European Master’s in Translation (EMT)

What is the European Master’s in Translation?

The EMT is a partnership project between the European Commission and higher-education institutions offering master’s level translation programmes. The aim of the project was to create a quality label for those translation programmes that fulfil certain professional criteria and market demands. Only the universities included in the EMT are allowed to use the logo.

The EMT was designed to improve the quality of translation training in institution and for attracting skilled translators to work for the European Union. European experts have drawn up a translator competence profile, which emphasizes the qualities that a translator needs in order to succeed in today`s job market. It has become a popular standard among numerous universities that use it as a model for creating their programmes.

The EMT network is the place where EMT member universities meet and exchange ideas or discuss future projects. At the moment, the network has 64 members. Only two of the members are non-EU and they have only an observational status. The Universities that are included in the network have many advantages. For instance, they benefit from a partnership with DG Translation; they can invite on a regular basis guest lecturers from DG Translation; Furthermore, this partnership enhances the status of translation as a profession, raises the profile of translation programmes and builds up cooperation links. The advantages for students who choose one of the EMT universities include obtaining priority for an (unpaid) traineeship in DG Translation and the possibility to apply for a work placement in the language industry.

The most recent EMT conference was held on the 27-28 March 2014 in Brussels. The annual EMT event was part of a joint conference for universities organised by the Directorate-Generals for Interpretation and Translation. The main topic was institutional and public service translation and interpreting, with examples of best practice in training courses.

In order to become a member of the EMT, a university programme must be located in and authorised by an EU country or be an authorised programme run by a university in certain non- EU countries such as Switzerland and Russia. These countries can only have observational status at the moment. Programmes should meet a set of criteria relevant to the EMT status related to the structure of the programme, human resources (number of teaching staff and their qualifications), infrastructure (premises, IT equipment, CAT-tools), career support & monitoring (career guidance for students, internships, tracking of careers after graduation and employment statistics).

All in all, those who are thinking about a European translation career, should consider a European Master in Translation to increase their chances of getting the job they desire.