Oral Federal Court Interpreter Certification Examination Administered This Summer

Registration for the Oral Examination phase of the Federal Court Interpreter Certification Examination (FCICE) closed last month with record numbers. The examination will be administered this summer to 544 candidates in 13 cities. The National Center for State Courts (NCSC), the AO’s contractor for development and administration of the FCICE, revised one of the exam forms, which will be available for administration this year. A small group of subject matter experts, who are all Federally Certified Court Interpreters of Spanish/English, has already reviewed the revised form to ensure a similar level of difficulty as the existing forms and to ensure that it is free of inaccuracies or unduly tricky language.

Raters will score the exams in August and letters announcing score results will be sent to test candidates later in the year. Anyone who passes the Oral Examination will be deemed certified by the Director, while any candidate who is unsuccessful on the test may register to the take the exam again in 2015. DCAD is grateful to the 13 district courts that have authorized a total of 16 staff interpreters to serve as raters this year. Rating teams are composed of federally certified interpreters, lending credibility to the process and ensuring that the needs of the courts are met.

For questions about court interpreting, Javier A. Soler 202-502-3261 or contact Julie Meeks 202-502-3414.