Postgraduate Diploma in Translation, 2021–2022

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Bhí cúrsa ina mbeadh an bhéim ar chruinneas gramadaí agus ar Ghaeilge nádúrtha, dhúchasach a scríobh á lorg agam le blianta beaga anuas agus is é sin go díreach a cuireadh ar fáil sa Dioplóma Iarchéime san Aistriúchán.
Máiréad Ní Dhubhghaill Bric
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Bhí na ranganna agus na tionscadail dúshlánach agus suimiúil, agus chuir mé go mór le mo chuid scileanna teanga, aistriúcháin agus eagarthóireachta.
Siobhán McNamara
Postgraduate Diploma in Translation, 2021–2022
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18 Months
Postgrad Diploma
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Description

The Dioplóma Iarchéime san Aistriúchán programme is aimed at those who already have a good standard of Irish, but who wish to learn translation skills or to enhance the skills they already have. It is also ideal for those who work through Irish on a daily basis – teachers and journalists, for example – who wish to improve their standard of writing in the language.


Learning Outcomes

These are the learning outcomes that will be achieved by students who complete the course satisfactorily:
  • They will have a comprehensive knowledge of Irish language grammar and will have high-level written skills in the language.
  • They will be able to translate a range of English language texts to Irish and will have specialised knowledge regarding the translation of legal texts from English to Irish.
  • They will be able to review texts that they write themselves and texts written by others.
  • They will be familiar with a range of useful technological resources used in the Irish language and in the translation sector, and they will be able to use them effectively.
  • They will have an understanding of translation theory.
  • They will have an insight into translation as a career and will have an understanding of the practical aspects of the work.
  • They will be able to use a range of research and enquiry techniques.
  • They will be able to operate professionally in a range of roles in the translation and Irish language sectors.

    • Duration and general structure of the course

    The Dioplóma Iarchéime san Aistriúchán programme, which is a level 9 NFQ course (www.nfq.ie), runs for three semesters, over a fifteen-month period. A blended learning approach is used in the programme, featuring a combination of online study, live online classes, and lectures and tutorials in the classroom. The classroom-based sessions are held on one Saturday a month.

    Course work

    Students have access to interactive courses on Gaelchultúr’s e-learning website, ranganna.com, and they can use this material to prepare for the classroom sessions and the live online classes. It is also useful to them as they revise the course work. Students are given written tasks to do on a regular basis and they are asked to submit these lessons by email to their tutor. Comprehensive feedback is provided by email. There is a limited number of live online classes each semester; these classes are held at night. Students are given more information regarding the live online classes and all other aspects of the course in a handbook that is provided at the beginning of the first semester. This handbook also contains information about the projects students are required to submit.

    Course modules

    Accuracy in Irish (1, 2 and 3)

    30 ECTS
    This module will focus on the core aspects of Irish language grammar. The aim is to help participants improve their ability in Irish by giving them a range of grammar exercises to do in which the focus will be on common points of difficulty with the language. There will be a particular emphasis on useful idiomatic expressions and on the importance of avoiding direct translation from English to Irish. Punctuation and editing will also be addressed, and students will be given information about the technological resources available to those who write in Irish.

    Translation Skills (1, 2 and 3)

    15 ECTS
    This module aims to help students develop and improve their translation skills. They will be taught to deal critically and analytically with the problems that often arise in English–Irish translation, e.g. jargon, register, semantic gaps and syntactic differences between the two languages. There will be an emphasis on Anglicism and how to avoid it, and the module will also look at the challenges of translating new terminology and the difficulty of translating concepts from English to Irish. There will be a particular focus on intelligibility and the importance of taking the target audience into consideration when a text is being translated. The module will deal primarily with the types of texts most frequently translated to Irish in a professional context – annual reports and television scripts, for example – but students will also have an opportunity to translate a range of other texts, including literary texts.

    Translation Theory (1 and 2)

    10 ECTS
    In the first part of this module, the main aspects of contemporary translation theory will be explored and the various types of translation that suit different genres of texts will be discussed. There will also be a focus on translation criticism in order to give students a better understanding of what constitutes a ‘good translation’ or ‘bad translation’. The second part of the module will look at translation as a career and students will be given practical information about working in that sector, e.g. employment opportunities in Irish and EU institutions, the work typically done in translation companies. This module will build on the Translation Theory / A Career in Translation module and students will have a further opportunity to study translation criticism and theories of translation. They will be required to critically analyse various types of translated texts in light of those theories to assess their merit as translations and target language texts. Students will use the material from the two modules to undertake a research project: a critical essay on a text translated from English to Irish.

    Legal Translation

    5 ECTS
    This module will look at legal translation in Ireland and in the EU institutions. The difficulty of translating texts of this type will be explored and there will also be a focus on register and style, constitutional questions, precedents, and decisions regarding terminology and intelligibility.

    Optional Module : Translation Technology

    - without ECTS credits
    This module aims to make students aware of the most important technological resources available to those who work through Irish and in the translation sector. The module will aim to enable students to find information regarding Irish language grammar and terminology online so that they can write at a much higher level in the language. There will be a strong emphasis on the technological developments that have occurred over the past ten years that have implications for those working as translators. The students will be taught how to make effective use of terminology databases and there will also be a focus on translation memory software. Students will attend two one-day workshops, which will take place in Dublin city centre in June and July 2022 (dates to be decided).

    Course delivery

    The 2021-2022 course will be delivered entirely online.

    Course brochure

    Entry Requirements and Application

    Click here

    Our teaching approach

    Gaelchultúr has developed comprehensive syllabuses and every class at every level follows these syllabuses.

    Learn more about us

    FAQs

    You will need a laptop or desktop computer, a reasonably good broadband connection and a headset with a microphone (a USB headset, if possible). Headsets can be purchased online on Amazon and other websites.
    You will be sent an invitation by email about 20 minutes before the class begins. This email message will come from Zoom, the video conferencing platform used to deliver the classes.
    You can, indeed. Every learner will be given the opportunity to do a technical test before the course commences and any technical issues that emerge during this test will be resolved. You don’t need to organise this – we will contact you to arrange a time after you have registered for the course.
    You can but you will not be able to participate in pair work and group work activities. It is better, therefore, to use a laptop or desktop computer, if possible.
    We recommend that learners switch on their camera during class as it makes the learning experience more immersive. If you do not wish to turn on your camera, however, that’s perfectly fine.
    There will be at least six other learners in the class and a maximum of eighteen people.
    Pair work and group work activities will be an integral part of each class, therefore you’ll have plenty of opportunities to speak Irish. You will also be able to raise a virtual hand and ask the teacher questions whenever you like.
    No. A digital booklet containing all the material you’ll need during the course will be emailed to you before the course commences and you will be able to use this booklet during the classes and for studying between the sessions. The cost of this booklet is included in the course fee. You will also be able to access all of the notes online. The beginners and lower intermediate classes are based on the books in the Gaeilge gan Stró! series but learners in those classes are not required to buy those publications. Note: Those attending Accuracy 1 and Accuracy 2 will be required to buy the grammar book Gramadach gan Stró! before the course commences. They will be able to buy this book at half price (€10), plus postage.
    In the case of the beginners and intermediate level classes, there will be written exercises from time to time but the emphasis will be on the spoken language for the most part. We will teach grammar in context, as it’s required, and we will always ensure that there isn’t too much focus on grammatical rules. There will be a greater emphasis on writing and grammar in the higher level classes, particularly in the accuracy in Irish classes.

    Terms and Conditions

    • Course fees may be refunded in full to a learner up to five working days prior to the commencement of the course. The refund must by requested by contacting Gaelchultúr’s staff by email or by phone. (Our contact details can be found here.)
    • If, following the first class, the student decides that he/she would like to discontinue the course, 60% of the total fee will be refunded to him/her. Thereafter, no refund will be made to the student.
    • Gaelchultúr Teoranta has the right to cancel a class or to amalgamate classes.
    • If it is necessary to cancel a class, every effort will be made to place the participants in another class or to register them for an online course. A full refund will be made to the customer if these options do not suit him/her.
    • A student may defer his/her registration only once. If he/she wishes to defer registration, he/she must notify Gaelchultúr’s staff of this by week three of the course. No refund will be made to the student if he/she does not accept a place on the next course he/she is due to attend.
    • Gaelchultúr will accept no responsibility in the event that a student registers at the wrong level. We advise our students to do our online Irish test or to seek our advice to ensure that they are undertaking the correct level.
    • If a student wants to move to another level, we cannot guarantee that a space will be available for him/her at that level. Should a space be available, Gaelchultúr will charge a €10 administration fee for making the change. A change may only be made to another level following the first class.
    • Course fees must be paid in full prior to commencement of the course. Attendance on a course is subject to full payment of fees.

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