EU institutions organize interpreting tests digitally with assessmentQ
The EU institutions employ thousands of interpreters to manage their multilingual conferences. Until recently, freelancers took their exams physically, in Brussels. Until the coronavirus got in the way. With the dedicated interpreting module in assessmentQ, Europe now organizes these large-scale exams digitally!
EU project as a catalyst
“Admittedly: until recently, a module for online interpreting exams was not at the top of the priority list,” says sales director Dirk Verbeke. “But the need for digital interpreting exams quickly surfaced when the corona crisis broke out. When big bodies like the European Union come knocking on the door, it’s logical to start looking for a solution. This project was an important catalyst for the development of our interpreting module.”
Australia goes digital too
The European Union was not the only superpower to make the switch to digital interpreting exams during the corona period. Australian translation and interpreting body NAATI also started working with assessmentQ for efficient and secure remote exams. Read more about the NAATI interpreting project.
The only real solution
“In this project, we work together with the European Commission, the European Parliament and the European Court of Justice,” explains Dirk. “They need thousands of interpreters for over 20 languages so that all those present can follow their official meetings in the best possible way. All interpreters have to take exams and this used to be done entirely physically in Brussels. Until the coronavirus made that practically impossible.”
“Europe therefore started feverishly looking for a digital solution. Microsoft Teams and Zoom passed the revue: excellent tools for digital collaboration, but not for exams. Televic was the only party that could really help the European authorities with their question, and in the end the interpreting module in assessmentQ turned out to be the best solution.”
Interpreting exams in assessmentQ: numerous options
Did you know that the interpreting module in assessmentQ is suitable for simultaneous and consecutive assignments? You can also play around with a lot of settings, such as the number of attempts for your participants and the time limit. Find out how the assessmentQ interpreter module works.
Secure and fraud-proof
Privacy and digital security are obviously crucial when organizing digital exams, especially for an organisation like the European Union. Dirk: “We fully comply with the EU’s strict requirements. We guarantee for example that the data are stored safely and anonymously and remain within Europe.”
A pilot project with some four hundred participants already went off without a hitch. “We will therefore expand our cooperation in the coming years. Capacity – more exams and participants – is the biggest focus, but online supervision – or proctoring – is also an important issue. We already have AI applications against cheating that will only improve. Fraud in digital exams will thus become practically impossible,” Dirk concludes.
Discover assessmentQ
assessmentQ is an advanced web-based platform that enables organizations to create, manage, deliver and track all sorts of online assessments. The assessmentQ platform is versatile and powerful, and can be deployed in environments that need to be controlled, such as examinations, or it can be used to deliver preexisting assessment content to candidates in remote locations.
