Des Moines Area Community College: Translation Requirements for Documents in Another Language

Worth knowing about DMACC

DMACC requirements in detail

F-1 applicants: translated, and notarized if they are copies

DMACC's international admission requirements ask for an official transcript showing graduation from secondary school and transcripts from every postsecondary institution attended, translated into English.

Photocopies may be accepted if they are properly notarized as true copies, so you can keep your originals; the translation goes with the copy.

The deadline is counted in work days: everything must reach the International Student Office no later than 30 work days before the semester for applicants abroad, or 10 for F-1 students transferring from a US school, and late files move to the next semester.

Notarization of the translation is available at checkout for $34.90 per order; DMACC's rule is about notarizing photocopies of the originals, which a notary where you live can do.

Credit for college work abroad

For transfer credit, DMACC accepts courses from accredited colleges and universities anywhere, up to 43 semester credits, if the transferred GPA is 2.0 or higher (Transferring credits to DMACC).

If your transcript is not in English you provide an English translation, and you have it evaluated course-by-course by Educational Credential Evaluators, World Education Services or SpanTran; the Credentials & Graduation Office answers questions about other agencies.

The three agencies differ on translations.

WES wants a word-for-word translation by a professional translator and does not accept translations made by applicants; ECE accepts any complete, literal, word-for-word translation and sells an $85 waiver under which it translates internally for its report only; SpanTran, now The Evaluation Company, takes an outside translation only from a translator certified by ATA, which eVerbary provides on request.

Documents applicants usually translate

• Secondary school transcript and diploma or leaving certificate
• College or university transcripts, all institutions attended
• Degree certificates, for the course-by-course evaluation
• Bank letter or statement for the Financial Resource Statement

What an eVerbary translation includes

• A complete English translation of every page, stamps, seals and handwritten notes included, laid out like the original so each line can be matched.
• Grades exactly as recorded, with the grading scale the document prints. We never convert marks to a US GPA.
• A signed certificate of translation accuracy on letterhead, with our contact details, delivered as a PDF you can upload.
• $24.95 per page of up to 250 words, certification included; 24 hours for one to three pages as standard. Regular clients who need it can get delivery in as little as 30 minutes, on request.

Uploading the translation to DMACC

• For admission, send the translation with the (notarized) copy of the original to the International Student Office by mail or as a PDF to intlstudentoffice@dmacc.edu (International students: requirements and deadlines).

• For credit, the translation goes to ECE, WES or SpanTran with your documents, and the official transcript is mailed to DMACC Admissions by your college (Transferring credits to DMACC).

If you need a translator certified by ATA

Some offices accept only a translator who is personally certified by the American Translators Association (ATA). eVerbary assigns one on request, for the languages ATA certifies into English:

To order it, ask for a free quote and write in the notes that the translation is for DMACC, which program it is for, and that you need a translator individually certified by ATA, plus anything else the office asks for (notarization, delivery by email to the office).

We confirm the price and the translator before you pay. ATA does not certify other languages into English, so no translator anywhere holds ATA certification for them.

For those languages we provide a notarized certified translation instead, at $44.95 per page plus notarization ($34.90 per order); ask the office to confirm it accepts that, and write its answer in the quote notes.

How to order

1. Scan or photograph every page of the document, front and back, including any stamps on the reverse.
2. Upload it, choose the language and "certified", and see the price before paying.
3. Receive the PDF, usually within 24 hours for one to three pages, and upload it with the copy of the original wherever the institution asks for it.

Frequently asked questions