The one-year MA in Translation Studies at Durham University was an eye-opening and mind-enriching experience. The academic courses were well structured covering a broad range of areas. I gained knowledge of eastern and western translation theories; I got the opportunity to translate various types of documents and have them corrected by specialists; I learnt how to use cutting edge translation technologies; and most importantly, I understood what real research is about and what my goal in life is. Alongside all of this I have been given good and supportive supervisors. Therefore I am glad that I choose to do (PhD) research into process-oriented translation studies at Durham University.

Huang Jin, 2010 Graduate and PhD student

Admission requirements

To be accepted on the MA course, applicants' academic profile and career to date should satisfy the following requirements:

1. Applicants must have an upper-second class degree or equivalent (60% or above of the available marks) in a relevant subject, such as language, literature or linguistics.
2. Students who possess a degree level qualification in a different discipline must be native speakers of one of the languages chosen and proficient in the foreign language (at level C1 or C2 of the Common European Framework of Reference for languages - or equivalent for non-European languages) – Chinese, Dutch, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Russian, Turkish, Spanish, or BSL
3. Candidates whose first language is not English are expected to achieve an overall band score of at least 7.0 in the IELTS test (with no element below 7.0) or at least 102 in the TOEFL iBT (Internet Based Test) (with a writing score of 27 or more and no other element under 25). In all cases the relevant certificate should have been issued within two years of the programme start date.
4. If you have professional experience of translating and no certification of language knowledge, on 15 March at 12:00 GMT a text of 250 words will be available to translate into your native language. You must submit the text by 15 March 14:00 GMT online to the email address: info.mats@durham.ac.uk using “Translation Test” in the email subject field.

How to apply

In order to apply, applicants should first consult the postgraduate applications webpage of Durham University, where full instructions on the application process may be found.

Applications must be completed on-line, to apply click here.

Further information of the Course fees can be found by clicking here. Any queries on fees should be sent to pg.admissions@durham.ac.uk.

Documentation

The documentation on your academic and professional career to the date of your application allows us to assess your suitability for the MA course. This documentation needs to be provided to see whether you satisfy the entry requirements and it is needed once you have applied. They can be included in the application where you can fill in the existing fields or may be sent as attachments to the dedicated MA account, info.mats@durham.ac.uk.

When emailing the documents – their PDF or scanned copies – please provide the following information in the subject of your email “Surname, Name, ID”; the ID is given to you automatically once you fill in the online application.

Your supporting documents will consist of the following:

1. a 500-word Statement of personal interests;
2. an updated CV;
3. a Degree Certificate or in its absence a Certificate with a breakdown of exams and their marks – the official Degree Certificate will be needed before registration. Degree qualifications not in English must be provided with an official English translation;
4. at least two academic references (alternatively, one academic reference accompanied by two professional references are acceptable);
5. IELTS results (where applicable);
6. the translation test as evidence of translation skills when degree, CV, or references provide no evidence of translational activity (see point 4 above).