Los Medanos College: Translation Requirements for Documents in Another Language

Sample translation: a Congolese secondary school transcript

This is what an order looks like when it is delivered, with a fictitious student. The PDF starts with the signed certification page, and the translation follows the original line for line: every abbreviation is explained, stamps, seals and signatures are noted in brackets, and the grid stays the same, so an admissions officer or a credential evaluator can match it without guessing.

Swipe to see the second page →

What to notice

• Two school years in the same grid as the original: every subject, grading period, exam and total, so each grade can be read against its maximum.
• The French rating abbreviations are translated (TB becomes VG, Very good), and every abbreviation is explained in a translator's note at the foot of the same page, including one the original never defines.
• Dates are written the US way (the original's 02/07/2015 is February 7, 2015).
• The photo, seals and signatures are noted in brackets where they appear.

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More sample translations

Worth knowing about LMC

LMC requirements in detail

Nursing applicants with a degree from abroad

LMC's LVN-to-RN applicant handbook uses a points system.

A degree earns up to 15 points, but a degree from outside the US counts only if a NACES member agency has evaluated it as equivalent to a bachelor's degree or higher, and the evaluation must arrive in a sealed envelope from the agency.

The handbook warns that the evaluation is used only to award points, possibly not for graduation, and tells applicants to ask Admissions and Records what the report must include.

The same handbook says LMC does not evaluate foreign transcripts and grants no credit for foreign coursework toward nursing prerequisites, which must come from regionally accredited US colleges.

A separate criterion gives up to 5 points for proficiency in a language other than English, documented by US coursework or a Foreign Language Certification form (LMC: LVN to RN nursing applicant handbook (PDF)).

Where LMC's pages differ

The district international page says a NACES course-by-course evaluation is reviewed by the department for credit toward an associate degree at LMC, CCC or DVC.

The nursing handbook says LMC does not evaluate foreign transcripts nor grant credit for foreign coursework, in the section on nursing prerequisites.

LMC's transcript evaluation page adds that it gives no credit for courses from institutions without regional accreditation and does not use upper-division courses toward degrees.

Ask Admissions and Records (evaluations@losmedanos.edu) before paying for an evaluation.

What each evaluation agency asks for the translation

WES wants an exact, word-for-word translation by a professional translator and does not translate (WES).

ECE accepts complete, word-for-word translations, lets applicants translate their own, and sells an $85 waiver under which it translates internally for the report only (ECE).

IERF wants typed, line-by-line translations in the original layout and may require a professional one (IERF). FCSA accepts most professional agencies, and the applicant's own only for Spanish (FCSA).

For the nursing sealed-envelope rule, ask the agency to mail the report to LMC directly.

Documents applicants usually translate

• Bachelor's or higher degree certificate and transcripts, for the nursing NACES evaluation
• University transcripts and course descriptions, for degree credit
• High school transcript, for under-18 applicants and prerequisites
• Bank document showing the required funds

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 LMC

• The translation goes to the evaluation agency with your records (WES in your WES account, ECE by mail or email); for nursing, the agency's report must reach LMC in a sealed envelope from the agency (WES, ECE, LMC nursing).

• Admission documents are uploaded with the district's online international application (Contra Costa Community College District: international students); official transcripts go to LMC Admissions & Records, 2700 E. Leland Road, Pittsburg (LMC: evaluation of transcripts).

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