What is the Postgraduate Conference Interpreting?

The Postgraduate Conference Interpreting programme is aimed at students with a thorough command of Dutch and two foreign languages, who wish to perfect their consecutive and simultaneous interpreting skills in a conference context. The students choose two languages: German, English or French as their first foreign language (VT1) and German, English, French, Italian, Spanish or Turkish as their second foreign language (VT2).

Conference interpreting traditionally consists of consecutive and simultaneous interpreting. Even though simultaneous interpreting is mostly used in a professional context, consecutive interpreting is a crucial preparation for simultaneous interpreting.

What does the course look like?

The programme consists of six modules of interpreting practice and four modules of more general interpreting training.

Interpreting practice has four modules for the first foreign language (VT1): two modules of consecutive interpreting (into and from Dutch) and two modules of simultaneous interpreting (into and from Dutch). For the second foreign language (VT2), students only attend the two modules interpreting into Dutch.

General interpreting training involves Dutch speaking skills, interpreting theory and deontology, interpreting techniques and European institutions.

Why study Conference Interpreting?

In an age of political and economic globalisation , the demand for conference interpreters is on the rise. Despite the greater role English plays as lingua franca in Europe and across the world, there is much need for conference interpreting: many people do not speak English well enough to communicate without an interpreter in a specialised context.

Full programme