Interpreting Major - Bachelor of Arts
Want a career as an interpreter? In the Interpreting major you learn to recognise cross-cultural implications for interpreting, and the ethical and professional responsibilities of an interpreter.
Interpreting is so much more than just repeating someone’s words in a different language. A good interpreter can understand nuances and cultural appropriateness, and convey levels of formality across a range of professions and industries. The challenge is to do justice to every situation.
You practise interpreting consecutively and simultaneously between English and another language. You explore the effects of intonation and the use of idioms in spoken English. Throughout your studies you also become familiar with interpreting for legal, healthcare or business settings. These skills will serve you well in our increasingly multicultural local and global communities.
This is part of the Bachelor of Arts.
Start date: 2021
- Download our Language and Culture programme guide [PDF, 3.1 MB]
Start date: 2022
- Download our Culture & Society programme guide [PDF, 3.7 MB]
Core courses
All students in the Bachelor of Arts complete core courses that cover effective communication, critical thinking and other transferable skills you'll need for your future career. For a list of core courses refer to the Bachelor of Arts overview.
Interpreting courses
ENGL501 Critical Media Studies (Compulsory Year 1 Language course for BA Interpreting Major)
You must complete:
TRIN603 Interpreter Role, Ethics and Practice
TRIN604 Societal Context for Interpreting and Translation
COMM651 WeSpeak: Pronunciation, Phonology and Effective Communication OR CLSY601 Intercultural Competence in a Global World
TRIN702 Advanced Interpretation Legal Studies
TRIN704 Advanced Interpretation Health Studies
Plus two of the following courses:
ENGL700 Global English
TRIN701 Principles and Practice of Translation and Interpreting
TRIN705 Advanced Health Interpreting
TRIN708 Advanced Legal Interpreting
Workplace experience
Workplace experience (the Work Integrated Learning course) is the final part of your degree and takes a full semester. This is a supervised work placement related to your major(s), for an organisation of your choice.
- Legal interpreting for government and local authorities
- Health interpreting for various health sector organisations
- Freelance interpreting work
- Foreign affairs and border control
- Movie voiceovers
- Language Line (telephone interpreting)
- Refugee and migrant services
- International business conventions or conferences
Find out more about industry trends, job descriptions and what employers may be looking for.
Other majors in the Bachelor of Arts
- Chinese Studies
- Conflict Resolution
- Creative Writing
- Criminology and Criminal Justice
- Culinary Arts
- Economics
- Education
- English and New Media Studies
- Event Management
- International Studies
- Japanese Studies
- Māori Development
- New Zealand Sign Language & Deaf Studies
- New Zealand Sign Language - English Interpreting
- Psychology
- Social Sciences
- Prepares you for interpreting careers in medical, legal and business settings
- Suitable if you already speak two languages
- Workplace experience in your final semester
- Bilingual
- A communicator
- A great listener
- Having an ear for detail
The information on this page was correct at time of publication. For a comprehensive overview of AUT qualifications, please refer to the Academic Calendar.