Master of Arts in Translation and Interpretation

Master (Coursework)

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Programme Type

Full-time

Master of Arts in Translation and Interpretation

mti@ntu.edu.sg
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The Master of Arts in Translation and Interpretation (MTI) Programme, launched by Nanyang Technological University in January 2016, is the first Master’s degree programme in the field with a focus on English and Chinese in Singapore and Southeast Asia.

The Programme is specifically designed to provide students with high standard professional training in translation and interpretation between the two languages, to equip them with adequate knowledge of cutting-edge theories in related fields, and to help them to have a thorough understanding of the theories and practice in different social and cultural contexts. It is the goal of the MTI Programme that its graduates will be well-prepared to take a leading role in providing highly professional services in public and private sectors and in improving the overall proficiency of translation-related professions in Singapore and the Asia-Pacific region.

Benchmarked against the best translation programmes in the world, the MTI Programme is structured with a strong academic emphasis capitalising on Singapore’s acknowledged expertise in bilingual teaching and research. It seeks to build upon and further strengthen NTU’s existing translation, bilingualism, and bicultural research capacity and teaching expertise. At the same time, it endeavours to incorporate the latest cutting-edge technology in the areas of computational linguistics, machine translation, and corpus linguistics. 

Pedagogically, the MTI Programme features an interdisciplinary curriculum that offers translation-focused, industry-relevant, and academically stimulating professional training that builds upon teaching and research excellence. Its specialised courses integrate the training of translation and interpretation skills with the knowledge of subject areas of expertise for which the University is well-known. These include translation studies, linguistics, literature, public policy, mass communication, business, medicine, and computer engineering. The curriculum also includes an overseas immersion programme, which allows students to go to a Chinese or English speaking country to take courses and at the same time immerge themselves in the local culture to practise their bilingual cross-cultural communication skills. Click for more details.

With a focus on English to Chinese and Chinese to English translation, the MTI Programme distinguishes itself from general translation courses and programmes. Its specific objectives are to help students to develop the following capabilities: 

  • A high level of proficiency in listening, speaking, reading, and writing in both Chinese and English. 
  • A comprehensive set of skills as well as professional attitudes and ethics for carrying out professional translation/interpretation work between English and Chinese. 
  • A thorough understanding of theories, debates, and research methods in translation and interpretation studies. 
  • Competency in conducting research in translation and interpretation as well as expertise in research design and methodology. 
  • Capabilities for tackling various issues in relation to registers and styles and rendering texts from a wide range of specialised fields, as well as adequate knowledge of relevant interdisciplinary concepts. 
  • Awareness of technological changes and advances in translation/interpretation, as well as the know-how to use translation tools to facilitate translation production. 
  • The ability to reflect on one’s own translation and interpreting experience in more theoretical terms, so as to learn from future experience and foster developments in related fields. 

 

  • Translation theories 
  • Specialized translations in literature, science, technology, medicine, law, finance, 
  • economics, marketing, cross-cultural communication, and international relations 
  • Translation technology 
  • Corpus linguistics related to translation 
  • Interpretation 
  • Audiovisual translation

 

For admission requirements, please refer to the MTI website for the details. 
The MTI Programme, which is specifically designed to provide the most updated training and education in translation and interpretation, is not only for university graduates but also for working professionals. Accordingly, classes will be held on weekday evenings and weekends, allowing working adults to enrol in the MTI Programme. 

The MTI Programme is a full-time programme with its curriculum particularly designed to suit both fresh graduates and working adults with a full-time job (e.g., the teaching is all scheduled in the evenings of workdays and on Saturdays). Students can choose to complete the programme within the minimum candidature of 1.5 years or the maximum candidature of 2.5 years.

Within the candidature given, students must complete 5 core courses, 3 to 6 elective courses, 4 to 5 immersion courses, and a dissertation or a capstone project. 

The total Academic Units (AUs) students are required to accumulate from different types of courses or components are 40 and they should be distributed as follows: 

  • Core Courses (12 AUs) 
  • Immersion Courses (8 AUs) 
  • Elective Courses (12 AUs) 
  • Dissertation or Capstone Project (8 AUs) 

The core courses are centred on specialised translation and interpretation, systematically providing theoretical grounds and hands-on training for further education, research, and professional development. Group activities, individual assignments, and peer learning opportunities are also incorporated into the course design to help students to develop essential skills, such as critical thinking, self-reflection, and evaluation, so as to consolidate learning outcomes. In line with the interdisciplinary nature of translation studies, theories and key concepts relating to the central theme of each specialised course are also introduced, for students to have essential background knowledge and a better understanding of various professional contexts in order to foster their capabilities to conduct interdisciplinary research. 

To benefit further from NTU’s outstanding teaching resources, students are also offered elective courses that reflect the most recent development in the interdisciplinary research relating to translation studies. These course designs respond to the needs of industry and government policy, enabling students to tailor their studies based on their own preference in developing their expertise in a specialised domain.  

The 4-week intensive overseas immersion programme is incorporated into the MTI curriculum design. Under the immersion programme, students are given the opportunity to go to a Chinese or English speaking country to take courses and at the same time immerge themselves in the local culture to practise their bilingual and cross-cultural communication skills.

Translators, interpreters, writers, copywriters, journalists, civic service officers, freelancers, cultural advisors, or positions in inter-government/organisations, and any industries which require the frequent use of English and Chinese.