About us

History

The Department of Translation and Interpretation Studies was established in 1997. Until that time there was no degree programme or special training for interpreters or translators in Lithuania. Interpreting and translation services were provided by individuals that had mastered foreign languages well, but had no special professional training in translation or interpreting. With the establishment of the Department of Translation and Interpretation Studies, Vilnius University began offering master’s degree programmes and professional studies in interpreting and translation.  

The development of individual study programmes for master’s degrees and professional studies in interpreting and translation was a task of utmost importance. Due to the structure of traditional bachelor’s and master’s degree programmes in foreign languages, these programmes were not able to offer a sufficient number of academic hours devoted to translation theory and practice or on specific applied aspects of translation and interpreting. Efforts were then made to build a team of researchers and faculty members teaching languages at departments within the Faculty of Philology and involved in research dealing with the study of translation and interpreting, as well as the application of it in practice.     

Professional translators and interpreters are currently trained in line with master's degree and special professional study programmes that are harmonised with respective training programmes of institutions training translators and interpreters in the European Union and in line with respective qualification and quality requirements, by taking into consideration the demand and career prospects for interpreters and translators at EU institutions and in the Lithuanian labour market.   

The Directorate General for Interpretation of the European Commission (SCIC) has officially recognised the Department of Translation and Interpretation Studies to be the only training centre in Lithuania training conference interpreters in line with the professional requirements set for EU interpreters.

In 2012 we started offering BA in Translation with the aim of empowering BA students with solid basics in theory and practice of translation by encouraging them to develop interlingual competence.

The first foreign language used in Translation BA is English, while the second language rotates every year between French, Italian, German and Spanish. Other languages are offered as well. For example, for the 2021 admission we also offer Norvegian, Latvian and LIthuanian Sign Language.