How does one become a translator?

Hi! I'm Victoria, an English into Brazilian Portuguese translator, but I was once just a kid who found comfort in learning new things.

English became a part of my life during 9th grade, the last year of middle school in Brazil. Classes were mandatory back then; we learned basic vocabulary & how to conjugate the verb to be.

One day, I decided to switch from dubbed to subtitled for a very good reason: The Vampire Diaries' 5th season had not been dubbed in Brazilian Portuguese yet, but the 4th one ended in a major cliffhanger. I needed to know what happened!

Then, I started watching US movies and TV shows with subtitles on—lots of them.

I also blasted One Direction on repeat (and I'm not ashamed!).

Next thing I know, I'm singing in English and understanding basic interactions without subtitles.

In that same year, I translated something for the first time. It was a short biography, putting the vocabulary we had learned throughout the year to use. My classmates were all over Google Translate, but the output made no sense to me.

With a dictionary my mom brought me in my hand, I searched word for word. I even got fancy and used some synonyms. I had no idea this would go on to be my career.

By my senior year of high school, I was able to have an entire conversation in English. I even got a high mark on TOEIC Bridge. That was also the year my friend Henry, a cinema aficionado, started fansubbing. I thought it was the most cool thing ever, and soon joined a fansubbing team as well. It was a great way to cope with the stress I was experiencing due to the ENEM, the Brazilian SAT.

That's when I decided to study Translation at Universidade Federal da Paraíba. I was determined to be a subtitler, even though I knew nothing about this profession.

I quickly discovered that most translators & subtitlers are freelancers. It felt like the perfect profession for me. I understand the ups and downs that come with freelancing, but still, being able to travel and keep working is a dream (fingers crossed that 2025 is the year I do that!).

In my first day of college back in 2018, I could never imagine that I would be where I am now. I was nervous about everything. I still remember nervously picking out my first-day outfit and worrying that I didn't know as much as my classmates. For a long time, I was even too shy to speak up in class. Only when I faced my fears and decided to join a subtitling learning project did my confidence grow. I perfected my technique, met other students, and discovered that I love sharing knowledge. I taught other people how to subtitle, went to academic events, and so much more.

Lots of books, courses, workshops, and networking later—not to mention a 80-page bachelor's dissertation—, here I am. There were some great surprises along the way: not only I started offering Localization and Linguistic Quality Assurance, but I also got to bring my passions with me to work every day in my specializations (wellness, wellbeing & lifestyle, food & culinary, and fashion).