Translation

This qualification is an exciting opportunity to develop your skills as a professional translator, equipping you to work in the fast-growing translation-services industry. You will experiment with different genres through practical, inspiring translation activities, and hone your practice through peer review. You will gain hands-on experience of using tools necessary to operate in this rapidly evolving area (e.g. audio-visual translation or cloud-based translation tools). Your work will be underpinned by an understanding of translations theories and debates. The languages offered on this qualification are French, German, Italian, Spanish, Modern Standard Arabic, or Mandarin Chinese, in combination with English.

Key features of the course

Engage in authentic translation tasks to develop useful employability skills.

Choose to translate using either French, German, Spanish, Italian, Mandarin Chinese or Modern Standard Arabic in combination with English.

Participate in online open translation projects, with a certain degree of freedom to choose what you translate, and the opportunity to connect with established translation communities.

Develop your professional skills with a combination of collaborative activities and peer-reviews.

The Open University is recognised as a Chartered Institute of Linguists (CIOL) UK HE registered provider (CIOL) and is a Corporate Member of the Institute of Translation & Interpreting (ITI). We are also institutional members of the Association of Programmes in Translation and Interpreting Studies of the UK and Ireland (APTIS).

Modules
To gain this qualification, you need 120 credits as follows:

120 credits from:

Module Credits
Introduction to translation theory and practice (L801) 60
Translation in practice (L802) 60

You should note that the University's unique study rule applies to this qualification. This means that you must include at least 40 credits from OU modules that have not been counted in any other OU qualification that has previously been awarded to you.

• A UK honours degree (preferably a 2:1 or above) or other recognised equivalent qualification*

• Proficiency in your first language at Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR) level C2

• Proficiency in your second language at CEFR level C1**

*If you don't have an honours degree, talk to an advisor.

**If your first language is English and you've passed an OU level 3 module in your second language, your language proficiency should be suitable, as the exit level of our OU level 3 language courses is CEFR C1.

16 months – 4 years.

How long it takes
This qualification is designed for 20 hours per week to study part-time. It can be completed in a minimum of 16 months, and up to a maximum of four years.

Career relevance
There is an increasing global demand for translators and language specialists, and this qualification will provide you with the knowledge and skills to embark on a career as a translator. This is an immensely rewarding profession for those with an interest in languages and communication, and encompasses a wide and growing range of areas, including audio-visual translation, advertising or website localisation, as well as semi-specialised and specialised translation.

If you wish to pursue a career as a translator, be it as an in-house translator or freelance, this postgraduate diploma will equip you with necessary professional skills and familiarity with the professional tools you will need in this fast-moving field. You will also acquire a raft of highly valued transferable communication and collaborative skills such as peer reviewing and team working, which are useful in a range of occupations in the communications sector.

If you already have a career in the translation field and are seeking a further qualification as a way to develop your career or as a means to update your skills, then this postgraduate diploma could prove invaluable, and you may also consider progressing to the MA in Translation.

Careers and Employability Services have more information on how OU study can improve your employability.