Master’s degree in Conference Interpreting

Presentation

ISIT trains professional conference interpreters capable of working in high-level international environments, meeting the technical, linguistic and cultural requirements of the profession.

Since 2014, the Master’s degree in Conference Interpreting at ISIT has been part of the EMCI Network (European Masters in Conference Interpreting), which includes 15 universities of excellence in conference interpreting. Co-funded by the European Union, the Master’s program also benefits from durable partnerships with EU institutions and the UN, offering a unique insight into the highest spheres of institutional interpreting.

Visit the European Commission’s website on conference interpreting

Faculty

Thanks to rigorous teaching methods, based on high academic standards and on gradual immersion in professional practice, this program places professionalization at the heart of its approach. All courses are taught by working conference interpreters, guaranteeing a learning experience rooted in the current realities of the profession.

Operational competencies acquired by graduates in this specialization

• Proficiency in simultaneous interpreting, consecutive interpreting, and sight translation techniques
• Solid knowledge of economics and law, particularly related to topics discussed in institutional and private contexts
• Excellent listening, analytical, and summarizing skills
• Ability to speak in public with clarity, precision, and confidence
• Quick thinking and sustained concentration, even in stressful situations.

Internships in the first year of the Master’s program
A company internship at the end of the first year of the Master’s in Conference Interpreting is mandatory, except for students with at least five years of professional experience.

Main objectives:

• Understand the corporate world from the inside, its needs and constraints
• Identify the interpreter’s stakeholders and future contacts
• Enrich students’ economic knowledge base and deepen their terminology skills

Internship details:

• Duration: 2 to 3 months
• Period: from late May to late September
• Main host organizations: international companies, government agencies, and NGOs
• Main duties: marketing, translation, communication (particularly press relations and institutional relations), human resources, purchasing, among others.
  Internship location: depending on the needs identified by the teaching team at the end of the first semester. Generally in France for students with French as their B or C language and abroad for students with French as their A language.

Internships in the second year of the master’s program:
Students in the second year of the master’s program in Conference Interpreting complete internships:

• In silent booths (interpreting with the microphone turned off) at various international organizations (Council of Europe, OECD, EU, UNESCO).
• As volunteer conference interpreters for charitable organizations (CCFD) or humanitarian organizations (Ensemble Contre la Peine de Mort) or at major student events such as MUNISIT (Model United Nations).

See the calendar

Careers guidance

This Master’s degree is designed to enable rapid professional integration in the interpreting profession, thanks to :

• rigorous teaching, combining theory and practice (simultaneous and consecutive interpretation and sight translation),
• hands-on experience, such as supervised internships in dumb booths, simulated conferences and volunteer work.
• relationships with institutional recruiters

On the institutional market: within major international organizations such as the European Commission, European Parliament, Council of Europe, UN, OECD, FAO, UNESCO.

On the private market: at conferences, corporate seminars and specialized congresses on a wide range of topics, including health, industry, economics and technology.
ISIT graduates are also trained to work at bilateral or multilateral diplomatic meetings.

Check out our job descriptions