Translation and AI

Weekly sessions | 2pm - 3:30pm | 10 May - 12 July 2024

This course has now ended. However, we are rerunning the course again, starting in October. To book please follow this link.

A ten-part course presented by The University of Surrey, Centre for Translation Studies.

Cut through the hype and counter the pessimism. Develop a fresh perspective on the use of AI in translation, and learn strategies to manage its impact on translation business models.

Following their recent AI webinars, The University of Surrey, Centre for Translation Studies is now offering this in-depth course, addressing the key themes that translators need to understand in order to make AI a powerful tool in their work.

It aims to provide answers to common questions about AI in translation, empower translators to find their own answers to questions, and enable you to use AI proficiently and effectively.

The course has five modules, each comprising two, ninety-minute sessions.

Module 1

10 & 17 May 2024 | 2pm - 3:30pm BST

Introduction to AI and LLMs

Introduction to the main concepts in AI
Explanation of what LLMs are and how they can be used
Demonstration of using LLMs to prepare translation assignments, by extracting terms from source texts and translating them into the target language
Discussion on how to optimise LLM prompting as support for translators.

Module 2

24 & 31 May 2024 | 2pm - 3:30pm BST

Management of risk of AI in translation

Professional translation as risk management
Risk in the use of AI by clients and professional translators
Presentation of use cases that highlight difficult-to-identify risks
Presentation of strategies to minimise and control risk for professional translators
Discussion on ways of adapting AI to the purposes of translators.

Module 3

07 & 14 June 2024 | 2pm - 3:30pm BST

Creativity and AI

Presentation of creativity as a fundamental competence for translators
Discussion on the presence of creativity in AI outputs
Test and demonstration of applications of AI writing tools
Suggestions for using AI to support the work of translators.

Module 4

21 & 28 June 2024 | 2pm - 3:30pm BST

Neural Machine Translation

Opening the black box of NMT as the main AI tool used by translators
Explaining NMT as a mathematical process applied to language data
Demonstration of methods for using NMT as a tool for translators
Discussion of methods for, and alternatives to, using NMT in translation.

Module 5

05 & 12 July 2024 | 2pm - 3:30pm BST

Impact of AI on translation as a profession

Critical appreciation of the influence of AI on the translation business
Discussion of the reliability of AI-related sources of information in translation
Discussion of different business models in translation and their resilience to AI
Discussion of strategies to offer translation services as management of risk in the use of AI
Presentation of strategies for translators to work and communicate as AI experts.

At the end of each session there will be a short quiz to help you assess your understanding, plus suggested reading materials, to complement the session and deepen your knowledge.

There will also be a post-course assignment based on a translation task involving AI tools. This is designed to help you analyse the usefulness of AI translation tools and to reflect on how your view of AI in translation alters over the duration of the course. The assignment will be marked by the tutors and individual feedback provided.

By completing the course, you will be able to:

Understand the main concepts related to AI, Large Language Models (LLMs) and Neural Machine Translation
Recognise different applications and uses of AI tools in translation
Identify processes that reduce the risk of using language AI
Acknowledge the role that creativity plays in AI and translation
Understand the impact of AI on translation business models
Develop strategies to manage the impact of AI on translation business models, reducing risk and promoting value for clients
Develop a fresh perspective on the use of AI in translation.

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