Is grad school worth it for what I want to pursue (translation/interpretation)?

I am a Japanese with some experience in the U.S. as a student.

I recommend you to go to a graduate school in Japan.

Many (not all) Japanese graduate schools do not put importance on your grades in undergraduate courses. Even the concept of GPA is not widely known (in other words, Japanese people calculate undergraduate grades differently from the U.S. schools).

Many graduate schools in Japan have entrance exams. The exams will test foreign language and knowledge in your major. You need to submit your research plan. Interviews are required. But undergraduate grades are not so important in Japan.

If your major is Japanese, it is worth to try. It might not sound ridiculous to your future employer if you say "I went to Japan to pursue my profession."

If you seriously endeavor to be a professional translator/interpreter, you may have job opportunities in Japan.

A translator's job is to translate a language from one person that is able to speak a specific language to another that is unable, im unsure if you can get a degree in translation but you can deifinetely get one in languages Hope this helps

You could have dropped out of high school and get good translation work. Doing that right now, easy.