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Agencies asking for copies of degree certificates - Is this ok? Safe?
Thread poster: Phillippa May Bennett
Josephine Cassar
Josephine Cassar  Identity Verified
Malta
Local time: 14:28
Member (2012)
English to Maltese
+ ...
Hi Jenny Jul 9, 2017

I had the same problem a few years back as my language qualifications are in my maiden name and to tell you the truth, I never needed to use a marriage certificate after changing passport after marriage, etc, so I haven't gone through the hassle of seeing from where I can get another one to show my original first surname. Luckily, I have other certificates with my married name. Tant pis for me as well, so I did not bother

 
Antony Rudakevich
Antony Rudakevich
Belarus
Local time: 16:28
English to Russian
+ ...
To see that you indeed have degree is quite normal. Jul 11, 2017

Hello.
I think this is quite normal to see that you ineed have degree. Many agencies don't ask it but some of them ask sertificate copy. About sending it by letter this specific of your agency. Why do you worry to send copy of your setificate? This is totally safe for you by the way.


 
Helen Johnson
Helen Johnson  Identity Verified
United Kingdom
Local time: 13:28
Member (2003)
Swedish to English
+ ...
Agencies don't always seem to take much notice of Proz Professional (verified) membership Jul 8, 2020

Georgie Scott wrote:

Jenny Forbes wrote:
I'd be interested to hear whether other female married or remarried translators have encountered this maiden name/married name problem and what they were able to do about it - or indeed from male translators, if interested.


I have more or less the same issue. My standard practice is to politely decline and direct potential clients to my Proz profile, where they are verified. The same agencies often ask for references too. Again, I direct them to the positive feedback on my profile here.

I completely understand why they ask for this. But I do think 10 minutes of due diligence will show that I'm probably not lying about having a degree in translation...

In any case, I'm not comfortable sending huge amounts of personal paperwork to strangers when I can avoid it and am not in the habit of asking service providers or surgeons/doctors for copies of their diplomas. Nonetheless, if I was unsatisfied with their work and suspected they had been lying about their qualifications, I may well try to challenge them on that legally... which is another reason I don't mind not sending a copy of my degree; I know it genuinely exists.


Nowadays, I'm finding that some agencies take no notice of the Professional/Verified Proz membership. I remind them that Proz has verified the qualifications itself in order to allow such a membership, and direct them to my membership details, but they still say they want to see the certificates themselves. Incredible... sometimes it's because the agency has ISOd itself up as it were so the rules have to be followed.

To top it all, I've just received an email from a long-standing client (client underwent organisational changes in 2018, if I remember rightly) asking me to fill in a survey and send copies of my CV and qualifications. I already did that last year, and I've worked for them for over 10 years. What's the purpose of having to keep resending them? I don't understand.


 
DZiW (X)
DZiW (X)
Ukraine
English to Russian
+ ...
Automation: Money for nothing Jul 8, 2020

While a prospect has the right to verify credentials, re-checking the verified papers and redoing the 'free' tests have nothing to do with ISO or common sense. It' but a trick to underplay a professional, showing who is who.

Actually, a paid (verified) member with a decent portfolio and rank should be eligible without extra fuss and nonsense. Such an approach would seem a good deal, cutting out stuff. Otherwise there's no point.

However, mutual respect and trust involv
... See more
While a prospect has the right to verify credentials, re-checking the verified papers and redoing the 'free' tests have nothing to do with ISO or common sense. It' but a trick to underplay a professional, showing who is who.

Actually, a paid (verified) member with a decent portfolio and rank should be eligible without extra fuss and nonsense. Such an approach would seem a good deal, cutting out stuff. Otherwise there's no point.

However, mutual respect and trust involves all the parties, so how could a prospect or client prove their credibility, legality, and solvency?

As for asking for what they already have, it's either a red tape cretinism, a routine to update the database, or just an attempt to get the data under updated terms or policies, perhaps.



P.S. If they do require a scanned copy (especially 1:1 in 600+dpi), always add some big watermark or censure certain details, which would be tricky to retouch.
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Agencies asking for copies of degree certificates - Is this ok? Safe?







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