A Survey Report On Government Departments’ Expectations Of Professional Interpreters

It’s important for higher educational institutions to learn the current demand ofinterpretation market, so that they can further improve their translation andinterpretation teaching method. Since there are few market researches foreducational use, especially ones oriented toward the situation in governmentdepartments in Beijing, this survey is conducted to find out what kind of qualityeducation is expected for senior interpreters in these departments. China ForeignAffair University, which directly attached to China Foreign Ministry and producesinterpreters particularly fit for government departments, this survey may alsoprovide suggestions to its translation education.A questionnaire was designed and distributed via internet and some face-to-faceinterviews were conducted too. Responses were elicited from three aspects, i.e.qualities expected of professional translators, current situation of the respondents’business, and suggestions for translator training. To guarantee the representativenessof the respondents, they were all selected from the government departments.Based on the analysis of the results, the following suggestions are put forward:1) in terms of teaching objectives, equal attention should be paid to the cultivation ofstudents’ attitude, sense of responsibility, learning and communication skills as wellas professional skills;2) concerning teaching content, language proficiency shouldbe put in the first place, and practice on listening should be paid more attention to.3)As for teaching methods, besides constant practice, case analysis and real time tasksin the form of translation projects are also highly advisable.