Icons of England
  • Introduction
  • The Icons
  • Nominations
  • News
  • Learn & Play
  • Your Comments

The King James Bible

Career Ideas

Set your sights high and find out how to become royalty or perhaps a priest.

King


This one may be difficult if your parents aren’t monarchs. The best you can do is become a prince consort, for which you just have to marry a queen!


Contacts

  • There are no vocational training courses for the monarchy, nor are there any professional associations or unions. You’re pretty much on your own with this one. Sorry.


Translator


Bible translations have often caused controversy. In the 1380s, John Wycliffe produced many copies of the Bible translated into English, from the Latin Vulgate. His translation incensed the Pope to such a degree that, 44 years after Wycliffe’s death, he commanded that the bones were exhumed from his grave, crushed and thrown in the river.


If you are intrigued by the different meanings implicit in various text translations, you might think about becoming a translator.


A highly competitive field, as a translator you will probably work as a full- or part-time freelancer. Most translators will have a degree in languages, or perhaps languages in combination with interpreting or translation. You can also take an Institute of Linguists (IoL) Diploma. The other entry point is to move from a related post such as language teaching. Translation courses are available for both full- and part-time study.


You could contact the professional organisations below for information on training opportunities for professional linguists.


There are opportunities to work for large international organisations and government departments and there is sometimes the possibility of working overseas. If you are freelance it is important to market yourself effectively in order to progress.


Further information:


Contacts

  • The National Centre for Languages (CILT), 20 Bedfordbury, London WC2N 4LB. Tel: 020 7379 5101. Web: www.cilt.org.uk and www.blis.org.uk
  • The European Commission (EC), 8 Storey’s Gate, London SW1P 3AT. Tel: 020 7973 1992. Web: www.cec.org.uk
  • Institute of Linguists (IoL), Saxon House, 48 Southwark Street, London SE1 1UN. Tel: 020 7940 3100. Web: www.iol.org.uk
  • Institute of Translation and Interpreting (ITI), Fortuna House, South Fifth Street, Milton Keynes MK9 2EU. Tel: 01908 325250. Web: www.iti.org.uk
  • The British Centre for Literary Translation (BCLT), School of Literature and Creative Writing, University of East Anglia, Norwich, NR4 7TJ, UK. Email: bclt@uea.ac.uk. Web: www.uea.ac.uk/eas/centres/bclt/bcltintro.shtml
  • www.uea.ac.uk/


Priest


Maybe your interest was stirred by reading the Bible. If you think you would like to be a priest, you will need to consider whether you want to serve in a parish or join a religious order.


If you would like to work in your local community as a parish minister, contact the vocations director or the bishop of your diocese. Alternatively, if you feel called to join a religious order, you will need to follow up the orders that you know about and see if you can find one that feels appropriate and special to you.


Philosophy is often included as part of the formation programme of many diocesan seminaries and religious institutes. It is best to start by investigating your vocation, and then discuss the direction of your studies with the vocation director of the diocese or religious order you decide on.


Further information


Bookbinder


About 20,000 people work as finishers or bookbinders with specialist companies and large organisations such as local councils, colleges or universities.


There are two kinds of bookbinders: print finishers/machine bookbinders work on a range of machines that staple, bind, glue, fold and trim paper sheets into books, booklets, and catalogues. Craft/hand bookbinders bind books by hand using specialist tools to bind and sew the pages, adding gold-tooled lettering and decorative endpapers. Some also restore books.


Qualifications are not always required but generally employers prefer four GCSEs or the equivalent.


Contact City & Guilds or look on their website for details of colleges offering City & Guilds Certificates in printing and graphic communication, which are part of apprenticeships but can also be studied for entry into the industry. Training for a print finisher/machine bookbinder is mainly undertaken while in employment. NVQ Levels 2 and 3 in Printing are awarded by City & Guilds. These cover mechanised print finishing and binding at both levels.


Many colleges offer part-time courses in craft bookbinding, as well as short courses and evening classes. A list can be found on the Society of Bookbinders website.


Higher education courses, including Higher National Certificate (HNC), Higher National Diploma (HND) and degrees in craft bookbinding are offered at specialist colleges.


Further information


Contacts


Printer

Working as a printer today is, unsurprisingly, very different to when The King James Bible was first printed in 1611.


Although competition is growing from electronic media and the web, and despite talk of our progression towards a “paperless society”, printed media still fulfils endless functions, and is one of the largest industries in this country.


The number of available jobs has inevitably been reduced by improved and streamlined technology, but 170,000 people are still employed in the industry.


To start a career as a printer you do not really need any formal qualifications, but it is useful to be able to offer some GCSEs (including English and Maths). Good colour vision is important.


There are various full-time courses at colleges across the UK. Apprenticeships may be available.


Further details


Contacts

  • British Printing Industries Federation (BPIF), Farringdon Point, 29-35 Farringdon Road, London EC1M 3JF. Tel: 0870 240 4085. Web: www.britishprint.com
  • Institute of Printing, The Mews Hill House, Clanricarde Road, Tunbridge Wells TN1 1PJ. Tel: 01892 538118.
  • London College of Communication, Elephant and Castle, London SE1 6SB. Tel: 020 7514 6500. Web: www.lcc.arts.ac.uk
  • Print Education and Training Forum, 962 Alum Rock Road, Ward End, Birmingham B8 2NS. Tel: 0121 789 5100. Web: www.petf.org.uk