Translation and AI (Taught)

Why choose this course

• As language AI continues to advance, specialised skills such as translation remain essential. While AI tools can assist translators, they lack the nuanced understanding required for high-quality translation in demanding professional contexts.

• This course equips you to understand both the benefits and risks of current and emerging technologies, while helping you to identify and develop the critical linguistic skills that will be vital in a future with AI.

• With a strong practical component, our course is designed to meet the true needs of the professional language and translation market, enabling you to develop a future-ready CV as you study.

• As a UK centre of excellence in translation studies, supported by the Surrey Institute for People-Centred AI, all teaching in Surrey’s Centre for Translation Studies (CTS) is guided by our leading research on integrating tried-and-tested professional translation practices with cutting-edge technologies, especially AI.

• You will gain hands-on experience with a range of language technologies, including neural machine translation and generative AI (e.g., ChatGPT). You will also develop practical skills in post-editing and prompt writing—used daily by top translators and language professionals worldwide.

• We support internships and professional development activities, enabling you to collaborate with language service providers and build a professional engagement portfolio that you can present to future employers.

What you will study
Our MA Translation and AI course has both a multilingual and a Chinese pathway.

On this multilingual pathway we offer several languages, available on request.

You will develop professional translation skills to produce contextually accurate, culturally appropriate, and stylistically consistent translations. Guided by professional translators and experienced academics, you will explore different specialisms (e.g., business, legal, scientific, technical and medical domains), while building robust foundations in the linguistic, cognitive, quality-related, social and ethical dimensions of translation. You will also learn to understand, discuss and justify your translation decisions.

Uniquely, our course places emphasises on the use of cutting-edge tools to enhance your practice, including computer-assisted translation, corpus linguistics software for translation, neural machine translation and generative AI. With the Centre for Translation Studies (CTS)’ outstanding research track record in translation technologies, you will gain a critical understanding of the role of AI in today’s language services industry, empowering you to integrate these tools effectively and responsibly in your translation practice.

Optional modules focusing on the creative, business, technological and research dimensions of translation enable you to customise your learning according to your own strengths, personal interests and career ambitions. You will also have opportunities to gain industry experience through work placements.

Our flexible dissertation options enable you to choose from:

1. A research-based dissertation on a specific translation topic
2. An extended translation project accompanied by a reflective analytical commentary
3. A critical report based on a language-industry work placement, or a skills-enhancement activity (such as a summer school or similar).

During the course, academic and professional excellence will be rewarded with the following prizes:

• RWS Campus Top Student Award (two Trados licenses)

• Project management training (one free-of-charge place in the Pro PM Training and Certification Programme)

• Professional Engagement Portfolio Prize

• Best Performance in Translation Prize.