Learning outcomes

At the end of their training, the students in translation will be expert in a wide and solid range of knowledge, know-how and skills which they can employ in all aspects of translation and thereby communicate all the nuances of a message, formed by an author in a foreign language, in their mother tongue, French (or German, for German-speaking students),. 

Therefore, at the end of their training, the students will have: 

  • developed expertise in their working languages in the practice of translation; 
  • mastered the different theoretical knowledge and know-how relating to translation and become able to employ them in an appropriate fashion in order to translate a document while respecting the author’s intentions and register; 
  • assimilated a range of thematic (disciplinary) and cultural knowledge which they are capable of employing and completing independently in order to carry out their translation assignment; 
  • has a high level of expertise in all aspects of written communication, in particular accuracy, legibility, fluency and precision; 
  • become able to implement a rigorous scientific and methodological approach to a translation problem and thereby improve their service; 
  • become capable of respectfully and constructively holding discussions and collaborating with speakers and their colleagues; 
  • consolidated their technical and ethical skills and knowledge through their first professional experiences. 

Additionally, the students will have developed significant abilities to be adaptive and flexible, which allow them to confront various professional situations. The students will demonstrate tact and self-control at all times and will follow the profession’s ethical code. The students will integrate a continuous developmental logic which allows them to perform as professionals demonstrating high-level expertise and flexibility and develop positively within the context of their work. Additionally, the students will be conscious of developing and promoting their professional image and launching themselves on the job market. 

More specifically, the learning outcomes acquired at the end of the training are based on the 2022 European Master's in Translation (EMT) Competence Framework (emt_competence_fwk_2022_en.pdf). Recognised as one of the main references for translator training in the European Union, this reference framework is divided into five areas of competence: language and culture ; translation ; technology ; personal et interpersonal et service provision.  

Language and Culture (transcultural and sociolinguistic awareness and communicative skills): "This competence encompasses all the general or language-specific linguistic, sociolinguistic, cultural and transcultural knowledge and skills that constitute the basis for advanced translation competence." (EMT Competence Framework – 2022, p. 6).  

Translation (strategic, methodological and thematic competence): "It should be understood in the broadest sense, encompassing not only the actual meaning transfer phase between two languages (interlingually), including the use of pivot languages, or within the same language (intralingually), but also all the strategic, methodological and thematic competences that come into play before, during and following the transfer phase per se – from document analysis to final quality control procedures." (EMT Competence Framework – 2022, p. 7). 

Technology (tools and applications): "This competence includes all the knowledge and skills used to implement and advise on the use of present and future translation technologies within the translation process." (EMT Competence Framework – 2022, p. 9). 

Personal et interpersonal: "This competence area includes all the generic skills, often referred to as “soft skills”, that enhance graduate adaptability and employability." (EMT Competence Framework – 2022, p. 10). 

Service Provision: "This competence covers all the skills relating to the implementation of translation and, more generally, to language services in a professional context – from awareness of clients, commissioners and users and negotiation through to project management and quality assurance." (EMT Competence Framework – 2022, p. 11). 

On successful completion of this programme, each student is able to :

1 Language and Culture 

1.1. Understand the function of language variations (social, geographical or historical) and use the appropriate grammatical, lexical and idiomatic structures of their working languages. 
1.2. Identify cultural elements, values and references in the written or oral text (including presuppositions, allusions and stereotypes) and write in accordance with the cultural conventions, and conventions of genre and rhetorical standards. 

2 Translation 

2.1. Analyse a source document, identify potential textual and cognitive difficulties and assess the strategies and resources needed to reformulate it in line with communicative needs. 
2.2. Summarise, rephrase, restructure, and shorten a message and adapt it to market needs rapidly and accurately in at least one target language, using written and/or spoken communication. 
2.3. Carry out research to evaluate the relevance and reliability of information sources with regard to translation needs. 
2.4. Acquire, develop and use thematic and domain-specific knowledge relevant to translation needs (mastering systems of concepts, methods of reasoning, presentation standards, terminology and phraseology, specialised sources etc.). 
2.5. Implement the instructions, style guides, or conventions relevant to a particular translation. 
2.6. Translate general and domain-specific material in one or several fields from one or several source languages into their target language(s), producing a ‘fit for purpose’ translation. 
2.7. Translate different types of material on and for different kinds of media and target audiences, using appropriate tools and techniques. 
2.8. Translate and mediate in specific intracultural and intercultural contexts, for example, those involving public service translation (and interpreting), website or video-game localisation and accessibility, community management, etc. 
2.9. Draft texts for specific purposes in one or more of their working languages, taking into account specific situations, recipients and constraints. 
2.10. Analyse and justify their translation solutions and choices, using the appropriate metalanguage and applying appropriate theoretical approaches. 
2.11. Check, review, revise and evaluate their own work and that of others according to standard or work-specific quality objectives and assess the appropriateness of using tools for the work at hand.
2.12. Understand and implement quality control strategies, using appropriate tools and techniques. 
2.13 Edit source text content for processing using a translation tool. 
2.14. Post-edit MT output using style guides and terminology glossaries to maintain quality standards in MT-enhanced translation projects. 

3. Technology 

3.1. Use the most relevant IT applications, including the full range of office software, and adapt rapidly to new tools and IT resources having critically assessed their relevance and the impact of change on their work practices. 
3.2. Make effective use of search engines, corpus-based tools, text analysis tools, computer-assisted translation (CAT) and quality assurance (QA) tools where appropriate. 
3.3. Pre-process, process and manage files and other media/sources as part of the translation workflow, e.g., web and multimedia files. 
3.4. Understand the basics of MT systems and their impact on the translation process, and integrate MT into a translation workflow where appropriate.
3.5. Recognize the importance and value of translation and language data, demonstrating data literacy. 
3.6. Apply other tools in support of language and translation technology, such as workflow management tools. 

4. Personal et interpersonal 

4.1. Personal et interpersonal Plan and manage time (including complying with deadlines).
4.2. Manage workload, cognitive load, stress and critical professional situations.
4.3. Work both autonomously and in virtual, multicultural and multilingual teams, using appropriate communication technologies. 
4.4. Use social media responsibly for professional purposes.  
4.5. Take account of and adapt the organisational and physical ergonomics of theworking environment. 
4.6. Continuously self-evaluate, update and develop competences and skills through personal strategies and collaborative learning and acknowledge the importance of lifelong learning. 

5. Service Provision 

5.1. Monitor and take account of new societal and language industry demands, new market requirements and emerging job profiles. 
5.2. Approach existing clients and find new clients through prospecting and marketing strategies using the appropriate written and oral communication techniques. 
5.3. Clarify the requirements, objectives and purposes of the client, recipients of the language service and other stakeholders and offer the appropriate services to meet those requirements. 
5.4. Interact at all stages with the client (negotiate deadlines, rates/invoicing, working conditions, access to information, contracts, rights, responsibilities, language service specifications, tender specifications, offer feedback etc.). 
5.5. Organize, budget and manage translation projects involving single or multiple translators and/or other service providers. 
5.6. Understand and implement the standards applicable to the provision of a language service. 
5.7. Apply the quality management and quality assurance procedures required to meet pre-defined quality standards and manage client feedback and complaints. 
5.8. Critically assess and work within the ethical principles (such as confidentiality, fair competition, impartiality) defined in codes of ethics and guides of good practice. 
5.9. Network with other translators and language service providers, including via professional associations, events and social media so as to improve individual and collective professional visibility. 
5.10. Analyse and critically review language services and policies and suggest improvement strategies as an extension to their social and economic responsibility. 

Source : EMT Competence Framework – 2022, available at the following address: https://commission.europa.eu/system/files/2022-11/emt_competence_fwk_2022_en.pdf