost 5 years together! ;)
Natalie A For an AAS it's 2 years, but if you want to sit for national certification it takes a BS/BA degree which is 4 years. To become totally fluent may take longer.
+ASL Stew Fluency is key! Then interpreting skills! Then take the certification exam! There is something called Alternative Pathway to the BA. If you have years of experience, credits and other things, they can add up to the equivalent of a BA. There are so many levels of fluency! The goal for interpreters is to have the same fluency as an educated native-speaker/signer of the given language. The main skill, however, is that one be a linguist and always have the desire to continually improve.
+Irene Bustos Here is a link to a Gallaudet page. You can click on the yellow tabs and then pick continent/area and it will give you a list of the signed languages there. Hopefully this helps in what you are looking for. libguides.gallaudet.edu/content.php?pid=114804&sid=991920
Just saw this video and really appreciated it. I want to get into a career where I can use signing but don't have the money to go to school to get any certifications. Do you know of any other kind of jobs where signing is usefull and appreciated?
Destinee Hunt Well in general, any place that has Deaf people go to it would benefit from having a person who can sign. Often if Deaf know a place has a person that can sign they are more willing to go since communication is easier. As to specific jobs, it really depends. There are jobs like counselor, advocate, social services, psychologist, and others that you could specialize in working with Deaf people. If you want to become an interpreter and money is the issue, then I would speak to a local college and look into getting a scholarship or possibly grants.
Hi. Are there any good resources for getting ASL basics online? I absolutely need the audio and audio description of how any signs are made. (Also: I really suck in trying to read peopleʻs faces or facial expressions. My expressions are not easy either - as itʻs often much easier to talk or concentrate in something when my eyes are closed. Sorry - VI...)
You do not need the "audio descriptions of how the signs are made". If you're learning Spanish, or French, do you need the English words at the same time? Please understand ... ASL (American Sign Language) is a language, first and foremost. It is acquired the same way any language is acquired. By using it. Trial and error. Communicating with those who use the language and making mistakes so they can correct you is the ONLY and BEST way to learn. ASL is not English on the hands. It has its own grammar, ways of conveying ideas, just like a spoken language has its own grammar and ways of conveying ideas. Think of concepts, not words.
what type of interpreting degree do you have, like have you taken the NIC? I'm currently in the interpreting program at my college. I'm still towards the beginning with taking intro to interpreting and ASL classes
I would say look into your local college/university for taking basic ASL classes if you have. Once you have some fluency, then you can apply to interpreting programs. The only one I personally can recommend is RIT/NTID as I graduated from there. You could ask in the Facebook group "Discover Interpreting!" if anyone has other recommendations. :)
what commuinty college did you go to I live in Rochester so I'm just wondering what one you went to I have my associates and I've already taken asl1&2 in community college but I don't know if I would get into RIT for there program but I want to be a interpreter just need more education
[Jill] I went to community college at Mott Community College in Flint, Michigan. I attended RIT for my Bachelors. I would give RIT a shot and see what happens. :) Good luck!
I want to be an interpreter so badly. I learned sign language by seeing others do it as well and fell in love with it. I love doing it:) I love your channel, you are a great signer:)
Chances are your receptive skills will be what needs to be developed most. In the years I've been teaching ASL it seems that the receptive skills are the most difficult for most people to develop. I think I've only actually met one person who it was the other way around for and his expressive skills were the most difficult for him, but his receptive skills were sharp.
Are you in college still ? If so how was it for you ? What did you major
you need classes to properly learn it
@@MusicInMotion67 i taught too, the receptive skills are the last to develop and the first you loose when you are no longer using sign language. I have been retired for 4 years and use the ASL videos i find on youtube to keep my receptive skills sharp.
my first ASL instructor did not tell us right away whether or not she was Deaf or hearing. eventually she told us she was hearing, but there was absolutely no talking allowed in the class even from day 1. it seemed hard a first, but it made us learn faster. luckily, I live in Austin, TX where there is a large Deaf community and there are Deaf events happening all the time that we were encouraged to attend to practice, and learn about Deaf culture.
[Jenna] Yeah going to Deaf events and getting involved with local Deaf communities are very important when learning ASL. I'm glad your teacher encourage that.
I’m working on becoming an interpreter at Boise State by creating my own major! I’m so excited
Interesting, good luck!
Thank you so much for answering my question! My parents really aren't enthusiastic about the idea of me becoming an interpreter. They think I'll get bored or that I won't be able to do much with it/support myself financially. Especially because I used to say I wanted to go to vet school. Anyway.. Thank you again for making my decision a bit easier! I really love watching your videos! X
Emnée van den Brandeler Emnée, I don't know about in your area, but as long as you find an area that has a good population of deaf people then you will find lots of work and you could always work for the government! You will never get bored interpreting because you are always learning new things and in all types of situations. Good luck to you and follow your dreams! :) Happy to help. Oh and btw people change their minds all the time on what they want to do, so don't worry about that lol.
I really loved your advice at the end...very practical. Start slow, get social and see how you like it...if it excites you then keep going!! I'm hearing and have had a fascination for ASL for a lonnnggg time (on a back burner of "interests", my mom was a speech path who would use basic signs when we were kids) and feel like the process in taking the next steps are unfolding. It's exciting and affirming to have found your channel! I'm looking forward to learning more about you!! Thank you!
Wow, I'm so happy the video was helpful. Yes take your time and see what happens in your future. Good luck with whatever you end up doing! :)
Thank you!! :)
Hi Jill My name is Erin and I am currently studying ASL at a community college in Philadelphia ... I'm just over a year Ito my studies and have completely fallen in love with not only the language but also the culture and community... I saw that you attended NTID and was so excited!! Through my ASL class I had to attend events and at one I met an awesome women (whose deaf) that works at RIT and she introduced me to the school!!! I just submitted my application to RIT 1. I missed NTID deadline and 2. So I can finish my criminal justice minor and begin my deaf studies minor while I wait for next falls application process to open. I was hoping I could speak you more about your time at NTID as well as your interpreting career!!! Thank you so much for your videos!! Love you and your wife!!!
Erin
Erin Daneke Sure Erin, anytime! Good luck at RIT maybe I'll see you around.
I really appreciate this video. I was going to take ASL in high school but they removed the class the year before I started. I recently went somewhere and a deaf person had an interpreter and I got the chance to talk a little the him through his interpreter and after I talked to the interpreter herself. I was so fascinated and excited by the language. Ive now decided to go to school for ASL and I found your channel. Im waiting to have the money for the first class but I just appreciate your videos. You and the other woman who is in your videos are really informative. I only pick up like 4 or 5 signs of hers a video but the language is beautiful and im looking for all the information I can. I really want to dig in. Im also thankful for this video because at 21 a lot of my hearing friends think its "too late" for me to start. youre proof that im not. so thank you
AllThatGlitters0910 Yeah it's never too late! Good luck on your journey and hope you have a fun time learning the language. :)
I want to be an interpreter for asl really badly! I am only 12 years old and I want to take classes at my local community center but classes don’t start until spring😩My friends mom is also a teacher for ASL so she has helped me a little bit in the past😊
Just wait until spring. It will come soon. You can work from online resources till then. Good luck!
wow, I think that is so AWESOME!!! Your story is very similar to mines as to why I want to become an interpreter. How cool, I am now in the process of applying to Galluadet for the fall 2017 semester, I hope I get in. My desire is to immerse myself in the language so that I can give good results as needed, happy New year.
[Jill] That's cool! Good luck on getting into Gallaudet. Happy New Year to you too!
That's cool your mom took sign language classes too. She can communicate with your wife
[Jill] Unfortunately that was back in the 90s and she didn't retain that knowledge.
I think it's something you also have to have a passion for. I was seven years old when I learned and then was away from it for many years, but I retained everything I'd learned. When I actually started ASL classes my Instructor was surprised of how much I knew for an ASL 1 student until she heard my story, but she was surprised that I hadn't lost it in all those years I didn't use it.
Love your channel. Just started taking an ASL course and I love it. Can't wait to watch your other videos!
[Jill] Thanks so much! Good luck on your ASL course. :)
Yes the same here I taught myself ASL using books and apps and youtube!! I love doing it and it's very fun. I am still learning more and more words.
+Crystal Amdor That's awesome! Keep it up. Good luck. :)
One doesn't "do" ASL. Do you "do" English?
Remember positivity is best. We should encourage others to learn, not criticize their choice of English words.
Absolutely! you are right! I don't judge at all and I do encourage others that are interested to learn more and take classes as well in ASL! its hard but it gets easy once you fully understand it and know how to us it correctly!
You're really an inspiration
+scampbell21 Wow thank you.
I just want to say thank-you so much for your videos! Especially the Deaf-Hearing relationship tips video! It really helped me understand the differences that a Hearing person and a Deaf person would have in the relationship. I'm soon going to meet this guy I've been talking to for some time and he is Deaf and I'm Hearing. I've been practising my signing (though I've never signed ever before) and I've even sent him a few videos of my attempts and he's pretty impressed! It's actually a lot of fun because it's so different and I've never really been exposed to ASL or signing/ and even Deaf culture but honestly thanks so much for your videos and you and your wife are SO adorable! :)
+Shawn Kaolin Thank you and good luck! I'm sure all will go well. Just be yourself and have fun!
+ASL Stew - Thanks so much!! It means a lot! And haha, yes I'm definitely myself around anyone :). I think it is important to never fake anything or you know have a facade. But thanks again! and Happy New Year!!
+Shawn Kaolin Happy New Year to you too!
I'm in the Bachelor program at University to become a (Norwegian) sign language interpreter, and I think it's so fascinating that after just one semester, I can keep a normal conversation with my (Deaf) teachers :) I really think it helped that my teachers are deaf, to be honest. Good job on the channel, it's amazing :)
+LGBT Vision That is great! Good job on your language acquisition. I hope all goes well for you in the future! :)
just found your channel and subscribed :) i want to be an interpreter currently in asl 2 at college trying to make it my minor and teaching my major. but im having lots of trouble specially since my teacher is deaf and puts nothing online so if i miss something in class im screwed :/ and i dont have any deaf friends to help me. another big reason im worried ill fail is we need community hours but i dont know whats going on and dont know anything to go with me places with my anxiety and being a slow beginner im scared to go places and sign. im a cashier at walmart and sign to the deaf customers if i need to for basic stuff but in the past ive tried signing to people and when they find out im learning and am slow they ignore me :/ so i dont know what to do to get better :( i want deaf friends but not sure how to and how to get into the deaf community in my area.
***** Well first I'm happy to hear that you are learning sign language. If you are having trouble in class, then I would speak to your teacher. Tell him/her that you missed some information and could they go over it with you. I'm sure they would be happy to help. That is what the teacher is there for. When I started I didn't have any Deaf friends either. I was really scared to go to events too. Sometimes you just have to get over being scared and just do it. I would ask your teacher what resources there are in your area for Deaf events. You can look online if your area has a deaf club, or a club through your college. Maybe talk with your classmates to see if they are going to any events. I found that going with another person made me not so nervous. But again don't be scared to sign to Deaf people. They don't bite... . :) Good luck and I hope you get to become an interpreter! Let me know.
Your story is so interesting to me because my mother was a part-time interpreter when I was very young and my dad's sister tried to learn it too. I think, sometimes, passion is hereditary!
Cheyenne Atkinson Wow that is interesting lol. :)
Wow, thank you so much for this video! I went through high school thinking that I wanted to be an interpreter, but my idea was always shot down by teachers. So now, I am two years into my bachelor's in psychology- not really a place to switch majors, or leave the school. Is it worth it to go back to school for interpreting after I complete my bachelor's?
Sarah Royal If you really want to become an interpreter then that's up to you. If you really enjoy psychology and want to pursue that then maybe incorporate sign language into that and work with Deaf people.
Fluency in ASL takes more than 2 yrs. 5 to 7 years is the iusualy numberive heard. You cud get very good nearly fluent and help with deaf ppl needing counsing...I would suggest psychology of deafness... study mores, and traditions...introductions, etc.
As a kid, I would see interpreters at school every now and then and I remember totally focusing on them. This was one of the only times I saw sign language anywhere, the other times being those videos online of people at fast food places using ASL lol. So it interested me but I never saw it being used for day-to-day conversation so I guess it just never occurred to me I could really learn it. Flash forward to this past school year, my staring at interpreters in school had continued throughout the years and I had wondered several times what it would be like to actually learn it. One day, I was scrolling through Netflix and decided to find a show to binge-watch. Behold my introduction to "Switched at Birth" and seeing sign language being used by ordinary people. So I've been trying to learn. I might even pursue a career that involves signing.
[Jill] Yes, I have heard many people say they were fascinated with sign language and that really started their journey. Good luck on your education and future!
Being an interpreter is a challenging job. Every session is different with unexpected events or outcomes. Every day provides a learning and development opportunity. It is very rewarding to help other people, even if you never meet them in person.
[Jill] Yes it is. I love being able to learn from my job all the time!
Thank you for this (and all) your amazing videos!
[Jill] You're welcome. Thank you for watching our videos! We always appreciate it. :)
Wow thank you so much for this video! I first saw sign language when I was really young at church. They had a interpreter and I was very curious as to what he was doing (reminder: I was very young). Then in 5th grade I took this asl elective and all they taught us was songs and stuff. When I was 14 I discovered a show called switched at birth and they did sign Language and everything. It kind of just reminded me my love for sign language. I'm 15 now almost 16 and I'm almost 100% sure I want to be a sign language interpreter. I actually know enough to have a very basic conversation. Also tomorrow I'm starting a sign language course tomorrow at this community college. I'm so excited! I have never been this eager to learn something before and I think becoming a interpreter is the right thing for me.
+polaroids That is awesome! I hope you have a great and fun journey into interpreting. Good luck!
I'm a 49 year old woman and learned sign language at the age of seven through a pair of sisters who were Deaf and wanted to become friends with my sister and I. I fell in-love with it and continued my sister forgot everything she had once learned and didn't know I remembered it until she'd seen me interpreting for my daughter's wedding. Anyway, although, I had gone many years of not using it when I moved down south (we had a very small Deaf/hh community which I never saw) I had never forgotten what I knew. I didn't learn ASL but SEE sign as a child. I finally met our local Deaf at my church and was invited to a Deaf dinner. When I went I was so nervous that I forgot everything I knew except fingerspelling lol I was terrified. I hadn't been around it for over nine years at that point and worried about messing up and looking stupid. So all night long I done what you never want to do which was fingerspell all night lol. The very second I shut the door to my car when I got in it to go home, everything came back to me. I was soooo mad.
Well a few years later I felt God was calling me to the Deaf ministry which for me meant moving back to So. Cal where I lived before moving out there. I'm from N. California. Long story short, I ended up taking the Interpreting program through RCC and although I never got to finish it, my fluency came back rather easily once I was around it again as did my receptive skills. For me that's always been the one thing I've struggled to maintain. I've not been around my Deaf/hh friends on a regular basis in awhile and it's been a few years since my teaching days at my church so once again, my receptive skills are a little rusty, but only with some people. Is it just me or do you also find yourself having a difficult time understanding some people? It's almost as if they have such a strong "accent" for lack of better word, or their signing is so sloppy that it just doesn't make any sense and almost feels like it's sign from a different country. Some people such as yourself and your wife I have no issues understanding, It's very clear and easy to understand but some are so dang difficult and I've been doing this for 42 years now, so longer than you've been alive. Do you ever find yourself struggling with this also?
[Jill] Yes there are definitely some people that I don't understand as easily as others and it could be for varied reasons. I think this happens to everyone. Most people cannot understand everyone 100% of the time. Don't worry about that. Just always try your best and ask for clarification if you don't get it. :)
That's what I do. I have one friend (hh student) I met in my friend's sign language class she was teaching at our church. She needed another Interpreter at the church as well as another teacher in the class to help her so she asked if I'd do it. Anyway, this friend of mine who's mother is Deaf and his brother I think is hh as well grew up doing SEE sign. They were not culturally "D"eaf and it drove the local Deaf up the wall because his signing was apparently all over the place, so it was actually other Deaf within our community that he knew who got him to take the class, my friend, then later I was teaching at our church.
They were always upset with him for not signing correctly well back to the original story, for the longest time I couldn't figure out why I struggled so much to understand what he was signing, until one day when we were chatting, I realised he had a tendency to switch his dominant hand from left to right throughout a conversation, he didn't have a "dominant" hand he used so it made it difficult at times to know not only what to expect, but what he was signing. For some reason, it made a huge difference. Once I figured this out I started getting onto him about choosing a hand and sticking with it as his dominant hand. Once he started doing that, I finally was able to have an easy conversation that I could also understand. The older signs, even the SEE signs never bothered me as they were what I grew up learning, but for some reason, his switching back and forth on his dominant hand really made it difficult for me.
I love your nail art in this video. I saw your one about tattoos and piercings, are there ever regulations on what you can wear on your nails while you're interpreting? Does it help, or detract from your signing? Just curious. I'm a new subscriber and have been binge watching your videos, you and Jenna are awesome.
+fortheloveofLDS Haha thanks. I don't usually wear nail polish when I'm interpreting. If I do ever, I wear neutral light colors. I don't want them to be distracting.
Enjoyed your story!
Thank you
I want to be a interpreter in the future because I have a deaf older sister. I have been learning sign language since I was a very young child so I could learn how to communicate with my sister. Right now I'm thirteen years old, I get confused or mixed up with the American and Spanish sign language. 😂 So far I'm reading a book on ASL, using an app called "Marlee Signs", and asking my deaf sister on how to do some certain signs. ☺
[Jill] It sounds like you are doing great learning so far. As you get older, you will learn more and will improve over time. I'm happy to hear you are communicating with your sister. That's great! Good luck with your studies!
Hi Jill, I work in the medical field and through a client of mine started learning sign every day for the past few months. I love it! But at times feel discouraged because I feel like I have learned a lot but have trouble keeping up when I see conversations. I would love to see a 100 basic conversational sign video. Also I am aware of the culture and would love to be more immersed in it but not sure where to start other than taking asl classes. So if you have any additional suggestions that would really help me out! My ultimate goal is to become a Physician Assistant who can sign with my patients.
A Falcon My best suggestion is to yes take a sign language class. That will help you to get the basics of sign language. It will make it an easier process to learn if you have a formal environment. If possible take it from a Deaf professor. That is good for multiple reasons, such as they are a native signer so they can teach you more native nuances and such. Also, they will have access to the Deaf community. There is where you will become more comfortable signing and can interact more with Deaf people. If not then look into a local Deaf club and see if there are any events that you can go to and practice your signing. Hope that helps, and good luck on becoming a physician's assistant!
I'm currently learning British sign language 101 I hope thought after I complete this course I'll go on to do level 102, I first came interested in sign when I watch hear say, which is like a show that is on bbc and I was also fascinated, I one day hope that I'll be an interpreter myself, but Bsl courses are limited where I live which is really frustrating id love to learnt Asl one day too I've dreamed of going to school In America to do it but there isn't many exchange schools that would consider it, I just hope that I'm on the right path anyhow and I hope that one day I'll be fluent in either Bsl or Asl you're an inspiring person!
+HeartFallenstar Thank you so much! Just keep learning what you can. If school opportunities are limited then maybe you could try to work at a Deaf program or school and learn more there. See if it's possible to find a Deaf mentor. Someone who is willing to work with you and help you along the way. Many people learned and still are learning that way if school is not an option. I'm sure you will do great! 😄
+ASL Stew I am also learning BSL and am on the level 3 course with my exams in Feb/April/May this year. I recently got a job supporting deaf people, all of whom have additional needs. Although their signing skills are not necessarily the best, there are other support workers who are deaf and sign BSL fluently, so I can improve my skills by conversing with them. Opportunities in the UK are quite limited though, I hope to apply for the level 6 course in September and on completion of that I understand you can work as a TSLI (Trainee Sign Language Interpreter) whilst you study on the level 6 interpreting course in order to become fully registered.
+JC That sounds like a great thing to do. I worked at a Deaf school while in my interpreting degree to improve my signing skills. Sounds like you are on the right path to success. Good luck!
i want to go to galleduet !!!
Same
[Jenna] They do accept hearing students for certain programs like interpreting and education I believe. You can check out their website and find the right contact info to learn more.
I spent 2 yrs there.. loved it. Deaf people from around the world. ( My great - great.........great... back to Thomas Mathew on Martha's Vineyard. Knew sign language generations ago.
Hi Jill, what type of interpreting did you start doing? And what are you most comfortable doing now?
Do you get particular assignments, especial events, medical, etc? If you want to interpret for doctors or for a especial college class, do you need a special degree?
+Escuela Lightroom en Español I started doing community work. I did a variety of jobs including educational, medical (basic things), and many others. Now I'm most comfortable with educational interpreting (secondary mostly) and VRS (just because I have done it for so long). If you want to mainly interpret for medical then you can get a medical certification (although I don't think it is required). If you want to work in legal (legally) then you need to get a legal certification.
Because I love your channel and watch all of your videos then get so many questions... (:
I don't know if this is mentioned somewhere else or not, but you met Jenna after you became an interpreter, right? Also considering you started signing as an adult and how you sign so much because it's your job and it's such a big part of your life, do you ever get painful joints? I know it's always rougher on the body to learn sign later in life whereas when you're a young kid learning ASL as your first language, you adjust easier. (At least that's what I have heard.) Or have your arms, fingers, wrists etc. taken to the repetitive movement fairly well?? Thanks!!
+chemha55 Yes I was well into my sign langauge journey when I met Jenna. I do have issues with my wrists, but I notice it's more of a problem when I'm on my phone a lot or on the computer a lot. Also, my grandma had told me later on that our family has weak wrists... oh well lol.
I really really want to become an interpreter for the deaf because I have known ASL since I was 6 months old and I am pretty flueant. I am going to take some classes during the smer and I als work in a DHH class during the summer.
BFFURtheBest10 Good luck! :)
+Jill's Signs hey jill i am deaf i really can sign and my name is lanea rowell josephine
I'm actually in the same exact situation right now bc I'm a senior taking a sign language class at my community college and I'm applying to Uni of Rochester and Gallaudet right now, really nervous bc I'm hearing and only had one deaf friend who graduated last year, I'm just scared that if I went straight into a deaf college I wouldn't fit in, but it comforts me to know that someone was in the same boat as me at one point!
Rylee,
I find it amazing that you, a hearing person, are applying for Deaf schools! Such an honor to work alongside them! I took ASL classes my sophomore, junior, and senior years of highschool at a community college, and now that I am graduated, I was accepted into that same community college interpreting program. I am telling you, interpreting is so very difficult, but it is amazing to you are interested in it. I applaud you for applying to Gallaudet and Rochester. My ASL teacher for the past three years went to Rochester and my interpreting instructor went to Gallaudet (and he is hearing) and they said they loved both. He said that it was hard at first for him to fit in, but as the first semester progressed, he made a lot of friends and they accepted him. He was no longer hearing, nor was he Deaf at that time. They thought of him as an ally, which is exactly what you want to be as an interpreter.
I hope your college endeavors go well, and I know that I am a complete stranger to you ,but I want you to know that I am praying for you!! Interpreting is very difficult (and I can say this because I am in the program right now) but it is SO VERY rewarding.
Also, I have MANY friends who went to Gallaudet and absolutely LOVED it. If you have any questions, let me know, I would be happy to help you as best as I can!
~Alexandria
Alexandria Grace thank you so much Alexandria, it means a ton!! I actually found out after class tonight that I have a local interpreter whose sister is the admissions director for HUG at Gallaudet so I'm definitely feeling more comfortable with applying!
[Jill] Yeah, I know it can be scary, but with some effort you will be fine. Just be open-minded and willing to learn and make mistakes. Good luck!
I know I'm very late to finding this video and your channel but I was wondering if you could share why you decided to attend NTID rather than Gallaudet despite being accepted into Gallaudet? I'm curious about what helped you make such a decision. I'm sorry if this comes across as rude, I don't mean it to be. (I have ASD so it's difficult for me to try to comment on videos or talk in general really in relation to my difficulties with social cues and communication which is just one part of it.) I'm thinking that I want to go to school and study to become an interpreter then go get professional certification afterwards but I'm not sure where I want to go and seeing your thoughts would help me with this kind of thing. Thank you for your time.
[Jill] Sure I can explain why. As you know I was accepted into both and so I talked with my advisor/teacher at that time. She suggested that I attend NTID because of the school reputation. NTID is a more technical school and not as much as a "party" school. Gallaudet is a more of a social school. It is still great academically, but she just felt that my personality fit NTID better than Gallaudet. Either school is great. Just depends on what you what.
Thank you for all your information! I am a mom of 11 kiddos and I am turning 50 in 2020! I’ve been a stay home mom for 21 years but a now starting to figure out what I want to be when I grow up. Lol.
I am interested in learning to sign and interpret. I’m a little overwhelmed with the steps I need to take. Are you suggesting to people to first take a sign class at a local college just to see if there’s an actual interest? And then if there is... then move forward with getting a certificate? Or I’d there an actual degree in asl? Sorry... my mind is a little mushy these days. Easily confused. Lol
Wow, that's awesome about the kids and turning 50! I would always say that you should see how you feel about learning a language and everything that's involved first. It is a life long path. There are many schools that have ASL/English interpretation degrees and some just have ASL related fields. Good luck!
I'm attending an ASL college program right now and am wanting to eventually become an interpreter. I'm really enjoying ASL but I'm curious though how to become involved in the Deaf community when most of my time outside of school and work is with my family and I'm not a big event kind of person. Also as an introvert I find social interactions a bit uncomfortable. I'm very friendly and am able to meet people but I'm a little shy and don't always start the conversation. If interpreters need to be more extraverted, then I need to really think about how I can get out of my comfort zone and if this is really the right path for me. Thanks.
Interpreters do not need to be there extroverted. I would consider myself an ambivert but more leaning towards introvert. Just try to attend smaller functions like maybe getting involved in your ASL club/Deaf club if you have one. Take a friend along to events if you are nervous. You don't have to be super involved... but still enough.. if that makes sense. Good luck!
Yes. Thank you!
When you did the NTID Application did you find it difficult I'm having trouble with the essay on why i would be a good interpreter
You are a beautiful signer. That's so cool that you have signing in your genes :)
I'm an interpreter as well. If you don't mind me asking, are you certified? Not sure what state you live in and what the state certification requirements are there?
brianaott Well thank you! Yes I am NIC certified (NIC Master). I believe the state I live in, New York, does not have a state certification, just NIC. I know each state is different, and some areas such as legal and sometimes medical will require certification even if no state requirements.
That's awesome! Good for you! I'm not NIC certified yet but I'm working on it! I'm just interpreting at a community college for now and some agency work which both have assessed my skills. Hopefully I will take the NIC soon! In CA, we also have the EIPA for educational interpreting as well.
brianaott Good luck on your NIC!
You are just a year or 2 older than me, so it's very encouraging to see someone who is so young that's already certified. :) Jill's Signs
brianaott Yeah I don't think age has anything to do with being certified. I feel you just do it when you are ready. I got certified a few months after graduating my ITP and many people said people just graduating couldn't do it. Well.... :p to that!
So my sound was muted when I played the video and I can't sign...I saw what it is like to want to watch something and not be able to because there are no subtitles or a typed up transcript. :/
+Karina Diaz This has CC. :) Just click the CC button.
I think it's interesting what you said about sign language being "genetic". My mom started learning sign language through a deaf friend (Troy Kotsur). She also went to school for the same reason as you did - deaf education - but didn't like the job and left. She had done some interpreting throughout college too to pay for stuff. Even though she didn't pursue a career with sign language, she still keeps herself immersed with the deaf community so I've always been surrounded by the culture and want to pursue a career as an interpreter myself. I actually decided this before I even knew that my mom had done interpreting; but yeah that was an unnecessarily long story for a simply point but I thought that was interesting :)
[Jill] Wow that is interesting. Time to start a weird genetic research project haha. :)
Do you have any suggestions on how to meet deaf people? I took sign language classes a few years ago and really want to get back into using it, but I don't know anyone to practice with.
jenlareine I would say you could look into any local Deaf organizations and see if they have any events you could attend. Also, local Deaf clubs. You could also see if any Facebook groups have people in your area that would want to get together to help practice sign with you.
haha I can relate to you! I feel like sign language is in my genetics as well. My grandma was deaf and knew sign language (although I never met her) and I have naturally been fond with deaf people :) can you be accepted in Gallaudet even if you're hearing? It's something I am wondering about because I am interested in being an interpreter or a TOD. Thanks!! Nice video :))
+Libby B. I'm not sure now, but I was accepted at Gallaudet years ago but chose NTID. They had (haves still?) a HUG (hearing undergraduate) program that accepts a limited number of hearing students every year for certain degrees (like interpreting). You can look into it and see. I'm sure they still have something like that. That's cool about your "genetic" link to the Deaf world.
You can be accepted to Gallaudet if you're hearing. they have an interpreting program :-)
Well said, Jill!!! *\o/* {{waving hands}}
wondering how you can get involved in the deaf community?
[Jenna] Look for local Deaf communities or ASL programs and see if there are any Deaf events you can attend and meet Deaf people.
i love your nails
Thank you :)
Perhaps its genetics....I am a registered nurse and it wasn't until after I told my mom that I wanted to be a nurse that she told me about her brief work in community/ medical health...this was when she lived in Mexico so I'm not sure how her work would translate but it was for sure along the lines of a nurse...without all the schooling.
bren0duh That is interesting. Makes me wonder if this happens more often than we think.
Hi! Just a little comment and question: Why did you put music while you are talking? x) It's harder to understand what you say.
I'm trying to get everything by looking at you, but, as I'm beginning to learn LSQ, it's not that easy neither.
Anyway, it's just a comment. I really like your videos too! :D
+jtwriter1 Well I add music as i think it's pleasing, but if it inhibits your learning you can try with the sound off. I do caption my videos so you can still understand what I'm saying. :) Good luck with learning LSQ. I don't know that but sounds funs to learn. THANKS!
+ASL Stew
Oh! I didn't think of captions for that. Good idea, thank you!
LSQ is the quebecker sign language. I'd like to become an interpreter too. ^^ Some signs are the same in ASL and LSQ, but not every one, so it's kind of confusing, haha. Anyway, your vids really help me.
Thank you!
Wow that's awesome !! I'm really interested in going to school got American sign language I took it in high school and I know greetings and finger spelling . I want to be an interpreter but not for education ? What should I go into ?
[Jill] If you just want to work with Deaf people, then there are many jobs that are not interpreting. Here is a video I made about it. ruclips.net/video/KtXrzu-UyMw/видео.html
ASL Stew wow that great and thanks you I will be looking into it !!
I lernt BSL in nursry but only basic and now im 13 and im lerning it agen. Im bad at finger speling becus of my dyslexis
[Jill] That's great you are learning again! Just keep trying when it comes to the spelling part. You will get it eventually.
I recently became deaf and I love your video
Thank you so much! :)
I would love to be a sign language interpret, I would have to do it online, because I work full time and I'm in my 40s, I heard about Gallaudet, I would to go there, but I have to do it online, I'm trying to get in a program or meet people
I do not think there are many online sign language interpreter programs because a good portions of the curriculum is one to one communication and actually using the language. Although online is a good resource there are many signs that do not lend themselves to a 2 dimensional medium like video. For gaulladet, as a hearing person, you have to have completed a certain number of classes in ASL as all the communication on campus IS in asl only. try looking for programs where you can meet with people face to face and learn the basics.
I have suspected Traumatic Brain Injury. I used to get very dizzy from watching a lot of ASL, and still do somewhat if I go over my limits. I learned ASL through books, videos, etc., but mostly books cuz they don't move.
+amadmavworld interesting, I have never heard of that before.
+ASL Stew That's a part of my problem. I have Central Auditory Processing Disorder as a part of the TBI, and have faced a lot of misunderstanding and discrimination for having this. It's from baseball vs. head. I'm trying to help raise awareness. I know Braille and some ASL from this experience. ASL classes made me so dizzy I had to quit and self-teach.
+ASL Stew Almost no one has heard of my TBI diagnoses, including most of my doctors and the ASL interpreters I have encountered. CAPD is when the ears work fine but the brain messes up what you hear. I went through vision therapy for some of the brain-vision issues, am self-rehabbing currently.
+ASL Stew I don't want to fill up your comments section. A good intro book on CAPD is When the Brain Can't Hear. I forget the author's name. There's plenty of online info on vision therapy and TBI. Please let me know if you have any questions.
+amadmavworld It's fine you can comment as much as you want. :) I'm sorry to hear you seem like you are having a hard time. I have heard the auditory processing now that you mention it. That must be frustrating. I hope all goes well and you find what works for you. :)
I really would like to do my bachelor's in interpreting but I live in NYC and it doesn't have one and I have a one year old and a deaf husband who wouldn't like it if I left to study out of state. I'm currently doing my bachelor's in something else and I hate it. I'm thinking later I'll join a interpreting program when I finish my bachelor's but my husband is almost 40 and I'm 30 he thinks it's an waste of time. I feel so discouraged because it will take years before I can make a living of interpreting since I'm a bit older starting out
I like ur video I am still learning sign language too and I have a deaf boyfriend too we will be together for almost 5 years in august 18 how do u know if u like the same thing in common
tanya quinton Well I guess the only way to know if you like common things is to talk about what you like and see if they like it too. Congrats on your almost 5 years together! ;)
i want to become i sign language interpener but how long those it takes for college?
Natalie A For an AAS it's 2 years, but if you want to sit for national certification it takes a BS/BA degree which is 4 years. To become totally fluent may take longer.
really and thank you
+ASL Stew
Fluency is key! Then interpreting skills! Then take the certification exam! There is something called Alternative Pathway to the BA. If you have years of experience, credits and other things, they can add up to the equivalent of a BA. There are so many levels of fluency! The goal for interpreters is to have the same fluency as an educated native-speaker/signer of the given language. The main skill, however, is that one be a linguist and always have the desire to continually improve.
Totally random question.. not related at all but are your nails just a random pattern or is it the Scotland flag lol
+Ailie A They are just a random pattern lol. :)
💗 from London UK. 🇬🇧👂👍
Wow welcome!
+ASL Stew Is asl considered a foreign language?
+Marion Roux Yes it is, because it is it's own language.
+ASL Stew And also because I believe there's different sign languages to different spoken languages (?
+Irene Bustos Yes there are different sign language depending on the geographic location (similar to spoken languages).
ASL Stew Thank you! Is there some kind of world association page you can recommend to me?
+Irene Bustos Here is a link to a Gallaudet page. You can click on the yellow tabs and then pick continent/area and it will give you a list of the signed languages there. Hopefully this helps in what you are looking for.
libguides.gallaudet.edu/content.php?pid=114804&sid=991920
My names Jill!!!!!!
Jill Ayala Jills ROCK!
***** Well I guess we are everywhere lol. :)
i can't believe you actually replied!!!
Jill Ayala Ofc lol I try to reply to everyone that comments (if their settings allow me to) unless they are mean haha.
Jill's Signs they are? why?
Just saw this video and really appreciated it. I want to get into a career where I can use signing but don't have the money to go to school to get any certifications. Do you know of any other kind of jobs where signing is usefull and appreciated?
Destinee Hunt Well in general, any place that has Deaf people go to it would benefit from having a person who can sign. Often if Deaf know a place has a person that can sign they are more willing to go since communication is easier. As to specific jobs, it really depends. There are jobs like counselor, advocate, social services, psychologist, and others that you could specialize in working with Deaf people. If you want to become an interpreter and money is the issue, then I would speak to a local college and look into getting a scholarship or possibly grants.
Hi.
Are there any good resources for getting ASL basics online? I absolutely need the audio and audio description of how any signs are made.
(Also: I really suck in trying to read peopleʻs faces or facial expressions. My expressions are not easy either - as itʻs often much easier to talk or concentrate in something when my eyes are closed. Sorry - VI...)
Life print.com is an excellent website. Although there is no talking, it's still pretty easy to understand if you start from the beginning.
You do not need the "audio descriptions of how the signs are made". If you're learning Spanish, or French, do you need the English words at the same time? Please understand ... ASL (American Sign Language) is a language, first and foremost. It is acquired the same way any language is acquired. By using it. Trial and error. Communicating with those who use the language and making mistakes so they can correct you is the ONLY and BEST way to learn. ASL is not English on the hands. It has its own grammar, ways of conveying ideas, just like a spoken language has its own grammar and ways of conveying ideas. Think of concepts, not words.
what type of interpreting degree do you have, like have you taken the NIC? I'm currently in the interpreting program at my college. I'm still towards the beginning with taking intro to interpreting and ASL classes
[Jill] I hold an AAS and a BS in ASL/English Interpretation. I hold a NIC Master certification. Good luck on your classes. :)
Do you have any recommendations for colleges for someone who wants to go into interpreting? (And has never taken a class before)
I would say look into your local college/university for taking basic ASL classes if you have. Once you have some fluency, then you can apply to interpreting programs. The only one I personally can recommend is RIT/NTID as I graduated from there. You could ask in the Facebook group "Discover Interpreting!" if anyone has other recommendations. :)
what commuinty college did you go to I live in Rochester so I'm just wondering what one you went to I have my associates and I've already taken asl1&2 in community college but I don't know if I would get into RIT for there program but I want to be a interpreter just need more education
[Jill] I went to community college at Mott Community College in Flint, Michigan. I attended RIT for my Bachelors. I would give RIT a shot and see what happens. :) Good luck!
okay thank you so much (:
I'm not death but I am trying to learn how to do sighn
Hayley Schneider Good luck on learning sign language! Just keep practicing and you will get there. :)
***** nether am I but my friend is.
hello sweet....world deaf sign interpreter??
+Yilmaz Tutus I'm sorry I don't understand.
world of sign language interpreters?
+Yilmaz Tutus There are sign language interpreters all over the world if that's what you mean.
I watched you .I like you :)...
Hu jill ..cool
hello. i am deaf friend. camfrog can see?
+Audi 44 Welcome