Volga Yılmaz Gümüş holds a BA in Translation and Interpreting from Bilkent University, Ankara, and an MA in Translation and Interpreting from Hacettepe University, Ankara. She is currently a research assistant in the Department of Translation and Interpreting, Anadolu University, Turkey. Her main field of academic interest is translator training.
Training for the Translation Market in Turkey: An Analysis of Curricula and Stakeholders
Supervisors: Anthony Pym, Aymil Doğan
Research Summary
The number of translator- and interpreter-training programs in higher education institutions has increased dramatically in Turkey in the late 1990s and early 2000s. However, the Translation Studies literature in Turkey provides few empirical studies about the views held by stakeholders such as students, trainers, professionals and employers, with regard to the needs, offerings and quality of translator training. The general aim of this study is to investigate the position of the translation market in translator-training and curriculum-design practices from the perspective of various stakeholders, but mainly the graduates of undergraduate translator-training programs. For this purpose, I conducted surveys and interviews with graduates that received undergraduate education in the translation and interpreting departments of two Turkish universities, i.e. Hacettepe and Bilkent universities. This study reports on the results and findings of the questionnaire survey and interviews. The initial findings obtained from the graduates were supported with interview findings from other stakeholders, including the administrators of translation programs and employers. The study also presents a historical overview of the translator-training programs at Hacettepe and Bilkent universities, in order to identify what has changed in translator training in terms of curricular content over time.
Publications
Yılmaz Gümüş, Volga. 2014. "Teaching Technology in Translator-Training Programs in Turkey". In Translation Research Projects 5, E. Torres-Simon and D. Orrego-Carmona (eds.). Tarragona: Intercultural Studies Group. 25-35.
Yılmaz Gümüş, Volga. 2012. "Translation of Culture-Specific Items in Self-Help Literature: A Study on Domestication and Foreignization Strategies". ELOPE, 9(2): 117-129.
Yılmaz Gümüş, Volga. 2008. "A Functionalist Approach to Syllabus Design in Translator Training". In Thinking Translation: Perspectives from Within and Without, Conference Proceedings, Third UEA Postgraduate Translation Symposium, R. H. Parker and K. G. Garcia (eds.). Boca Raton: Brown Walker Press. 207-215.
Yılmaz Gümüş, Volga and Evren Köylü. 2008. "Petit Nicolas Neden Pıtırcık Oldu? Çocuk Yazınında Özel Ad Çevirileri Üzerine Bir İnceleme" (A Paper on the Translation of Proper Names in Children's Literature). In Proceedings of the International Translation Studies Conference, New Horizons in Translation Studies, A. Erten (ed.). Ankara: Bizim Büro. 209-224.
Conference Presentations
Yılmaz Gümüş, Volga. 2014. "Translating Hasan Erkek's Play 'Eşik' into English: Challenges and Solutions". The First Stories Festival, New York, 20 May 2014.
Yılmaz Gümüş, Volga. 2013. "Teaching Technology in Translator-Training Programs: Viewpoints of Various Stakeholders". New Research in Translation and Interpreting Studies 2013, URV, Tarragona, Spain, 1-2 July 2013.
Yılmaz Gümüş, Volga. 2011. "Domesticating or Foreignizing the Self: A Study on the Translation of Culture-Specific Items in Self-Help Books". ALAA-ALANZ 2nd Combined Conference: Applied Linguistics as a Meeting Point, University of Canberra & Australian National University, Australia, 30 November-2 December 2011.
Yılmaz Gümüş, Volga. 2011. "Translating the Foreign in the Foreign: A Study on the Translation of Culture-Specific Items in Eat, Pray, Love". The 4th International Adriatic-Ionian Conference Across Languages and Cultures, Ca' Foscari University of Venice, Italy, 1-3 September 2011.
Yılmaz Gümüş, Volga. 2009. "What do Citations Tell about Legal Translation and Interpreting". The 2nd Mediterranean Graduate Students Meeting in Linguistics, Mersin University, Turkey, 12-13 March 2009.
Yılmaz Gümüş, Volga and Evren Köylü. 2008. "Nicolas Neden Sürekli Kimlik Değiştiriyor? Çocuk Yazınında Özel Ad Çevirileri Üzerine Bir İnceleme II" (A Paper on the Translation of Proper Names in Children's Literature II). The 8th International Language, Literature Stylistics Symposium, Izmir University of Economics, Turkey, 14-16 May 2008.
Yılmaz Gümüş, Volga. 2008. "A Functionalist Approach to Syllabus Design in Translator Training". The 3rd UEA Postgaraduate Symposium, Norwich, UK, 23-24 February 2008.
Yılmaz Gümüş, Volga and Evren Köylü. 2006. "Petit Nicolas Neden Pıtırcık Oldu? Çocuk Yazınında Özel Ad Çevirileri Üzerine Bir İnceleme" (A Paper on the Translation of Proper Names in Children's Literature). The International Translation Studies Conference, New Horizons in Translation Studies, Hacettepe University, Turkey, 11-12 May 2006.
VIVA October 24, 2013
Examining committee :
Dr. Allison Beeby (Universitat Autónoma de Barcelona)
Dr. Olivia Fox (Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona)
Dr. Defeng Li (SOAS)
