A Comparative Study Of Professional Interpreting Training Programs

In today's world, the increasing exchanges among people of different languages in different social aspects entail a greater demand for high-level interpreters. This eagerness for professional interpreters results in the necessity for coming up with a reasonable and efficient professional interpreting training program. Some scholars have proposed that a unified program for professional interpreting training should be formulated. However, there is no unified standard or mode for professional interpreting training currently with view to the diversified training plans for professional interpreting training programs. The research conducted in this thesis aims at proposing suitable training suggestions and plans, so that the formulation of a unified professional interpreting training program is accelerated.As a start, the thesis concludes three types of qualities required of interpreters, namely language proficiency, encyclopedic knowledge and special skills involved in interpreting --- referring to the memory skill, the note-taking skill and the ability to paraphrase, which are based on Daniel Gile's (丹尼尔·吉尔) Comprehension Equation (理解等式) and Effort Model (精力分配模式). After that the necessity and importance of these qualities are expounded. Then the thesis uses this theory as evaluation standard to study professional interpreting training programs. Since interpreting training as an independent discipline started earlier abroad, this thesis chooses one professional interpreting training program in the United States and one in China, and compares their programs from the aspects of curriculum design, teaching methods, the faculty and selection of students. Finally some reasonable and feasible suggestions are proposed for improving professional interpreting training.