SENSE is run entirely by volunteers.

Most of the Society’s management is taken care of by an Executive Committee (EC) and five Team Leaders (TL) and their teams. The EC comprises five members (Chair, Treasurer, Secretary and two Members-at-Large), and the Team Leaders are the Content Manager, CPD Coordinator, SIG and Social Events Coordinator, Social Media Coordinator, and Web Manager.

Other SENSE members volunteer by serving on various committees such as the Audit Committee or in the Mentoring Programme, contributing content to the website, organizing and assisting at events, or representing SENSE at external meetings.

Other volunteers

Other activities performed by volunteers include:

• SIG convenors (organize meetings of Special Interest Groups)
• Content team (edits content that is published by SENSE)
• PDD team (is involved in organizing the Professional Development Day)
• Social media team (posts news on SENSE’s social media channels)
• Audit committee (checks the society’s financial records)
• Mentoring programme (arranging for and acting as mentors to fellow-SENSE members)
• Handbook team (updates the SENSE Handbook)
• PSTEVIN and PZO representatives (liaises with other industry role-players)

Management meetings

The EC has a formal meeting every two months, and the Team Leaders meet regularly at other intervals as necessary.  Summaries of the minutes of EC meetings and reports from EC and TL portfolios are available to SENSE members in the online library.  The library also contains SENSE’s Constitution and formal Rules that guide the EC and forms a framework for decision-making.

SENSE holds an Annual General Meeting (AGM) in the first quarter of every year. At the AGM, the budget is reviewed and new members are elected to the EC (if applicable), among other matters. Prior to each AGM, members can download a copy of the AGM Bulletin which contains reports from the various volunteers, as well as an AGM motion form and EC nomination form (as they become available). SENSE members can browse previous AGM minutes and bulletins in the online library.

What SENSE is

SENSE is a society for English-language professionals based in the Netherlands. We currently have about 280 members, including technical, style and copy editors, translators, proofreaders, copywriters, interpreters, journalists, teachers, researchers, academics and language/communication consultants. Most of our members either live in or have a professional connection to the Netherlands, but work primarily in English (either full-time or part-time, freelance or in-house).

What SENSE does

SENSE supports its members and the language profession in many ways. The Society:

• helps language professionals meet the special challenges of working in English in a Dutch-speaking country.
• organizes a full calendar of workshops, webinars and social events for members and non-members alike.
• hosts an online Forum where members can ask questions and discuss issues.
• organizes get-togethers called Special Interest Groups (SIGs) to meet, discuss and learn about topics related to the group's interests.
• operates a mentoring programme in which more experienced members provide guidance to less experienced colleagues.
• provides a membership database where members can find colleagues and make useful contacts.
• provides useful information and resources in our online Library of files.
• maintains an active presence on Facebook (both public and private), LinkedIn (both public and private) and X (formerly Twitter).
• engages in advocacy and the promotion of standards on behalf of language professionals in the Netherlands and Europe.
• encourages communication between societies and institutions involved in language.

History of SENSE

SENSE was founded in 1990 by a small group of English-speaking editors living in the Netherlands. Their objective was to form a society that could deal with the problems of language attrition and linguistic isolation faced by English-speaking language professionals living and working in a non-anglophone country. SENSE has also attracted many native speakers of Dutch, who bring valuable perspectives on working in the English language industry in the Netherlands.

Read more:

• How it all began (newsletter article 1995)
• A name and a meaning (blog post 2023)
• Sense demographics (blog post 2023)

Publications

The following resources are available to the public:

• Guidelines for Proofreading Student Texts – helps formalize agreements between editors and students working on assignments.
• SENSE publishes an entertaining and informative blog.
• SENSE co-authored the Convenant Vertaalsector Nederland (a memorandum of understanding for the Dutch translation industry).

What SENSE is

SENSE is a society for English-language professionals based in the Netherlands. We currently have about 280 members, including technical, style and copy editors, translators, proofreaders, copywriters, interpreters, journalists, teachers, researchers, academics and language/communication consultants. Most of our members either live in or have a professional connection to the Netherlands, but work primarily in English (either full-time or part-time, freelance or in-house).

What SENSE does

SENSE supports its members and the language profession in many ways. The Society:

• helps language professionals meet the special challenges of working in English in a Dutch-speaking country.
• organizes a full calendar of workshops, webinars and social events for members and non-members alike.
• hosts an online Forum where members can ask questions and discuss issues.
• organizes get-togethers called Special Interest Groups (SIGs) to meet, discuss and learn about topics related to the group's interests.
• operates a mentoring programme in which more experienced members provide guidance to less experienced colleagues.
• provides a membership database where members can find colleagues and make useful contacts.
• provides useful information and resources in our online Library of files.
• maintains an active presence on Facebook (both public and private), LinkedIn (both public and private) and X (formerly Twitter).
• engages in advocacy and the promotion of standards on behalf of language professionals in the Netherlands and Europe.
• encourages communication between societies and institutions involved in language.

History of SENSE

SENSE was founded in 1990 by a small group of English-speaking editors living in the Netherlands. Their objective was to form a society that could deal with the problems of language attrition and linguistic isolation faced by English-speaking language professionals living and working in a non-anglophone country. SENSE has also attracted many native speakers of Dutch, who bring valuable perspectives on working in the English language industry in the Netherlands.

Read more:

• How it all began (newsletter article 1995)
• A name and a meaning (blog post 2023)
• Sense demographics (blog post 2023)

Publications

The following resources are available to the public:

• Guidelines for Proofreading Student Texts – helps formalize agreements between editors and students working on assignments.
• SENSE publishes an entertaining and informative blog.
• SENSE co-authored the Convenant Vertaalsector Nederland (a memorandum of understanding for the Dutch translation industry).

What SENSE is

SENSE is a society for English-language professionals based in the Netherlands. We currently have about 280 members, including technical, style and copy editors, translators, proofreaders, copywriters, interpreters, journalists, teachers, researchers, academics and language/communication consultants. Most of our members either live in or have a professional connection to the Netherlands, but work primarily in English (either full-time or part-time, freelance or in-house).

What SENSE does

SENSE supports its members and the language profession in many ways. The Society:

• helps language professionals meet the special challenge of working in English in a non-anglophone setting.
• organizes a full calendar of workshops, webinars and social events for members and non-members alike.
• hosts an online Forum where members can ask questions and discuss issues.
• organizes get-togethers called Special Interest Groups (SIGs) to meet, discuss and learn about topics related to the group's interests.
• operates a mentoring programme in which more experienced members provide guidance to less experienced colleagues.
• provides a membership database where members can find colleagues and make useful contacts.
• provides members with useful information and resources in our online Library.
• maintains an active presence on Facebook (both public and private), LinkedIn (both public and private) and Twitter.
• engages in advocacy and promotion of standards on behalf of language professionals in the Netherlands
• encourages communication between societies and institutions involved in language.

History of SENSE

SENSE was founded in 1990 by a small group of English-speaking editors living in the Netherlands. Their objective was to form a society that could deal with the problems of language attrition and linguistic isolation faced by English-speaking language professionals living and working in a non-anglophone country. Since then, SENSE has also attracted many native speakers of Dutch, who bring valuable perspectives on working in the English language industry in the Netherlands.

Read this article to learn how it all began.

Publications

The following resources are available to the public:

• Guidelines for Proofreading Student Texts – helps formalize agreements between editors and students working on assignments.
• SENSE publishes an entertaining and informative blog.
• SENSE co-authored the Convenant Vertaalsector Nederland (a memorandum of understanding for the Dutch translation industry).

New members

SENSE welcomes all language professionals working in English in the Netherlands or with a connection to or interest in the Dutch market. Although most SENSE members live in the Netherlands, this is not a requirement for membership. Our membership rates are very affordable and we offer students a discount.

To join SENSE, please complete and submit our membership application form.

If you have any questions, please contact us via membership@sense-online.nl.

Returning members

If you have any questions or wish to rejoin SENSE after a break, please contact us via membership@sense-online.nl.

Membership fees

The membership fee is €80.00 per calendar year (January to December).

New members who join between 1 January and 30 June pay €80.00 for the remainder of the year. New members who join between 1 July and 31 October pay only €40 for the remainder of the year. New members who join in November and December pay €80.00, which also covers the following year's dues.

Membership dues for students are 50% of the regular membership fee, for the duration of their studies. New applicants for the student rate must provide evidence that they are enrolled in an accredited training programme at the time of application.

If you are curious about the benefits of joining SENSE, reach out to our Chair at chair@sense-online.nl or Secretary at secretary@sense-online.nl.

How to join

To join SENSE, please complete and submit our membership application form together with your CV.

If you have any questions, please contact us at membership@sense-online.nl.

Membership fees

The membership fee is €80.00 per calendar year (January to December).

New members who join between 1 January and 30 June pay €80.00 for the remainder of the year. New members who join between 1 July and 31 October pay only €40 for the remainder of the year. New members who join in November and December pay €80.00, which also covers the following year's dues.

Membership dues for students are 50% of the regular membership fee, for the duration of their studies. New applicants for the student rate must provide evidence that they are enrolled in an accredited training programme at the time of application.

Topic: Translators as editors

 We welcome your feedback and comments. Please contact us at info@sense-online.nl if:

• You have a general enquiry about the Society.
• You would like to attend one of our SIG meetings or workshops.
• You are interested in joining SENSE and have any questions about membership.
• You have a freelance assignment or job opening that you would like us to post to our SENSE members via our private Forum.

SENSE has a number of special interest groups (SIGs) which meet regularly via Zoom and throughout the country. Meetings are open to all members. Guests are welcome to attend one or two meetings before deciding whether they would like to join SENSE.

"As a beginner, you can be overwhelmed by a million questions. Having a mentor — someone who is more experienced and perhaps older — can really help you along the way. Being mentored has offered me professional peace of mind. I know that if I'm faced with a thorny issue, there’s someone to throw me a lifeline. I have been able to grow faster within a safer environment than I could have managed alone." - a SENSE member

The Mentoring Programme brings experienced SENSE members into contact with less experienced members seeking advice and/or training.

For whom

Although this is certainly an invaluable opportunity for those who are just starting out, any member can take advantage of this programme. For example, if you are thinking about adding a new service, you might want to discuss the options with a member with more experience in that particular field. Or tech-savvy members could help you figure out how to make the most of the professional software you have.

How it works

The mentoring programme aims to provide members with the type of mentoring which best fits their needs. This might be a one-off meeting where a specific topic is discussed, or a longer mentorship where mentor and mentee create a roadmap and specific goals to achieve.

The mentorship can last up to 6 hours, and it is advisable to divide it in meetings of at least two hours. Given the time limit, is it very important to have a clear idea of the topics to discuss before starting the mentorship. When in doubt, the mentoring committee might be able to help you come up with a specific goal.

Cost

To promote a more professional and formal relationship between the mentor and mentee, the mentor receives financial compensation (€60 per hour) for providing up to 6 hours of mentoring. This scheme is subsidized by the society: the mentee pays €20 per hour and SENSE pays €40 per hour.

Become a mentor

Anybody in SENSE can be asked to be a mentor, meaning that SENSE can offer support on a wide range of topics. From translation and editing, to business practice, accounting, use of software, and marketing strategies. Here are some topics addressed in past mentorships: translation in the medical field, networking for translators, using Déjà Vu for translation work, and using Excel for accounting.

You may also like to read this blog post written by a SENSE mentee.

For further information, please drop the mentoring committee a line. They will be happy to help you find the right match.