Back to the Blog: Doctoral Progress and Fieldwork in the Gulf

It has been a while since I posted any reflections here. The reason is simple: my doctoral work has kept me busy.

Studying Translation in a Faculty of Education

Doing my studies in a faculty of education, rather than in arts and letters (a translation or linguistics department), is challenging. Colleagues in education place heavy emphasis on methodology and didactics, and there is no escaping it. It has been a privilege, though. I have gained something crucial that I can transfer to translation studies in general, and to applied translation studies in particular: training, quality and technology.

I have now finished my seminars and am preparing to submit my research proposal. Data collection should follow around the summer, then analysis, and then the thesis itself.

Oman, Then Qatar

Last year, while in Oman, I networked with key colleagues working in translation programmes at several universities in the country. I am pleased that they showed interest in the project and were ready to collaborate.

This year I am heading to Qatar to see whether I can widen the scope of my data. University-level translation teaching in Qatar exists in only two institutions, and at different levels: a minor in translation at Qatar University, and postgraduate (MA) study at the Translation and Interpreting Institute (TII). Qatar therefore offers a different kind of practice and context. That is interesting in itself, because it lets me cover teaching and curricular practices in one or two countries. Qatar's experience in translator education is young, and yet it hosts the only fully accredited postgraduate translation programme in the region, at TII. That is worth noting.