Learning outcomes

trad2m  2016-2017  Louvain-la-Neuve

 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.
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;
- mastered all aspects of written communication, and in particular accuracy, readability and flow to a high level of expertise;
- 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.


On successful completion of this programme, each student is able to :
1. Demonstrate expertise in their working languages in the practice of translation;

2. Demonstrate in-depth theoretical knowledge and know-how relevant to translation, including those relating to technology, and an ability to employ them in a relevant and critical way in the context of specialist translation.

3. Demonstrate they have appropriated the intercultural knowledge necessary for the comprehension, analysis and contextualisation of texts being translated and integrate that knowledge in practice to successfully render a faithful translation of all aspects of the source document.

4. Identify the thematic (disciplinary) knowledge necessary, complement it independently as necessary, and employ it in a relevant manner in order to ensure the high-quality of a translation assignment.

5. Create and realize original, applied research implementing a scientific approach and rigorous methodology in the field of translation, terminology and translation studies.

6. Professionally communicate, by employing their expert language skills and adapting to the context and target audience; respectfully and constructively interact and collaborate with the different actors involved in a given situation by employing verbal and nonverbal skills.

7. Act as an academic and critical and responsible actor with a plan for continuing development.

8. Act as a translator demonstrating professionalism in respect of the ethical principles and quality standards of their profession, develop their professional image and position themselves on the job market.

9. If the teaching focus course is chosen: Employ the competencies necessary to begin teaching effectively in upper secondary education, in the two languages studied, and be able to progress there.

10. If the research focus course is chosen: Master and employ the knowledge and skills necessary to launch themselves effectively into a doctoral project or pursue a career in a profession which requires specific skills in translation studies.

11. If the ”Terminology and Localisation” professional focus course is chosen: develop expertise and a high level of skill in the fields of terminology, terminology technology, localisation, technical writing and translation and localisation project management in order to be able to engage in their new translation profession effectively.

12. If the “Translation and Audio-visual Material” professional focus course is chosen: Develop expertise and a high level of skill in the field of adaptation, into French from two foreign languages, of audio-visual material in order to be able to engage in the professional sector for multilingual audio-visual material effectively.

13. If the “International and European Affairs” professional focus course is chosen: develop a high level of expertise and skill in the field of translation specialising in the different aspects of international relations (diplomatic, geopolitical, geostrategic, etc.) including the features peculiar to that sphere: adapt to the textual typology (treaties and conventions, speeches, reports, monographs, etc.) and the client profile (international or national organisations and institutions, NGOs, diplomatic services, research institutes, etc.).

14. If the “Arts and Letters” professional focus course is chosen: develop a high level of expertise and skill in the field of literary translation in the wide sense and a specific creation or re-creation assignment requiring an aesthetic use of language: the translation of fictional literary works or works belonging to traditional literary genres, literature’s relationship with images and other artistic fields, editorial translation and, as an elective for some languages only, “Publicity and Marketing” translation.