MA Interpreting (Chinese Pathway)
University of Surrey
Key Information
Campus location
Guildford, United Kingdom
Languages
English
Study format
On-Campus
Duration
1 year
Pace
Full time
Tuition fees
GBP 21,500 / per year *
Application deadline
01 Jul 2024
Earliest start date
Sep 2024
* for overseas students | £10,400 for UK students
Introduction
Why Choose This Course
Our Interpreting (Chinese Pathway) MA course is taught in collaboration with KL Communications Ltd, whose Managing Director, Dr Kevin Lin OBE, is the Lead Interpreter (Chinese) for the UK government's Foreign Office. Our program has a strong practical component that responds to the needs of the Chinese interpreting market. It will give you advanced interpreting skills in all interpreting modes, including consecutive/simultaneous interpreting, chuchotage, sight translation, dialogue, and distance interpreting.
Our program also provides exceptional opportunities for simulated and industry-relevant interpreting experience. It will train you to be ready for your first conference interpreter job upon graduation. We support ‘ virtual internships’ which enable you to collaborate with language service providers and build a professional engagement portfolio that you can present to future employers.
The Chinese interpreting market has experienced exceptional growth despite a challenging international economic climate. Globalization creates new opportunities and creates demands Globalization program, is a program for interpreting services to enable knowledge exchange, migration, trade and diplomatic relations, and communication between business clients. Technological innovation is also rapidly reshaping the interpreting industry, presenting new research opportunities. As an MA Interpreting graduate, you'll be able to take advantage of global employment opportunities.
The Centre for Translation Studies has developed an ambitious new research program that will place us and our students at the very heart of future developments. The program informs our teaching with a strong focus on the responsible integration of human and machine translation.
What You Will Study
Our course covers the main principles, techniques, and professional requirements of interpreting between Chinese and English, preparing you to work as an interpreter in conference, business, and political settings.
You'll develop skills in all interpreting modes (consecutive, dialogue and simultaneous interpreting, and sight translation), through on-site and remote interpreting via audio/video link, note-taking, and public speaking. The Interpreting and Technology module focuses on practical knowledge and professional requirements for integrating different technologies in interpreting, for example, to support the interpreter’s preparation and performance (such as accessing electronic glossaries, digital note-taking) and delivery of interpreting services (audio/video-mediated distance/remote interpreting). This provides you with the necessary digital skills to develop a successful interpreting career in a fast-changing world and work environment.
The Professional Translation Practice module engages students in practical workshops for translating specialized texts, whilst our optional modules allow you to customize specialized your learning experience.
Your dissertation will enable you to consolidate the knowledge and skills acquired during the taught components of the course and guide you along the identification and selection of an appropriate research topic or an extended interpreting project and analytical commentary. It’s also one of the many ways of getting involved in ongoing research at the Centre for Translation Studies. We regularly have students who decide to stay on for a PhD and pursue an academic career in translation and interpreting studies. For further information, see our PhD course.
During your studies, you will have an opportunity to demonstrate academic and professional excellence by winning prizes. These include the following:
- RWS Campus Top Student Award (two Trados licenses)
- Project management training (one free-of-charge place in the Pro PM Training and Certification Programme)
- Professional Engagement Portfolio Prize
- Best Performance in Interpreting Prize.
Teaching Staff
The practice-based interpreting modules are taught by Dr Kevin Lin and his team, who will bring their interpreting expertise, workplace experience, high-end interpreting standards, and up-to-date knowledge of the interpreting market into the classroom.
You'll be taught by experienced academic staff with excellent research records, who help you to develop a broad understanding of the current and future challenges of interpreting. For example, Professor Sabine Braun is a leading expert in the field of remote/video-conference interpreting. Other academic staff specialize in public service interpreting, interpreter-mediated interaction, and corpus-assisted translation and interpreting studies.
Professional Development
To test and develop your skills and strategies in an authentic work environment, you'll be provided opportunities for practical interpreting traineeships, including an opportunity to attend both practices at the International Maritime Organisation (IMO), a specialized agency of the United Nations. During the study visit, you'll practice simultaneous interpreting in a realistic UN-standard conference booth and will be instructed by experienced interpreters working at IMO.
In addition, our students have provided interpreting services for regular clients of KL Communications Ltd, as well as for many multilingual events held at the University of Surrey, including graduation ceremonies and a highly specialized medical conference.
We have recently established an annual internship program for MA Interpreting (Chinese Pathway) students with one of the largest translation and interpreting service providers in China: Lan-bridge Group. Each year, students in our program can choose to apply for the internship and, if selected, the majority will travel to China to work.
Students will either complete an accumulative 10 days of interpreting assignments from Lan-bridge (spread across several months), or six months of an internship period. Whichever condition they reach first will result in completing the internship. Through this program, students will be guaranteed more opportunities to take on real interpreting assignments and gain practical experience. Students can also choose to arrange their internship in the UK.
Admissions
Curriculum
Academic Year Structure
The MA Interpreting (Chinese Pathway) course is studied over one year (full-time only).
The taught part of the program is divided into eight 15-credit modules. A 15-credit module is indicative of 150 hours of learning. The hours of learning comprise contact hours, guided learning, and private study.
The MA Interpreting (Chinese Pathway) course has six compulsory modules, and you must select another two optional modules. Our varied offer of optional modules will enable you to tailor the program to your strengths and preferences.
You will complete your degree with a Translation and Interpreting Studies Dissertation (60 credits), to be submitted at the beginning of September. You can choose between two types of dissertation:
- A topic-based dissertation
- An extended interpreting and analytical commentary.
Modules
Modules listed are indicative, reflecting the information available at the time of publication. Please note that modules may be subject to teaching availability, student demand, and/or class size caps.
The University operates a credit framework for all taught programs based on a 15-credit tariff. Modules can be either 15, 30, 45, 75, or 120 credits, and additionally for some masters dissertations, 90 credits.
The structure of our programs follows clear educational aims that are tailored to each program. These are all outlined in the programme specifications which include further details such as the learning outcomes:
Year 1
Full-Time
- Consecutive Interpreting Chinese I [chinese Pathway]
- Principles and Challenges of Translation and Interpreting
- Professional Translation Practice I
- Simultaneous Interpreting Chinese I [chinese Pathway]
- Audiovisual Translation
- Consecutive Interpreting Chinese Ii [chinese Pathway]
- Interpreting and Technologies
- Professional Translation Practice Ii
- Public Service Interpreting - Trends and Issues
- Simultaneous Interpreting Chinese Ii [chinese Pathway]
- Translation and Interpreting Studies Dissertation
Timetable
Course timetables are normally available one month before the start of the semester.
Please note that while we make every effort to ensure that timetables are as student-friendly as possible, scheduled teaching can take place on any day of the week (Monday – Friday). Wednesday afternoons are normally reserved for sports and cultural activities. The part-time timetable is based on the full-time one, so classes will run on any teaching day.
Translation Studies seminars take place on Wednesday afternoons – attendance is optional but strongly encouraged.
Please note that our practice-based classes are normally provided by professional interpreters and we may sometimes have to reschedule classes to accommodate professional commitments.
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Career Opportunities
We offer career information, advice, and guidance to all students whilst studying with us, which is extended to our alumni for three years after leaving the University.
91 percent of our School of Literature and Languages postgraduate students go on to employment or further study (Graduate Outcomes 2023, HESA).
Local and international companies from the language industry come to our Centre for Translation Studies careers fair to explain what current and future opportunities they have. This provides you with a chance to engage with them directly and kick-start your career in an informal, friendly atmosphere.
Our emphasis on professional development, which includes participating in simulated classroom activities for remote interpreting and attending booth practice at IMO, means that you'll be well-equipped to begin work as an executive interpreter or Chinese communication expert at international organizations, government bodies, and private companies. There’s a strong international demand for excellent interpreters in Chinese and English.
Program Tuition Fee
English Language Requirements
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