Forensic Linguistics and Translation (Part time)
Starting dates and places
Description
The MA in Forensic Linguistics and Translation is an interdisciplinary course that focuses on language and communication in highly sensitive contexts of investigative interviews and translation in criminal and civil justice. It brings cutting-edge interdisciplinary research to the fore and contextualises it in the latest theoretical and applied background of linguistics, psychology and the law. This MA is academically novel, practice-led and comprehensively structured around committed teaching and guided individual study.
The core of the MA is a new module in Forensic Linguistics and Translation which is focused on language in other language-driven activities such as translating and interpre…
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The MA in Forensic Linguistics and Translation is an interdisciplinary course that focuses on language and communication in highly sensitive contexts of investigative interviews and translation in criminal and civil justice. It brings cutting-edge interdisciplinary research to the fore and contextualises it in the latest theoretical and applied background of linguistics, psychology and the law. This MA is academically novel, practice-led and comprehensively structured around committed teaching and guided individual study.
The core of the MA is a new module in Forensic Linguistics and Translation which is focused on language in other language-driven activities such as translating and interpreting legal contracts, documents, and witness testimony, as well as collecting and analysing linguistic evidence.
The focus is on what it is easy or hard to express in spoken and written communication in different languages and the challenges this presents for translation. No prior knowledge of linguistics is required but speaking a foreign language will be an advantage. The MA and the new module is highly interdisciplinary and you will learn about the ways in which many disciplines are related to one another, such as linguistics, translation studies, law, criminology, and psychology. You will also learn why different languages package information in different ways and how these differences affect the description and understanding of information given to the police, for example, in investigative interviewing. You will study the ways in which linguistic data can be used in court as expert witness testimony. This module also provides hands-on illustrations of different methodologies (e.g. experiments and electronic corpus searches) that can be employed in order to use language as evidence in different contexts (police investigation, medical interviews, business development and branding).
Through an eclectic line-up of modules to choose from in the new MA, we offer an overall grounding in translation studies across different contexts, both theoretical and applied. You will also be taught in the areas of psycholinguistics, conflict in intercultural communication, intercultural communication in practice and aspects of global cross-linguistic and cross-cultural interactions.
Why study Forensic Linguistics and Translation at UEA?Several factors combine to make the choice of the UEA MA in Forensic Linguistics and Translation programme an appropriate and exciting one:
The School of Language and Communication Studies is a vibrant environment with a focus on issues relating to contemporary language and translation. The work we undertake in the School has successfully positioned us at the cutting edge of research, ensuring our graduates are well-informed and highly employable.
Research in the School focuses on cross-cultural communication, with all staff sharing an interest in the study of language use (pragmatics), translation, interpreting and media in an intercultural and multilingual framework. The different standpoints from which they approach the interaction between language and forms of communication constitute complementary and mutually enriching perspectives, in line with UEA’s tradition of interdisciplinary research and Critical Linguistics research.
The School provides a friendly and stimulating environment in which to study. The size of the School allows for more personal staff-student contact and individual academic support than in many larger institutions.
The James Platt Centre for Language Learning which is housed within the School provides an extensive range of language resources including live satellite broadcasts, CDs and DVDs in various foreign languages, as well as a wide variety of foreign language printed matter. These materials complement the excellent holdings of the UEA library. IT facilities are excellent throughout the University.
The wide range of linguistically diverse students enrolled on both this and other MA programmes in the School provides a rich environment in which to study intercultural communication.
Course Content and StructureList of topics to be covered:
- What makes linguistics forensic?
- Words and sentences involved in crime.
- When information fails to inform…
- Causes of communication problems in court
- Witness interviews in multilingual societies
- Do we really say what we mean? - Pragmatics of language
- Language and disadvantage
- Cross-cultural challenges in forensic linguistics and translation
- Translating and interpreting in the context of access to justice
- Purely language crimes: famous perjury cases
- Language and memory in witness testimony
- The power of language
Examples of Focus Questions
- What are the practical advantages of using corpus and/or experimental methods in the analysis of witness interviews and translation?
- Why is it important to address the issue of certain languages making some pieces of information more available than certain others?
- What are the consequences of translating from/into typologically different languages?
- What are the dangers of saying that language-specific effects condition information processing in witness interviews?
- What are the practical consequences for language policy makers in public institutions as well as for access to justice and equality in society?
Assessment is on the basis of coursework which principally involves presentations and essays.
Final Dissertation:The dissertation is either a translation and commentary of 15,000-20,000 words altogether, or a dissertation on another topic such as translation theory, translation in specialised context(s) or case studies, in which case it is 12,000-15,000 words in length.
Transferable Skills:The MA in Forensic Linguistics and Translation will provide an opportunity to gain and improve a number of widely applicable employability skills, such as synthetic and analytic data analysis, effective structuring, supporting and presenting of specialist arguments, enhancement of general presentation and communication skills as well as acquisition of specialist linguistic knowledge and communication expertise that can be applied in everyday academic or professional life.
Examples of Practical Work:
- Forensic analysis of texts (threatening communication, emergency calls, etc.)
- Investigative interviewing with an interpreter
- Control translation of interpreted interviews
- Legal case studies: Disputable brands names and contractual terms
- Witness interviews and exploration of language factors that may affect judgement
- Mock trials with interpreters and juries
- Report on the findings in the context of relevant literature and data sets
- Skills development for presentation and interpretation of the results
- Debate between groups representing conflicting positions, e.g. anticipating your opponents’ views in conflicting contexts
See what our postgraduates say for examples.
MA Degree Programmes Postgraduate Diplomas(MA in Communication and Language
Studies only) Four taught modules assessed by coursework
(six for Communication and Language Studies) Six taught modules assessed by coursework Obligatory core elements and options Obligatory core elements and options Year Long Research Method module Two-semester 100% taught courses (no dissertation) 15,000 word supervised dissertation
(8,000 for MA in Communication and Language Studies)
Easter to early September
Multi-disciplinary environment, wide range of options from across the Faculty
Full time and Part time programmes
Course Organiser:Dr. Luna Filipovic
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- Information for New Students
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We welcome applications from students whose first language is not English. To ensure such students benefit from postgraduate study, we require evidence of proficiency in English. Our usual entry requirements are as follows:
- IELTS: 6.5 (minimum 6.0 in all components)
- TOEFL: Internet-based score of 88 (minimum 18 listening, 21 speaking, 19 writing and 20 in reading)
- PTE (Pearson): 62 (minimum 55 in all components)
Test dates should be within two years of the course start date.
Other tests such as TOEIC and the Cambridge Certificate of Advanced English are also accepted by the university. Please check with the Admissions Office for further details including the scores or grades required.
INTO UEA and INTO UEA London run pre-sessional courses which can be taken prior to the start of your course. For further information and to see if you qualify please contact intopre-sessional@uea.ac.uk (INTO UEA Norwich) or pseuealondon@into.uk.com (INTO UEA London).
IntakesThe School's annual intake is in September of each year.
Alternative QualificationsIf you have alternative qualifications that have not been mentioned above then please contact the university directly for further information.
AssessmentAll applications for postgraduate study are processed through the Admissions Office and then forwarded to the relevant School of Study for consideration. If you are currently completing your first degree or have not yet taken a required English language test, any offer of a place will be conditional upon you achieving this before you arrive.
International exchange and attendant issues in our fast-changing world are key concerns in the School of Language and Communication Studies. They are addressed from the complementary perspectives of Translation, Cross Cultural Communication and Linguistics, each represented by its own MA.
The University of East Anglia is a thriving academic environment, with many distinctive features:
- Thriving interdisciplinary and multicultural environment
- Expertise in a wide range of languages
- Birthplace of Critical Linguistics
- MA programmes designed specifically for international students
- Translation Workshops led by distinguished practising translators
- Opportunity for students to benefit from the activities of the prestigious UEA-based British Centre for Literary Translation, which attracts visiting translators from all over the world.
- Opportunity for postgraduate students to edit issues of the UEA-based journal Norwich Papers
- Translation Workshops series.
The School also benefits from an outstanding research environment. UEA is home to the British Centre for Literary Translation (BCLT), translators and students edit the UEA journal Norwich Papers which devotes issues to the publication of students' scholarly work on translators and translation.
Peter Trudgill, now retired from the University of Fribourg in Switzerland, has come back to Norwich, his home town, to join the School of Language and Communication Studies team as Honorary Professor in Sociolinguistics to research changes in the local vernaculars which he started studying 35 years ago.
Fees and Funding Tuition feesTuition fees for Postgraduate students for the academic year 2013/14 are £5,000 for Home/EU students and £12,500 for International Students.
If you choose to study part-time, the fee per annum will be half the annual fee for that year, or a pro-rata fee for the module credit you are taking (only available for Home/EU students).
Please note that all the above fees are expected to rise for the year 2014/15. We estimate living expenses at £600/650 per month.
International scholarshipsAll international students (outside the European Union) are considered for a scholarship of between £1000 and £2000 towards tuition fees. In order to be considered for an International Scholarship you do not need to make a separate application. Please indicate on your application for admission that you wish to be considered for a scholarship. It is important to make the application as early as possible because they are considered as they are received. So apply early to make sure of the best chance of success.
Scholarships are awarded to students on the basis of academic merit and are for the duration of the period of study (which will be one year). Students of outstanding academic ability will also be considered for Faculty Scholarship Awards, usually in March and May each year, which can be worth up to 100% of the tuition fee. These are highly competitive and prestigious awards. Those students being offered a scholarship will be notified directly by the School of Study.
Scholarships and Awards:The Faculty of Arts and Humanities has a number of Scholarships and Awards on offer for 2013 entry. For further information relevant to the School of Language and Communication Studies, please click here.
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