Minor in Translation Studies

Have you ever wondered how translators and interpreters contribute to…

• literature and scholarship you read for school or for pleasure?
• subtitles, supertitles, and dubbing scripts in your favorite foreign films, TV shows, and live performances?
• governmental negotiations, diplomatic meetings, and military and peacekeeping operations?
• regional and international NGO programs and initiatives?
• legislation and legal proceedings?
• advocacy and activism campaigns?
• art exhibitions in the world’s museums and galleries?
• advertising for linguistically varied local and global markets?
• journalism published and broadcast in numerous languages around the world?
• outcomes in healthcare and scientific investigation?

Translators and interpreters are essential agents in global flows of art, media, research, policy, and commerce. Which is why Global Liberal Studies offers, in partnership with the Department of Comparative Literature, a cross-unit Minor in Translation Studies.

Students pursuing the Minor in Translation Studies will learn about translation history, theory, and practice in a cross-cultural, multilingual, and interdisciplinary context. They will gain a deeper understanding of this work that bridges different languages and cultures, and of the dynamics of power and capital that shape how translations are produced, disseminated, and received. They will engage with translation scholars and practitioners, and participate in translation events, while studying in NYC and at the Global Academic Centers.

The Minor in Translation Studies is a 4-course (16-credit) minor. Courses may be taken in NYC or at the Global Academic Centers. Up to one course may be double-counted for the minor. 

There are three categories of courses:

1. Introductory course (4 credits)

Students will take one of two options for the introductory course:

2. An elective GLS or Comparative Literature course focusing on translation theory and/or practice (4 credits).

Students will take at least one course from among the below options.

3. Eight (8) additional credits drawn EITHER from the above list of GLS and Comparative Literature electives OR from the below list of approved electives offered in collaborating units.

This list will continue to expand as more courses are approved or developed. Please check host department sites or contact Directors of Undergraduate Studies for information about scheduling and prerequisites.

Arts & Science

School of Professional Studies

Students who declare the minor will be eligible to take courses in the MS in Translation & Interpreting program, provided that they meet certain requirements. Please contact Academic Director of Translation & Interpreting Annelise Finegan at annelise@nyu.edu to learn more.

Students can begin by registering for one of the many course options listed above. If you’ve already taken one of the above courses prior to the Fall 2022 semester, you may apply it to the minor. Declare your minor and manage your coursework with the Minor in Translation Studies Worksheet.

Assistant Director, Global Academic Engagement Sentienla Toy Threadgill is the GLS academic advisor for the Minor in Translation Studies. Please contact her at st649@nyu.edu to learn more.

Founded in 2019, Translation Nation is the student club for exploring all things translation. We practice different techniques of translation through exercises and projects, and learn about how translators have approached their work–and the cultural, political, and economic conditions informing it–through conversations with guest speakers, and outings to literary readings, lectures, and film screenings. For more information, please contact the club’s faculty advisor, Professor Jennifer Zoble, at jz64@nyu.edu.