Poems about Translation 29: from 'Poets Online'

It's been a while since I've published anything in the long-running, meandering 'Poems About Translation' series, which seeks to admire and publicise observations on translation through the medium of poetry. Number 29 is in fact more than one poem; it's this collection of poems inspired by the concept of translation on the 'Poets Online' website. My favourite is 'Deaf and Dumb' by poet and ASL interpreter Paul Hostovsky. Here is a short extract...

...but go read the whole poem. It can also be found, with two other poems on the theme of Deafness and language, here.

PhD opportunity in Translation Studies with an industry emphasis, University of Manchester

A very interesting-looking doctoral opportunity is available at the University of Manchester. Copying here to signal-boost!

AHRC Collaborative Doctoral Award in Translation Studies: Humans in the Loop

The Centre for Translation and Intercultural Studies, supported by the North-West Consortium Doctoral Training Partnership (NWCDTP), invites applications from exceptional candidates for a fully funded collaborative PhD studentship, to start in September 2020 at the University of Manchester, UK.

The Humans in the Loop project will investigate the impact of the quality of source texts on the work of post-editors or translators, in collaboration with our partner, TranslateMedia. Specialising in the translation of advertising and marketing materials, TranslateMedia is implementing post-editing of machine translation as part of its professional translation workflow. This research will examine TranslateMedia’s encounters with poorly written and non-canonical source texts, to understand how specific features of source texts can affect the quality of MT output, post-editing practices and translator productivity. The basic parameters of the research are set but specific details will be decided jointly by the student, supervisor and partner. TranslateMedia will provide access to a range of datasets, resources and personnel. This research will make a valuable contribution to our understanding of the conditions in which professional translation takes place and the changing nature of translation practice as MT technology is further integrated into workflows.

The successful candidate will join a dynamic community of doctoral researchers at a world-leading translation studies research centre. They will benefit from expert supervision, a wide range of research training opportunities, and access to additional funds for fieldwork, research expenses, conferences, etc.

Qualifications

Applicants should have:

• A First Class Honours degree (or equivalent) and a Masters level qualification with Distinction (completed or in progress), in translation studies or a cognate discipline

• Native or near-native competence in English and at least one of the following languages: French, German, Italian, Spanish, Portuguese, Dutch 

• Prior experience of using translation technologies

• Some prior professional experience in language services (desirable).

Funding and eligibility

A full award comprises the UK/EU tuition fee and a maintenance stipend of approximately £15,000 per year, for 3.5 years of full-time study.

Candidates must have a relevant connection with the UK to qualify for a full AHRC award, i.e. they must have been ordinarily resident in the UK throughout the three-year period preceding the date of application, or have settled status in the UK. Non-EU candidates who have not been ordinarily resident in the UK for the last three years, or who were resident wholly or mainly for the purposes of education, are not eligible to apply.

Candidates from EU countries are eligible for full awards if they have been resident in the UK, for education or other purposes, for at least three years prior to the start of their programme. Candidates from EU countries who have not resided in the UK for three years prior to the start of their programme will normally be eligible for a fees-only award.

Applications

Please submit a CV, undergraduate and Masters degree transcripts, and a 1,500-word PhD proposal related to the research topic to maeve.olohan@manchester.ac.uk by 17:00 GMT on Monday 17 February 2020. Interviews will take place at the end of February and the successful candidate’s nomination will be confirmed by 13 March.

The successful candidate will then be required to submit an online application for a place on the PhD in Translation and Intercultural Studies programme by 31 March, with the support of the supervisors – see http://www.alc.manchester.ac.uk/study/postgraduate-research/applying/

for details.

Contact for further information

Dr Maeve Olohan, maeve.olohan [at] manchester.ac.uk.

This announcement can also be accessed at https://www.jobs.ac.uk/job/BXZ169/phd-studentship-ahrc-collaborative-doctoral-award-in-translation-studies-humans-in-the-loop