Oral Interpreting Exam

Court interpreters must understand spoken English at a conversational pace and speak English well enough for key individuals in a courtroom, such as judges, attorneys, parties, and court staff, to understand the interpreter’s spoken English without undue difficulty. The Hawai‘i State Judiciary administers oral interpreting exams in various languages to interpreters who have met the mandatory minimum requirements to interpret in the Hawai‘i state courts. Oral exams do not exist in every language, and the testing instrument may differ based on the language an interpreter interprets in. To achieve certification in court interpreting, an interpreter must take and pass the Consortium Oral Certification Exam in their language, which is a three-part exam measuring an interpreter’s skills in consecutive and simultaneous interpreting, as well as sight translation. Information regarding the dates, location, registration and fee for the oral interpreting exams may be obtained by contacting the OEAC.