A study stay of four Ukrainian interpreting teachers from Vasyl Stefanyk Precarpathian National University in Ivano-Frankivsk took place at the Institute of Translation at CU FA from 7–11 April 2025. The stay was held as part of the project “Strengthening of Capacity for Conference Interpreters’ Training at PNU 2024–2025”, supported by the Directorate-General for Logistics and Interpretation for Conferences (DG LINC) of the European Parliament.
During their stay, the teachers had the opportunity to visit simultaneous and consecutive interpreting classes in different language combinations, to observe the performance of the learners and, above all, to (self-)evaluate the interpreting. In six thematic seminars, they were able to discuss with CU FA teachers the structure, content, and interconnection of the courses in the follow-up MA programme – Interpreting.
They also learned about didactic approaches, preparation of materials and recordings, the involvement of native speakers in tandem teaching, entrance, and final exams, diploma topics, and key subjects such as Interpreting Theory and Research Methods or Conference Theory and Practice. They also discussed cooperation with professional organisations (the Union of Interpreters and Translators – JTP, the Association of Conference Interpreters – ASKOT) and the employment of CU FA graduates in the domestic and European markets. In European institutions, 99% of Czech interpreters are graduates of the Faculty of Arts, Charles University.
The Ukrainian teachers also took part in a simulated conference during which the students worked in interpreter booths. Depending on the language combination and the language of the papers delivered in the room, they simultaneously interpreted either in their mother or foreign language. The learners also acted as experts/speakers, as well as the teachers present, who represented each language and also formed an expert audience, providing feedback to the learners on their interpreting performance.
The programme was closed by a meeting of the guests with the Director of the Institute of Translation Studies at CU FA, doc. Tomáš Svoboda, and subsequent tour of Prague’s sights.
We will be happy if our cooperation continues and we wish our Ukrainian colleagues every success in training conference interpreters, who will be increasingly needed, especially in the context of Ukraine’s candidacy for membership in the European Union.
Prof. Ivana Čeňková, Institute of Translation Studies at CU FA
