MFA Russia Expert Holds Interpretation Master Class at Astrakhan State University

On December 25-28, the ASU Caspian Higher School of Interpreting and Translation (CITS) has hold meetings with Andrey Zavarykhin, Attach? of the Linguistic Support Department of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation. 1st- and 2nd-year Master’s degree students have a unique opportunity to hone their skills of consecutive and simultaneous interpretation under the guidance of the experienced professional.

It’s not the first visit of the expert to Astrakhan State University: Mr. Zavarukhin met the CITS and its students in November 2018 when he came to ASU for the first time to hold an interpretation master class. Then the expert worked with MA students in the MFA Linguistic Support Department during their traineeship at the Ministry in March 2019.

The guest is glad to share his experience of top-level interpretation with the students, giving useful tips and telling them about the specificity of work for the Russian Foreign Ministry and interesting episodes of interpreter’s life.

The master class is full of different practical tasks. The students “warmed up” with segment sight translation of current-issue materials; for example, one of the topics was the recent official ceremony of awarding the Order of Friendship by RF President Vladimir Putin.

Then the expert passed to an intensive part of the master class — simultaneous interpretation of different political leaders’ speeches. Besides, the students are honing their skills of sight translation of important political documents.

As the CITS students say, there are very happy with the results of the fruitful classes. The master class is especially exciting for the freshers, as it’s their first experience of simultaneous interpretation and work with materials on political issues.