How I Got Hired: Translator, United Nations
| by Amy Fruchter CI ’18
Alum Amy Fruchter shares how her experiences at the Middlebury Institute and constructive feedback from her professors helped her become a translator at the United Nations.
Launch your career in the $60 billion language services industry with a master’s from one of the world’s leading graduate schools for translation and interpretation.
Our translation and interpretation master’s degrees prepare you for exciting careers as freelance or in-house language professionals at organizations like the United Nations, the U.S. State Department, the Stanford Healthcare network, and a range of NGOs and private companies around the world.
You can pursue a Master of Arts in Translation (T), a Master of Arts in Translation and Interpretation (TI), or a Master of Arts in Conference Interpretation (CI).
Start Term | Credits | Duration | In-Person |
---|---|---|---|
Fall | 60 | 4 semesters | Monterey, California |
Your career and academic advising are coordinated, ensuring you align your coursework with your career goals. Our experienced advisors will guide you from course registration to preparing for interviews, negotiating your employment offers, and managing your career.
Students often pursue internships during the summer between their first and second years.
Our annual language services career fair, hosted at our Monterey, California campus, attracts dozens of employers—like the U.S. Department of State Office of Language Services and Deluxe Media Inc.—all seeking to hire our students for internships and full-time positions.
Our large and influential alumni network is eager to help you take the next step in your career. They are thriving in careers around the world, meeting the growing and global demand for multilingual fluency in courts, hospitals, technology, and diplomacy.
Explore careers in translation and interpretation.
Our career-oriented course work prepares you for lifelong skill-building and professional growth. You will develop key skills both in and out of your A (native) and B (near-native) languages as you work with real-world texts, high-profile events, and live simulations in a variety of fields. You will also learn to use the latest translation and interpretation technology, software, and tools.
Engage in authentic translation and interpretation experiences through your practicum. A thesis option is available for those interested in pursuing an extended translation project.
See the curriculum for more details.
Although you must select a specific degree when you apply, you will be exposed to many aspects of both translation and interpretation during your first year. After these two semesters, you, your faculty, and your academic advisor will know more about your strengths and interests, and you can finalize your degree choice and focus your studies.
Explore your degree options.
The flexibility in our curriculum gives you opportunities to customize your degree through your languages of study, content area electives, a professional practicum, internships, intercultural competence courses, joint degrees, optional specializations, and advanced entry.
Check out the program details for your options.
Students entering any of the programs choose to focus on one (or two) of the following languages, all paired with English:
Earn two master’s degrees in three years by combining T, TI, or CI with the STEM-designated MA in Translation and Localization Management.
Learn more about joint master’s degrees.
You may be eligible to complete the degree in only two semesters depending on your academic and/or professional experience.
Learn more about advanced entry requirements.
Our faculty combine academic expertise with years of professional experience as translators and interpreters performing high profile work at intergovernmental organizations such as the United Nations, at the World Economic Forum, at the Olympics, for the White House, in the U.S. State Department, in the German Parliament, in literature and research, in nonprofit organizations, and in private businesses.
Together with career advisors, faculty mentor students to ensure that they receive the academic and professional experience that will help them realize their career goals.
We offer a variety of resources to make your program more affordable including merit, need-based, partner, and external scholarships for both U.S. and international students. Your personal enrollment advisor is also available to help you think through financing this important investment in your career development.
Learn more about scholarships, financial aid, and tuition costs.
We take a holistic approach when considering your application, looking at your academic background, international exposure, professional experience, and career goals. We welcome applicants with or without work experience, and our program has numerous opportunities for you to gain professional experience before you graduate. This approach aligns with the Institute’s core values of diversity, equity, and inclusion.
We do not require GRE or GMAT scores for our master’s programs but competitive scores may strengthen your application and positively influence scholarship decisions. You will submit a Language and Skills Test (LST) to demonstrate proficiency in each of your languages of study.
| by Amy Fruchter CI ’18
Alum Amy Fruchter shares how her experiences at the Middlebury Institute and constructive feedback from her professors helped her become a translator at the United Nations.
Alum Patricia Berger shares how the translation and editing skills she gained at the Middlebury Institute helped her secure a role as a content manager at Deutsche Bahn.
| by Sara Garví and MACI ‘17
Conference Interpretation graduate Sara Garví shares how her coursework and the interpretation practicum combined with reaching out to alumni in Madrid led to a flourishing freelance career there.
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