Specialised Translation with Professional Experience MA

Entry requirements

A minimum of a lower second class honours degree (2:2). Linguists without a degree, but with sufficient experience in a relevant area, will also be considered.

Applicants will be interviewed in person or on the telephone and set a translation test to check your suitability for the course. The course is open to native speakers of Chinese, English, French, German, Italian, and Spanish. Applicants will need fluent written and spoken English. Most successful applicants will have met the IELTS requirement when they submit their application as excellent English language skills are fundamentally important. It is vital that all applicants who do not have English as their first language provide clear details on their application form of the English language qualifications they have achieved and/or the date when they will be taking their IELTS test.

If your first language is not English, you should have an IELTS 6.5 with 7.0 in writing and a minimum of 6.0 in all other components.

Applicants are required to submit one academic or professional reference.

Months of entry

September

Course content

The Specialised Translation with Professional Experience MA is a unique two-year course that offers you the opportunity to complete an extended work placement and gain professional experience. Partnered with the Specialised Translation MA, you’ll complete the same taught modules as the one-year course with the addition of completing a minimum of 550 hours in a work placement or internship.

At the heart of the MA are our practical translation classes between English and one of these languages, which are complemented by our Translation Skills Lab module. You'll learn how to research specialised subjects to produce commercially viable translations of a broad range of specialised texts, applying insights drawn from translation theory and professional practice, and, in the Translation Skills Lab, learn about Project Management and Quality Assurance while honing your skills in a simulated translation bureau.

You’ll also study skills-based modules to prepare you for industry and develop your technical skills. In the Audiovisual Translation and Localisation module, you’ll become familiar with the principles and processes of audiovisual translation and the localisation of video games, gaining experience in industry-standard software.

You’ll engage with computer-assisted translation (CAT) and the post-editing of machine translation output in our Computer-Assisted Translation, Machine Translation, and Post-editing module. Students combining English with two languages will choose either Audiovisual Translation and Localisation or Computer-Assisted Translation, Machine Translation, and Post-editing, while students studying with English and one other language will take both.

The core Professional Development module will prepare you for your career through CV workshops, career and CPD plans, and visits from guest speakers. Your skills and knowledge acquired in your core modules will be complemented by your choice of option module. At the end of the course, you'll submit an MA Translation Project or Dissertation.

Information for international students

If your first language is not English, you should have an IELTS 6.5 with 7.0 in writing and a minimum of 6.0 in all other components.

Fees and funding