Language for the common good.
Our Mission
The Yale Interpretation Network (YIN) provides pro-bono interpretation and translation services to bridge the gap between Limited English Proficient community members and social services. We believe breaking down language barriers is necessary for a strong, cohesive community.
The Challenge
17% of New Haven residents are foreign-born
22,000 immigrants reside in New Haven
Despite the large number of Limited English Proficient community members in New Haven, many social services do not have the resources to provide language assistance. Some organizations turn away community members who don’t speak English, and others are forced to rely on expensive and impersonal telephonic interpretation services.
Our Work
The Yale Interpretation Network (YIN) was founded in 2018 to improve language access in Connecticut. We are the nation’s largest student-run interpretation/translation service. Our 400+ person team spans Yale College, Law School, Medical School, Nursing School, Public Health School, Graduate School, and Divinity School. Volunteers are screened for language ability and trained in interpreter techniques, trauma-informed interviewing, and professional ethics. Since our founding, we have grown to serve nonprofit organizations, research groups, and educational services throughout the Northeast that advocate for causes including immigrant rights, financial empowerment, mental health care access, domestic violence response, senior services, and labor rights.
Dwight Hall at Yale
Volunteer Opportunity for Bilingual Students
Limited-English speakers often face language barriers when seeking services like mental health care and legal assistance. Though many organizations would like to accommodate this community, they often lack the resources to do so.
As Featured In
Yale Daily News
Yale Translation Initiative Announces New Certificates
The Yale Translation Initiative recently announced the establishment of both a graduate and undergraduate certificate in Translation Studies that is expected to become available to students next academic year.
Yale Daily News
UP CLOSE: Transforming Interpretation at Yale New Haven Hospital
As the pandemic rages on, the hospital's language services department is continuing along a path away from in-person interpretation.
New Haven Register
‘From Albanian to Zulu,’ Yale Students Interpret for Those in Need
More than 350 Yale students are using their fluency in dozens of languages to help residents who don’t speak English to navigate the courts, family services and even prisons.
Slator
Yale to Offer Degree in Translation Studies From 2022
Graduating with a Yale degree in Translation Studies could finally be a thing. By next academic year, the Ivy League university will start to offer graduate and undergraduate certificates in Translation Studies.
Testimonials
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Harper from Integrated Refugee & Immigrant Services (IRIS):
“The Yale Interpretation Network has been an incredible asset to our work and we are very thankful for their support. The majority of our clients are low-income and could never afford the cost of professional interpretation and translation. YIN has stepped in on numerous occasions when we were out of options and helped us quickly and accurately translate documents to support our clients' immigration cases.”
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Shana from the Yale Law School Immigrant Rights Clinic:
“I am very grateful for the support and assistance of the Yale Interpretation Network. Our interpreter has been an integral part of the team. She has done an amazing job of building trust and rapport with our client. She has also very helpfully supported us, like prompting us to follow up on loose ends from prior meetings and predicting follow up questions that we may have in client interviews. I don't know how we would do it without her!”
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Ben from New Haven Legal Assistance:
“In my work as an immigration attorney at New Haven Legal Assistance, I’m constantly in need of competent, compassionate translation. I have often looked to the Yale Interpretation Network for both ongoing and last-minute assistance, and I have consistently found the students to be engaged, sensitive, flexible, and competent. Without that kind of quality, volunteer translation, our ability to provide high-level representation would be greatly reduced, and YIN has been a huge asset.”
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Connie from New Haven Legal Assistance:
“I represent victims of domestic violence who come from all over the world. It is sometimes challenging to establish rapport with new clients who have never spoken to a lawyer, never come to a law office, but it is essential so that you can fully understand and appreciate their situation and figure out how to best represent them. It is even more challenging with clients who speak languages other than English and come from cultures very different from ours. Seeing a lawyer and contemplating leaving your abuser is a huge step. A phone interpreting service is wholly inadequate; you can’t see the interpreter and you will not get the same interpreter twice. Our clients are reluctant to share information speaking to a disembodied voice on the phone. When they meet with YIN volunteers who are warm, empathetic, kind and provide a cultural bridge, clients are able to open up and talk about very difficult things. My clients (and I) are so appreciative that students are volunteering their time to help them.”