The ATA Chronicle - November/December 2023 - 22

We encourage students to develop
their areas of specialization
as they continue to hone their
language skills.
work into their curricular
design. This means involving
experts who are in the
unique position of being both
professors of T&I studies and
practitioners in the field.
Translation Studies
Programs at CSULB
Mario Giannini, chief
executive officer of
Hamilton Lane, a leading
global investment manager,
established the Clorinda
Donato Center for Global
Romance Languages and
Translation Studies at
CSULB in 2017 through a
major gift to the university.
Since then, the list of new
courses and programs in
translation studies has
grown steadily.
Minor in Translation
Studies: The first program
we created is a 15-unit
program designed to be
combined with any major.
The minor consists of
three core translation
courses-an introduction
to translation studies, a
course on translation ethics,
theory, and practice, and
a translation practicum
workshop. Two elective
courses, one in language
and the other in the
student's primary area of
study, establish direct links
between the academic minor,
language(s), and disciplines
specific to each student.
The core classes introduce
students to the world of
translation and cover such
topics as employment
opportunities, the theories
and ethics of translation, and
the computer-based tools
used by translators in various
fields. There's a strong
emphasis on hands-on
work, especially in the final
core course (a translation
practicum workshop) where
students apply everything
they've learned in the
minor up to that point to
complete a wide range of
translation assignments
using computer-assisted
translation (CAT) tools.
We ultimately chose to
create a minor rather than
a full BA program because
we wanted to ensure that
the greatest number of
students possible would be
able to combine the language
skills they possessed and
their growing proficiency
in a particular subject (e.g.,
biology, political science,
etc.) with a foundational
and scalable skill set in
translation. As we already
know, successful translators
are not only highly proficient
in the languages they work
in but are also experts in
particular domains. We
wanted to encourage that
interdisciplinary approach
by creating a program that
would complement other
tracks of study without
adding too many additional
units to a student's academic
plan, especially for students
in high-unit majors (e.g.,
engineering, biological
22 The ATA Chronicle | November/December 2023
sciences, physical sciences).
The minor is also doable for
students transferring to the
university from community
colleges. Transfer students
can easily add a minor to
their bachelor's program,
opening a career window for
themselves that they can
pursue further through our
one-year graduate certificate
following the completion of
their bachelor's degree.
BA in Linguistics with
a Translation Studies
Option: In this same spirit
of interdisciplinarity,
we collaborated with the
Department of Linguistics
to create a BA in linguistics
with a translation studies
option. Besides the courses
that make up the linguistics
BA core, students in this
program also take the same
three translation core classes
required for the minor in
translation studies program.
Students are also allowed to
select additional translation
courses based on their
interests and career goals.
For example, our growing
catalog of courses covers
topics such as audiovisual
translation, localization,
literary translation,
cognitive translatology,
and bilingualism.
Graduate Certificate in
Translation Studies: At the
post-baccalaureate level,
we've created a graduate
certificate in translation
studies. This certificate is 12
units and can be completed
in one year. Like the minor in
translation studies and the
translation studies option,
the graduate certificate
combines theory-based
instruction and hands-on
training designed to help
individuals break into the
field or seek advancement in
their current position.
In each of our three
programs, we encourage
students to develop their
areas of specialization as
they continue to hone their
language skills. They are also
taught the vital importance
of technology and the use of
CAT tools so they can master
any platform used by a future
employer or client. The
development of these skills
provides a strong foundation
for their work as translation
professionals and for
capstone experiences like our
highly successful translation
studies internship program.
The Translation Studies
Internship Program
The core objective of the
internship program is
to simulate the life of a
professional freelance
translator, whether working
for a language services
provider (LSP) or seeking
out direct clients. As the
faculty supervisor, Claire
Ziamandanis takes on the
role of a project manager. She
also helps students define
their areas of interest and
expertise and to align these
with the potential needs of a
direct client.
Behind the scenes, Claire
uses varied contacts to
solicit pro-bono translation
projects for local, regional,
and national agencies,
organizations, and nongovernmental
organizations.
Most of these clients don't
have budgets for translated
materials but use our
interns' completed work
to advocate for funded
translations in the future.
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