Certified translator?

I'd like to be a certified translator of Polish and/or Russian in California..What should I do???Certified translator?
I'm actually trying to start my career in translating myself. Luckily, I have a friend who does translating, and she recommended this website to me:



http://www.atanet.org/



This is the website for the American Translators Association and it has a lot of useful information in terms of jobs, which languages you are interested in translating to/from and also it has a list of universities/colleges and other schools that offer programs for certifications in translating or interpreting. Unfortunately, there is a membership fee for this group, but I found lots of information on the website without having to join it or pay anything. The pay for these jobs will depend on who you end up working for. Of course, the government jobs are pretty high paying, and you get pretty good benefits too. (US Government, United Nations, World Health Organization, etc.) I hope this helps and good luck!Certified translator?
I don't know how it works in the states but I would imagine you need to go to either college or university and actually study the languages ( even if you already speak them) and get a degree that says you're proficient in them. Or actually take translation courses or even get a translator's degree? You could also try those embassies, depending on how it works there, after some tests they might give you some certificate that allows you to translate those languages for official documents.

But then again, that's how it works in Europe, not sure about the states.