Translation MA

This module will introduce students to core theoretical approaches, trends, and methods in the fields of translation studies. These key areas will be introduced through lectures, and students will then further develop their theoretical and methodological insights into translation in discussion-based seminars. Students will present analysis of one chosen area of translation or interpreting studies in a conference-style presentation, and complete a critical essay as coursework.

MODL511 represents the theoretical backbone of the MA in Chinese-English Translation and Interpreting and the MA in Translation. Students will thus apply the understanding of theoretical and methodological approaches gained through this module to their own translation practice throughout their course of study on the two programmes .

This module is designed to introduce students to the range and diversity of current research in languages and cultures. In individual sessions, students will be encouraged to consider the range of theoretical and methodological approaches which they could adopt in approaching their individual research projects. This module aims to provide students with an awareness of the key theoretical issues central to cultural studies, and to develop in them an understanding of current methodologies.

This new module will be offered as an optional module in the new MA in Translation to students with Arabic, French, German, Italian or Spanish; it is co-taught in part with CHIN513. Students wishing to focus on two of these languages should take the 30-credit module MODL533, which allows students to follow the same taught content with assessment in two languages. Students with Chinese in addition to one of the above languages should take CHIN513 as well as MODL523.

In this module, students will gain advanced practical interpreting skills in sight translation, public service interpreting/liaison interpreting, and consecutive interpreting across a range of interactional settings, e.g. health, education, tourism, politics, immigration. Authentic and realistic audio-visual materials will be used in the teaching throughout, which is reflective of interpreting practice in the industry. Throughout the module, students will learn about the main theories in interpreting studies and the etiquette, professionalism and career development relating to the interpreting industry and market. Also, students will reflect on their interpreting practice, justify their decisions, and evaluate each other’s performance, drawing on some of the concepts and theories they have learned from the theoretical module. This module features consistent formative feedback from the tutor(s) and peer feedback.

In this module, students will gain advanced practical interpreting skills in sight translation, public service interpreting/liaison interpreting, and consecutive interpreting covering a range of topics (e.g. medical, educational, tourist, political, immigrant related) and settings. Authentic and realistic audio-visual materials will be used in the teaching throughout, which is reflective of actual interpreting in the industry. Throughout the module, students will learn about the main theories in interpreting studies and the etiquette, professionalism and career development relating to the interpreting industry and market. Also, students will reflect on their interpreting practice, justify their decisions, and evaluate each other’s performance, drawing on some of the concepts and theories they have learned from the theoretical module. This module features consistent formative feedback from the tutor(s) and peer feedback.

This new module allows students to take liaison and consecutive interpreting into and out of English with two languages drawn from Arabic, French, German, Italian or Spanish; it is co-taught in part with CHIN513. Students with Chinese in addition to one of the above languages should take MODL523 and CHIN513.

In this module, students will gain advanced practical interpreting and sight translation skills involving English and two languages. They will practice consecutive interpreting across a range of interactional settings, e.g. health, education, tourism, politics, immigration, and public service interpreting (health and legal domains). Authentic and realistic audio-visual materials will be used in the teaching throughout, which is reflective of interpreting practice in the industry. Throughout the module, students will learn about the main theories in interpreting studies and the etiquette, professionalism and career development relating to the interpreting industry and market. Also, students will reflect on their interpreting practice, justify their decisions, and evaluate each other’s performance, drawing on some of the concepts and theories they have learned from the theoretical module. This module features consistent formative feedback from the tutor(s) and peer feedback in each of the two language pairs chosen by the students.

This module is offered as an option on both the MA in Chinese-English Bilingual Translation and Interpreting and the MA in Translation, and offers an engaging exploration of the historical development and current trends of key and emerging markets in the international translated literature sector.
With case studies from key national literary markets such as UK, Germany, Italy, Spain and mainland China, the module provides a valuable international perspective on the formation of the global market for translated literature since the early twentieth century and its technology- and fan-stimulated transformation in the digital era. In the module, students will analyse key themes relating to the distribution, prizes, book fairs, copyright and markets and be in dialogue with guest speakers from the publishing industry and literary translation field.

In this module, students will gain advanced translation skills between Chinese and English, with a focus on text genres and general topics such as social science, business, culture, advertisement and tourism. This practice-oriented module also enables students to conduct translation and discuss and reflect on translation practice, drawing on some of the insights acquired from the theoretical module. Students will also gain useful insight into the translation practice, profession, market and industry (e.g. professional etiquette, post-editing and transcreation). Both intensive training in class and students’ independent study are crucial, given the practice-oriented nature of this module. Regular feedback will be provided to students in a variety of ways (e.g. formative feedback, summative feedback and peer feedback).

This module lays the foundation for a second translation module in semester two (where more specialised and difficult texts will be used), thus representing a key backbone of the MACETI programme. The module is also offered on the new MA in Translation for students with Chinese as well as another language.

This new module will be offered for the new MA in Translation, for students with Arabic, French, German, Italian or Spanish; it is co-taught in part with CHIN512. Students wishing to focus on two of these languages should take the 30-credit module MODL532 which allows students to follow the same taught content with assessment in two languages. All students will be required to take either MODL522 or MODL532.
In this module, students will gain advanced translation skills, with a focus on text genres and general topics such as social science, business, culture, advertising, arts and cultures, and tourism. This practice-oriented module also enables students to apply the insights acquired from MODL511 to their translation practice and self-reflection.
Through workshops, students will also gain insight into the translation practice, profession, market and industry (e.g. professional etiquette, background knowledge research, post-editing, transcreation) and key technical tools for industry translation.
Both intensive training in class and students’ independent study are crucial, given the practice-oriented nature of this module. Regular feedback will be provided to students in a variety of ways (e.g. formative feedback, summative feedback and peer feedback).
This module lays the foundation for the second translation module(s) in semester two where more specialised and challenging texts will be used.

This module is for students who wish to follow the practical translation module for two languages (from Arabic, French, German, Italian and Spanish).

In this module, students will gain advanced translation skills in two languages, with a focus on text genres and general topics such as social science, business, culture, advertising, arts and cultures, and tourism. This practice-oriented module also enables students to apply the insights acquired from MODL511 to their translation practice and self-reflection.
Through workshops, students will also gain insight into the translation practice, profession, market and industry (e.g. professional etiquette, background knowledge research, post-editing and transcreation) and key technical tools for industry translation.
Both intensive training in class and students’ independent study are crucial, given the practice-oriented nature of this module. Regular feedback will be provided to students in a variety of ways (e.g. formative feedback, summative feedback and peer feedback).
This module lays the foundation for a second compulsory translation module in semester two where more specialised and challenging texts will be used.

Taking this module, students will become familiar with audiovisual translation theories and practices, with a focus on subtitling. Students will also learn how to subtitle from different perspectives: technical (e.g., programmes, time and space limitations), linguistic (e.g., genres, orality), inter-cultural. Subtitling will be explored as an intra- and inter-linguistic translation practice, and the module will have a practical focus, including the use of subtitling platforms and software.

This new module allows students to develop their consecutive interpreting and learn simultaneous interpreting into and/or out of English with two languages drawn from Arabic, French, German, Italian or Spanish. It is co-taught in part with CHIN515. Students wishing to focus on just one of these languages should take the 15-credit, single-language module MODL525; students with Chinese in addition to one of the above languages should take MODL525 and CHIN515. Students taking MODL535 should normally have taken the dual-language, S1 module MODL533.

Building upon the interpreting skills students will have developed in MODL523 or MODL533, in this module students will receive more in-depth practical interpreting training, with a focus on consecutive and simultaneous interpreting on different topics in English and two other languages. Throughout the module, students will enhance their knowledge of the interpreting market, industry, and profession. Also, students will reflect on their interpreting practice, justify their decisions, and evaluate each other’s performance, drawing on some of the concepts and theories they have learned from MODL533 (or MODL523). Authentic audio-visual materials will be used in the teaching throughout.

This new module will be offered in the new MA in Translation to students with Arabic, French, German, Italian or Spanish; it is co-taught in part with CHIN515. Students wishing to focus on two of these languages should take the 30-credit module MODL535, which allows students to follow the same taught content with assessment in two languages.

Building upon the interpreting skills students will have developed in MODL523, in this module students will receive more in-depth practical interpreting training, with a focus on consecutive and simultaneous interpreting on different topics. Throughout the module, students will enhance their knowledge of the interpreting market, industry, and profession. Also, students will reflect on their interpreting practice, justify their decisions, and evaluate each other’s performance, drawing on some of the concepts and theories they have learned from MODL523. Authentic audio-visual materials will be used in the teaching throughout.

Building upon the interpreting skills students will have developed in CHIN513, in this module, students will receive more in-depth practical interpreting training, with a focus on consecutive interpreting and simultaneous interpreting (on different topics). Throughout the module, students will enhance their knowledge of the interpreting market, industry, and profession. Also, students will reflect on their interpreting practice, justify their decisions, and evaluate each other’s performance, drawing on some of the concepts and theories they have learned from CHIN503. Authentic audio-visual materials will be used in the teaching throughout.

The module will prepare students for planning their research effectively and presenting it both within the department and to outside audiences. It will incorporate training in the specific skills required for framing a major piece of research at postgraduate level, along with personal, supervised preparation of a feasibility study for the dissertation which they will be writing and submitting in fulfilment of the MA degree.

In this module, students will gain advanced translation skills between Chinese and English, with a focus on specialised text genres and topics such as scientific, technical, medical, legal, official documents and music/art texts. This practice-oriented module enables students to conduct translation and discuss and reflect on translation practice, drawing on some of the insights acquired from the theoretical module. Students will also continue to gain useful insight into the translation practice, profession, market and industry, and be equipped with knowledge and skills in terminology management and computer-aided translation (e.g. Trados). Regular feedback will be provided to students in a variety of ways (e.g. formative feedback, summative feedback and peer feedback). Both intensive training in class and students’ independent study are crucial, given the practice-oriented nature of this module.

The module is compulsory for students on the MA in Chinese-English Bilingual Translation and Interpreting, and also offered on the new MA in Translation for students with Chinese as well as another language.

This new module will be offered for the new MA in Translation, for students with Arabic, French, German, Italian or Spanish; it is co-taught in part with CHIN514. Students wishing to focus on two of these languages should take the 30-credit module MODL534 which allows students to follow the same taught content with assessment in two languages. All students will be required to take either MODL524 or MODL534.
In this module, students will gain further advanced translation skills, with a focus on specialised text genres and topics such as scientific, technical, medical, legal and music/art texts. This practice-oriented module builds on MODL522 and enables students to conduct translation and discuss and reflect on translation practice, drawing on some of the insights acquired from the theoretical module. Students will also continue to gain useful insight into the translation practice, profession, market and industry, and be equipped with knowledge and skills in computer-aided translation (e.g. Trados), terminology preparation and management, and project management. Regular feedback will be provided to students in a variety of ways (e.g. formative feedback, summative feedback and peer feedback). Both intensive training in class and students’ independent study are crucial, given the practice-oriented nature of this module.

This new module is for students who wish to follow the specialised translation module for two languages (from Arabic, French, German, Italian and Spanish). Students who wish to take Chinese in addition to one of the above languages should instead take MODL524 and CHIN514.

In this module, students will gain further advanced translation skills, with a focus on specialised text genres and topics such as scientific, technical, medical, legal and music/art texts. This practice-oriented module builds on MODL522 and enables students to conduct translation and discuss and reflect on translation practice, drawing on some of the insights acquired from the theoretical module. Students will also continue to gain useful insight into the translation practice, profession, market and industry, and be equipped with knowledge and skills in computer-aided translation (e.g. Trados), terminology preparation and management, and project management.
Regular feedback will be provided to students in a variety of ways (e.g. formative feedback, summative feedback and peer feedback). Both intensive training in class and students’ independent study are crucial, given the practice-oriented nature of this module.

This module is offered on both the MA in Chinese-English Translation and Interpreting and the MA in Translation. It offers students the opportunity to apply theoretical and practical understanding gained through the rest of their study to practice, and to enhance their personal and professional development through work-based learning in translation/interpreting-related professional environment. Students will gain hands-on knowledge of the language service industry and/or other related fields through a short period of professional activity, in forms such as an in-house intern translator / interpreter, project manager, proof-reader/copyeditor and volunteers for non-profit organizations.

The Module Convenor may suggest possible work placements, but students are equally encouraged to find their own. Ultimately, it is the student’s responsibility to organise the work placement and communicate directly with the provider (either in the UK or remotely / abroad), with preparation, support and approval provided by the University.

This module serves as the final graduation project for students at the end of their MA study on both the MA in Chinese-English Bilingual Translation and Interpreting and the MA in Translation, and is completed over the summer.
Students will produce a piece of work of 15,000-18,000 words or equivalent on an area agreed in advance with your supervisor: possibilities include a translation project, a comparison of existing translations, or an analysis of the role of translation in a particular culture or another research project. Students who choose to do an extended translation of a text will translate an approximately 9,500-word text and compose a 7,500-9,000 word commentary. The word count for the translation may be negotiable if the student opts for more difficult and complex genres (e.g. poetry and song) or with technical challenges (e.g. subtitle a video clip).