This MSc is an intensive language programme coupled with research. It will equip you to function in Arabic at a high level both orally and in writing. A unique feature of the programme is that spoken Arabic will be taught alongside Modern Standard Arabic.
You will acquire a strong understanding of a major spoken Arabic dialect, which is required to understand films, songs and an increasing amount of oral intellectual discourse. You will also develop your Modern Standard Arabic, enabling you to communicate as an educated native speaker of Arabic.
You will refine your abilities to engage critically and analytically with different aspects of the Arabic language and undertake a sustained piece of independent research that demonstrates the research skills, training and knowledge you have acquired.
You will also have the option of a course in Arabic pedagogy, which will equip you with the skills to teach Arabic to non-native speakers.
The language component of the programme will combine intensive class teaching with a wide range of activities including situational interpreting, listening and summarising and oral presentations. There will also be an e-learning element to the language learning.
The research and option pedagogy components will be delivered in the form of seminars and workshops.
The dissertation or language-based project will involve one-to-one meetings with supervisors and detailed feedback.
The MSc in Advanced Arabic is both a professional and an academic qualification providing students with a solid linguistic as well as research foundation. You could use this qualification to continue in academic life either in teaching or research and the language skills gained will help you to use your Arabic in any professional capacity such as media, business, diplomacy, working for NGOs and other international organisations. Graduates are also in a good position to apply their language skills in various interpretive roles for organisations such as the International Red Cross.
This programme will equip you with Arabic-English and/or English-Arabic translation skills for different types of texts, as well as an understanding of the theory underpinning your practice.
You’ll work with a range of text types, including journalistic, administrative, technical and literary texts. You’ll also deepen your knowledge of methods, approaches and concepts in translation studies.
You’ll also choose optional modules that suit your interests and career aspirations, on issues in translation and language more generally, such as Arabic/English stylistics, translation for international organisations, computer-assisted translation, applied linguistics and genre analysis.
Taught by expert researchers and contracted practitioners, this programme makes use of the expertise across the Centre for Translation Studies and Arabic, Islamic and Middle Eastern Studies within the School of Languages, Cultures and Societies. It’s a great opportunity to learn valuable skills in a city full of cultural and linguistic diversity.
Specialist facilities
We have excellent facilities and resources to support your studies. Our Electronic Resources and Information Centre (ERIC) supports all of our translation programmes, complete with 59 high-spec PCs and a wide range of specialist software for translation and subtitling.
The Centre for Translation Studies is also constantly compiling and updating very large corpora of texts in digital form so you can analyse source texts and produce more idiomatic translations. If you want to try your hand at interpreting, you will have the option to do so in our state-of-the-art conference suites.
This programme is also available to study part-time over 24 months.
Throughout the programme you’ll develop your understanding of theories, approaches and methods in translation studies through a core module. You’ll then apply that knowledge in your specialised translation modules, when you’ll gain the intercultural skills to make sound translation decisions and build skills in computer-assisted translation.
You’ll complete the course with your choice from a range of optional modules to suit your interests and career plans. You could expand your knowledge of translation by studying translation for international organisations, comparative Arabic/English stylistics, or explore broader topics such as genre analysis in translation or different aspects of applied linguistics like language acquisition or syntax.
By the end of the course in September, you’ll submit work which showcases the skills you’ve acquired – this could be a long translation, long dissertation or shorter versions of both.
If you choose to study part-time, you’ll take fewer modules in each year and study over a longer period.
Compulsory modules
We use different teaching methods to help you develop a range of practical skills as well as a sound theoretical knowledge base. These include lectures and seminars, as well as practical classes where you’ll make the most of our facilities.
In addition, the Centre for Translation Studies and Arabic, Islamic and Middle Eastern Studies run a regular programme of Research and Professionalisation Talks from visiting speakers, many of whom are actually practicing translators, interpreters, subtitlers or project managers.
You’ll be assessed using a wide range of methods. Translation tests are an important element, as areessays and individual and team projects. You’ll also be assessed on yourindividual summer project, which can be either a long annotated translation, a long dissertation, or a combination of a short annotated translation and short dissertation.
This programme will equip you with practical translation skills between two major world languages which are increasingly valuable to a wide range of employers across industries.
It’s excellent preparation for working in fields where Arabic is a working language, or where translation in and out of Arabic is needed. These include foreign diplomacy, the media, NGOs and international organisations, the travel and tourism sector, teaching and areas of the publishing, cultural and marketing industries.
Other graduates progress to PhD research, or work as specialised freelance translators.
We encourage you to prepare for your career from day one. That’s one of the reasons Leeds graduates are so sought after by employers.
The Careers Centre and staff in your faculty provide a range of help and advice to help you plan your career and make well-informed decisions along the way, even after you graduate. Find out more at the Careers website.
This two-year programme offers a unique opportunity for in-depth study of Arabic language, region-specific culture, history and politics. It is intended for students who already have some knowledge of the Arabic language (approximately 400 hours of previous study or CEF level B1 or B2).
This programme takes a combined and communicative approach to the language, teaching all the skills of reading, writing, listening and speaking in parallel, combining both spoken ‘dialect’ and more formal Modern Standard Arabic, bringing learners to an advanced level in all skills.
You will have access to some of the UK’s leading experts in the field of Islamic and Middle Eastern Studies and will experience a three-month immersion in language and culture in an Arabic-speaking country.
Graduates of the postgraduate Arabic programme at the department of Islamic and Middle Eastern Studies have gone on to use their language and regional expertise in a wide variety of roles, including business, government, charities and NGOs and academia.
The first eight months of the programme are delivered in Edinburgh, with a combination of language training, survey and option courses. You then spend three months at an approved institution in an Arab country, further developing your skills. The second year includes specialisation through further optional courses as well as training in research skills and extensive support in preparation for the final dissertation.
Compulsory courses:
Option courses can be chosen from those offered by IMES, from elsewhere within the School or across the University. Among these are:
Expertise in the Arabic language and Middle Eastern Studies are increasingly sought after. Graduates of this programme will be well-placed to use their language skills in - for example - business and commerce, governments, NGOs and charities, and academia.
This degree offers an intensive Arabic language programme to develop advanced Arabic proficiency, including a period spent in the Arab world, along with advanced theoretical and empirical understanding of the international relations of the Middle East.
You will use the Arabic language both as a means of communication and a research tool to interview informants, read the local press and scholarship, and explore Middle Eastern culture in a way not available to non-Arabic speakers.
The programme will be delivered through lectures, seminars, group work and guided independent study.
You will complete four compulsory courses and two option courses, as well as a programme of intensive Arabic language studies, which will involve oral and written exams. You may also take language courses in Persian and Turkish, although they will not count towards your qualification.
Your second year of study will culminate in an independently researched dissertation.
You will obtain an in-depth understanding of the main historical events, processes and actors that have shaped and continue to shape political dynamics in the Middle East.
You will also acquire a strong understanding of International Relations theoretical and conceptual tools required to understand Middle East international relations, which will help you form an academically-based, independent and critical knowledge of the Middle East.
The Advanced Arabic language element will see you reach a high level of competence in speaking, listening, reading and writing the language.
The specialist knowledge you acquire through this programme will equip you for any career relating to international relations, particularly of the Middle East, either in academia (after further study) or with an international institution.
Your Arabic language skills will be invaluable in many contexts including academia, media and the NGO sector.
In addition, the transferable skills you gain in areas such as communication and research will give you an edge in the employment market, whatever your eventual career.
