Translation

Postgraduate qualifications in translation at Portsmouth

Translation is a vital skill in this increasingly globalised world, and uniquely combines professional and academic language skills. Other important skills to have are excellence in writing your mother tongue (after all, translators are professional writers); curiosity; really good organisation; an eye for detail; and a keen interest in other cultures and learning about new subjects. Our MA programmes bring together students from all over the world working in a wide range of languages in a vibrant physical and virtual community. The emphasis is on flexibility, application to practice and professional preparation.

MA Translation Studies

Our MA Translation Studies degree has been running since 1997. It is a professionally-oriented degree which emphasises applied knowledge, practical skills and employability. It is open to graduate linguists, bilingual graduates in any discipline who would like to move to a career in translation, and also practising translators who would like a postgraduate qualification. 

The programme was joined in 2007 by the MA Translation Studies (distance learning), which has proven very popular with students who are already working full-time or have other commitments which make on-campus study impractical. The two degrees share the same syllabus. In May 2011 the MA Translation Studies, both campus and DL, became a member of the European Masters in Translation network.

MA Translation and Technical Communication 

In 2008 we launched the innovative new MA Translation and Technical Communication. This is a degree which brings together translation skills and technical communication skills, which can be defined as the skills you need to communicate technical and other information clearly in different media (in print, online etc.). This degree reflects the fact that in the industry, the boundary between translation, copywriting and multilingual text production is increasingly blurred. The course is aimed at students who wish to develop their English technical writing skills as well as their translation skills to a professional level. At the same time, the course provides knowledge and skills in relation to a range of technologies which underpin modern communication.

For more details on the courses and on how to make an application contact humanities.admissions@port.ac.uk.