Translation and Professional Language Skills at University of Bath - UCAS

University of Bath

Degree level: Postgraduate

Translation and Professional Language Skills (Taught)

Course summary

Gain the sought-after skills you need for a career in specialist language work on this practical and respected master’s course. Our MA Translation and Professional Language Skills course prepares you to work as a professional linguist at a high level. Throughout the course, you’ll develop the skills required in a number of roles within international organisations and language service providers. You'll mostly work with the written word to provide translations and specialised language services, such as:

  • editing
  • proofreading
  • précis-writing (a type of summary writing used by the United Nations). This is only available on course pathways that include French, Spanish or Russian
Through your core units, you’ll advance your editing, revision, and proofreading abilities. According to many employers and agencies, they seek these key areas of expertise in people they recruit. You can then complement these fundamental skills with optional units in specialisms like liaison interpreting, public speaking, the use of translation technology, and even how to set up and run your own language services company. Bath has longstanding links with international organisations like the United Nations and European Union. We make use of these links to keep our programmes up to date with the professional world and to set up external training opportunities where possible. Use specialist facilities Depending on your choice of optional units, you will have access to our professional-grade interpreting labs and on-campus TV studio. These are equipped with interpreter consoles and microphones, interpreter booths, and online conference facilities. Access to these labs is exclusive to students studying interpreting units. Training opportunities Where possible, we use our extensive network of contacts to organise external training opportunities. These are often with the language services of international organisations, government departments or translation companies. These opportunities can provide you with invaluable insights into the work of professional linguists and are highly valued by employers. However, they are not compulsory or guaranteed. Your language combination and your progress on the course will be considered when matching you with potential training opps, along with any other relevant information. If you do undertake additional training, you will be able to hone your skills as a linguist by carrying out authentic tasks and receiving direct feedback from experts in the field. Our students have previously undertaken training with many organisations, including:
  • the United Nations
  • institutions of the European Union
  • the Council of Europe
Graduate Prospects Our MA Translation and Professional Languages Skills course is vocational and has an excellent international reputation. Many of our graduates have gone on to a range of careers in specialist language work. Others have used the transferable skills gained to pursue further study, or careers in teaching, publishing, and design. Recent graduates have gone on to work for:
  • European Central Bank
  • United Nations
  • GCHQ
  • International Atomic Energy Agency
  • International Court of Justice
  • Expedia
  • Healthline
  • Wine & Spirit Education Trust

Assessment method

  • Coursework
  • Dissertation
- Examinations


Entry requirements

You should have a bachelor’s honours degree or international equivalent, typically a 2:1 or above. To apply for this course you should have mother tongue competence in English. We may make an offer based on a lower grade if you can provide evidence of your suitability for the degree. If your first language is not English but within the last 2 years you completed your degree in an English speaking country you may be exempt from our English language requirements.


English language requirements


Fees and funding

Tuition fees

No fee information has been provided for this course

Additional fee information

Tuition fees can be found on our web pages and are liable to increase annually. UK and Islands fees are regulated by the UK government and are subject to parliamentary approval. For all other fees, you should budget for an increase of up to 5% for every further year of study. For information on tuition fees visit our web pages: http://www.bath.ac.uk/topics/tuition-fees/
Translation and Professional Language Skills at University of Bath - UCAS