Story by Haley Penrod, Staff Writer
Murray State gained approval for a new program in the global languages department that will build the translation and interpretation track.
The Council for Postsecondary Education approved Japanese and Spanish programs, including Japanese and Spanish language tracks, Japanese and Spanish teaching certifications and Japanese and Spanish interpretation and translation tracks.
The program will be available for students in fall 2019.
Brent Menchinger, chair of the global languages and theatre arts department, and Tanya Romero-Gonzalez, assistant professor of Spanish and global languages coordinator, said the program was designed to build on Murray State’s unique global languages department. Murray State’s Japanese program is very competitive with its focus on languages proficiency, which makes this new program ideal for incoming students in the global languages department.
In addition to being able to minor in Chinese, Spanish, French, German and Japanese, they will offer 18 credit hour certificates in these languages which will tie in with placement exams and 100 -level classes.
“For example, if a student places into SPA 202, and they earn an A or a B, they can then apply for back-credit for SPA 101, 102 and 201,” Menchinger and Romero-Gonzalez said. “Essentially, they will earn 12 credits for the price and time of 3. After taking two more 3-credit courses, they can apply for a certificate. They can also apply these credits as part of their undergraduate degree.”
Branden Clayton, freshman from Island, Kentucky, said he’s excited this new program will expand the options the global languages department has, as well as provide real-world applications.
“It gives a better outlook for the future,” Clayton said. “Many students ask what they will do with foreign languages after college, and instructing and translating are ever-growing fields.”
It will also add more beginner-level courses for specialized fields, such as basic Spanish and culture for occupational safety and health and basic Spanish and culture for health care professionals in fall 2019.
“We would also point out that adding a language major to complement another major is becoming increasingly popular; currently, 50 percent of our language majors are double majors,” Menchinger and Romero-Gonzalez said.
Lilli Hanik, sophomore from Fisherville, Kentucky, said she is excited about this new program because it will open opportunities for students wanting to pursue a career in interpretation and translation.
“I hope to see classes directed towards translation rather than understanding what is going on,” Hanik said. “Also, ones tailored more towards speaking and translating speech other than just writing.”
The department created specialized courses for the interpretation and translation tracks. It cultivates hands-on activities by converting existing courses into service-learning courses. Menchinger and Romero-Gonzalez said these courses give students hands-on experience that also provides community service while making them more competitive for the job market.
Students interested in the new program should contact Brent Menchinger at bmenchinger@murraystate.edu or Tanya Romero-Gonzalez at tromerogonzalez@murraystate.edu.