Unit information: Liaison Interpreting for Business in 2022/23

Unit name	Liaison Interpreting for Business
Unit code	MODLM0026
Credit points	20
Level of study	M/7
Teaching block(s)	Teaching Block 2 (weeks 13 - 24)
Unit director	Mr. Paul Golf
Open unit status	Not open
Units you must take before you take this one (pre-requisite units)	Introduction to Liaison Interpreting, (or evidence of equivalent)
Units you must take alongside this one (co-requisite units)	None
Units you may not take alongside this one	None
School/department	School of Modern Languages
Faculty	Faculty of Arts

Unit Information

This unit is designed to build on students’ foundational experience gained from Introduction to Liaison Interpreting in semester 1, or equivalent. While the introductory course can include a broader range of topics, the goal of Advanced Liaison Interpreting is to focus primarily on different business interpreting scenarios, which is the most appropriate training for the current jobs market.

As well as furthering their bilateral communicative and linguistic skills, students will also gain experience in creating PowerPoint presentations, presenting sales pitches, conducting business negotiations, and field interpreting etc. Since business liaison interpreters are often required to interpret in consecutive mode, students will also gain experience in consecutive interpreting.

Advanced Liaison interpreting will further develop:

• Memory, presentation and note-taking skills
• Public speaking skills in both languages
• Professionalism and ethics/codes of conduct in a business/corporate environment
• How to mediate cultural and linguistic differences/gaps between languages
• An interpreter’s role and neutrality
• Representing and managing interpersonal dynamics in liaison interpreting, with particular sensitivity to the differences in business culture between China and the UK

In addition, the unit will develop:

• Competence in handling different business/corporate scenarios
• Awareness of the broader role of interpreters in an in-house or freelance context
• Knowledge of the interpreting market
• Ability to manage one’s own workload and client base as a freelance interpreter
• Resourcefulness in advanced problem solving and research skills
• Consecutive interpreting skills necessary for the business/corporate environment

Your learning on this unit

By the end of this unit students will have:

1. Further developed their understanding of issues in a range of topics in order to effectively fulfil the role of the liaison interpreter in a business/corporate environment
2. Gained skills necessary to begin building a client base and managing their career as a freelancer
3. Become familiar with the different roles an interpreter may be required to play in a business/corporate environment
4. Developed their appreciation for and understanding of differences in business culture between China and the UK, and gained an understanding as to how these differences should be mediated
5. Gained an advanced foundation in consecutive interpreting for business/corporate settings
6. Learned the study and research skills needed to continue to improve their professional interpreting skill set independently
7. Developed transferable skills such as giving presentations, conducting negotiations, and negotiating public relations

How you will learn

Teaching will be delivered online through a combination of synchronous sessions and asynchronous activities, including seminars, lectures, and collaborative as well as self-directed learning opportunities supported by tutor consultation.

How you will be assessed

1) Final exam (80%) in two parts, consisting of one 8-minute consecutive interpreting performance Chinese to English (50%) and one 8-minute consecutive interpreting performance English to Chinese (50%)

2) 1500-word reflective report (20%). This is a concise report reflecting on the student’s overall learning, their evaluation of their skills and examination performance.

Resources

If this unit has a Resource List, you will normally find a link to it in the Blackboard area for the unit. Sometimes there will be a separate link for each weekly topic.

If you are unable to access a list through Blackboard, you can also find it via the Resource Lists homepage. Search for the list by the unit name or code (e.g. MODLM0026).

How much time the unit requires
Each credit equates to 10 hours of total student input. For example a 20 credit unit will take you 200 hours of study to complete. Your total learning time is made up of contact time, directed learning tasks, independent learning and assessment activity.

See the Faculty workload statement relating to this unit for more information.

Assessment
The Board of Examiners will consider all cases where students have failed or not completed the assessments required for credit. The Board considers each student's outcomes across all the units which contribute to each year's programme of study. If you have self-certificated your absence from an assessment, you will normally be required to complete it the next time it runs (this is usually in the next assessment period).
The Board of Examiners will take into account any extenuating circumstances and operates within the Regulations and Code of Practice for Taught Programmes.