University of Southern Maine: Translation Requirements for Documents in Another Language

Worth knowing about USM

USM requirements in detail

Certified translations for every record

USM lists the translation among the additional requirements for international applicants: official secondary school transcripts, exam certificates and any college-level transcripts, including certified English translations (Apply for undergraduate admission).

It recommends starting the process a year before you plan to enroll, and its international deadlines are June 1 for fall and October 15 for spring.

College transcripts: the evaluation and its translation rule

If you have an international college transcript, USM also wants an official evaluation of university-level transcripts from a NACES or AICE member, and graduate applicants need a course-by-course report showing a degree equivalent to a US bachelor's (Apply for undergraduate admission, graduate).

USM recommends three agencies, each with its own rule: WES accepts a word-for-word translation from a professional translation service; The Evaluation Company asks for a translator certified by ATA; Josef Silny accepts translations by ATA-certified translators in the US or official translators abroad, and may reject others.

For TEC or Josef Silny, eVerbary can assign a translator individually certified by ATA on request.

Documents applicants usually translate

• Secondary school transcripts and diploma
• Exam certificates (national or leaving exams)
• College or university transcripts
• Degree certificates, for graduate applicants

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 USM

• Send the official records and their certified translations to the USM Office of Admissions with your application; the evaluation agency sends its report directly (Apply for undergraduate admission).

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 USM, 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