ABSTRACT
The growing demand for qualified interpreters has led to increased emphasis on interpreter training in the last two decades. According to Niska (2005), by the end of the 20th century there were some 230 academic institutions world-wide offering interpreter training in more than 60 countries. Europe led the world with 121 schools, of which 100 institutions offered 3-5 year undergraduate programs and 23 schools had 1-2 year graduate programs. In the last decade or so, however, a large number of new interpreting programs, especially
graduate programs, have been established, not only in Europe, but also in Asia and on other continents, in response to the growing demand for interpreters. In China alone, 159 graduate translation and interpretation (T&I) programs have been set up as part of the nationwide Master of Translation and Interpretation framework (MTI), a professional degree launched in 2007. In addition, 106 universities have received approval from the PRC Ministry of Education to offer undergraduate level translation and interpreting programs. In the same period of time, new programs have also emerged in Taiwan, Japan and South Korea, along with new programs in Latin American and African countries. With the addition of China’s MTI programs, Kim estimated (2013) that the total number of translation and interpreting programs in the world, by the time of her writing, should be over 600. In addition to the traditional degree and certificate programs at the undergraduate and graduate level, there has been an explosive growth in nondegree programs and courses as well as in online programs. Along with the increase in program numbers, there also have been organized efforts to share best practices and improve the quality of teaching. These major developments in the past decade have basically changed the landscape of interpreter education.
