Now I hope to share my application experience and give you some reference.
I believe most of my friends know which universities in Britain have better interpretation, so I won't go into details here. I have always heard that British schools are first come, first served, so I plan to submit materials as soon as the school starts in September. Therefore, there is not much time left for me to take the IELTS test.
The first IELTS test was almost naked, and the time was 2065438+July 2005. The total score is only 7, oral English is only 6.5, and writing is only 6. I was really nervous that day. I haven't spoken face to face with foreigners for many years, and another thing is the exam. When I leave the examination room, I want to find a crack in the ground. My grammar is wrong, my collocation is wrong and my logic is unclear. . . . . . There are too many questions. I think it's good to get 5 points, but it turns out that the examiner is still very kind.
The second IELTS test, ten months later, 2065438+May 2006. In the meantime, I have three classes a week, and Taobao found a sparring teacher because the price is very favorable. From Jian 4 to Jian 10, it's basically a routine assessment. I started reading The Guardian and occasionally The Economist (at that time, I found it difficult and IELTS reading was too easy to understand), but I didn't do much writing practice. Just in March, my friend introduced me to a Canadian teacher, saying that he was a pre-IELTS examiner, which was very good and not expensive (this is the key point), so I took classes with him for two months, twice a week. After he finished my test, he said, you can get about 6.5 now, at most 7. Your biggest problem is the speed of speech. So the speed devil training camp began. During that time, I always trembled with nervousness before attending his class. The class is fast-paced and the criticism is direct. Speak slowly and start over! The answer is illogical, start again! Stop and start again! I've been practicing like this. During that time, my state was walking, driving and taking a shower. Basically, besides sleeping and eating, I have been speaking English in my mouth, and I feel a little possessed. What he asked me was that the examiner should start answering questions immediately after asking them, and should not stop just because he was thinking.
On the eve of the exam, in class, I almost had a feeling of answering questions, and even once I heard him smile with satisfaction. That time, during the exam, I deliberately slowed down my speech a little to give myself more time to think. After the oral exam, my feeling was that I had a good chat with a foreign friend, and nothing else. The final total score is 7.5, oral English is 8, and writing is still only 6.
When I saw the six, I lost half my confidence and knew I was going to peel the skin again. In fact, I'm not afraid to study hard, but I just suffer from lack of time: I work 7 or 8 hours a day, and it's 7 o'clock when I get home in traffic jam. It's past 8 o'clock when I have dinner and talk with my children's families. The last oral class is 9: 10. Only after my children go to bed do I have time to practice writing. First find a topic, collect materials, opinions and expressions, then start writing, and then modify it, usually after 12 pm, and sometimes 1 pm. Sleep well, the cerebral cortex is very excited. In addition, I plan to start applying in September, and then get qualified IELTS scores in August at the latest. The whole person was anxious at first, but I had to bite the bullet and prepare.
The third IELTS test is in July. After two months of writing practice, I personally feel that writing is difficult to improve because I can't find a good teacher. During the period, I tried to attend more than 800 hours of classes in New Oriental, and there were more than 8,000 writing classes, only a few classes. I don't want to spend this money. So I found a foreigner on the internet to help me correct it, but it is hard to say that writing can teach you how to write at once. Others pointed out mistakes or inappropriate places. It is really difficult to notice all these details in such a tense time of IELTS writing. I feel really tired after the IELTS test in the third battle. I sent a message from Weibo saying that no matter what the result is, I can give my 16-year-old self an explanation. I have tried my best. I believe everyone is familiar with the tossing and tiredness of IELTS. Although I said it in Weibo, I guess I will take the exam again if I really fail. This writing is up to standard, 6.5. Suddenly I lost my interest and courage to brush another 7 or 8 points, and immediately bid farewell to the roast duck. The final total score is 7.5, oral 7.5 and writing 6.5.
Then there is the application process, and everyone is familiar with it. I submitted all the application materials in early September. Bath started late, but I submitted it as soon as it started, so I received the recording assessment and written notice in advance. When I went to the written test and interview, I saw that I was the first. You can refer to this as soon as possible.
At present, I have received admission notices from Newcastle (conditional admission, depending on the interview, I will decide whether to study for one year or two years), Westminster (unconditional), Surrey (unconditional) and Bath (conditional, provided that a deposit of 250 pounds is paid). (According to the time of receiving the offer, it has nothing to do with the school ranking).
Manda's composition was less than 7 points and was directly rejected.
Newcastle
Newcastle made a direct conditional offer. I was very excited when I first received the offer, but I knew that if it was a two-year project, I would definitely not read it because I couldn't afford it. Soon after, I received an email asking to confirm the interview time. I arranged the time after bath's interview, which was in February.
Westminster
E-mail me the translation test first, there is a time limit. That was the first time I received the test, so I made careful adjustments and sent it out. When I went to bed at night, I suddenly remembered a sentence that was well expressed, so I wrote to the school to ask the original sentence to be invalid and resubmit the answer (I am really a little perfectionist about translation, very tired, and have a bad habit, because Bass almost didn't finish it when he took an hour's written test). The school is good, because it is still within the prescribed time. The interview is a five-minute retelling, which was read by Mr. Fu Bing himself. I don't speak fast and my memory is far worse than that of me in my twenties, so I didn't repeat it very well, but I passed it. I think many friends in the interpretation team passed, so it shouldn't be difficult. Two weeks later, an unconditional proposal was made.
Surrey county
Surrey's written test time is limited to three hours, and the content is only translated into Chinese. If the paragraphs are different, it is not difficult. The interview is easier. A little girl younger than me gave me an interview and asked me a few simple questions, which did not involve the examination of professional ability. A few days later, I received an unconditional admission notice.
Finally, buzz
At first, I wanted to apply to study as an interpreter abroad, but at that time, I thought it was an extremely distant dream. However, the reason why dreams are pleasant is to let imagination fly freely with wings. Of course, I thought about Monterrey before, but first, I have to study for two years, so I will be separated from my children for a longer time, and second, the tuition fee has doubled, which I can't afford. As for the senior high school entrance examination in Paris, I vaguely remember that I need to know French, so I didn't directly consider it, so Bath became my first choice, in fact, it was my only choice.
Bath's assessment is the longest and most rigorous. But I like its self-confidence, and Bath gave me very detailed comments and guidance on my interview, which proves that it is also very attentive to the cultivation of students, which is not available in the offer school.
This year's program is a little different from usual. There was no translation in the first round. I guess Bass wanted to see the students' real level and the speed of translation. There are only two recordings in the first round, which can be transmitted at the same time or handed in, and also sent back within 48 hours. After listening to the recording, I wrote down every word (yes, I wrote it down, not as high as an English major, and I didn't dare to take risks at every step), and then translated, revised and revised it. Sony's tape recorder for recording (seriously recommended, easy to use, high definition, disadvantages: swallowing and breathing can be heard. . . ), from afternoon to evening, I am not familiar with the previous manuscript, which is a bit difficult to say. I started again. In the final version, my voice is hoarse, but there is no better choice.
The recording was returned in less than 48 hours. Many students are struggling with simultaneous interpretation or cross-interpretation. In my opinion, each has its own advantages, depending on your personal preference. In fact, the simultaneous interpretation version I recorded can make my voice clearer, and if my pronunciation is good, it can show my advantages. But I like the simultaneous interpretation version, and I am very excited when I listen to it. I imagine that I can be heard by others one day. I have imagined countless conference translation scenes (50,000 words are omitted here:).
Two weeks after the recording was sent, I received a written notice, informing me in an email that if I passed the translation, there would be an interview. The specific time will be announced later.
The interview is in three months. Although I am very grateful to Bass for giving me this time to prepare, I really don't know how to prepare for an undergraduate non-English major, and I can't find anyone to guide me, except a few experiences shared online. Although I don't know how to practice and how useful it is, I have no other choice. One is to do film reading. I have no special time. I practice while driving. The second is to practice visual translation. The textbook is MTI's little red book, but I didn't read and practice it for the first time until a few days before the interview. I can only say that I have mastered the basic principles of visual translation and made a little contact. Third, a lot of extensive reading, but unfortunately there is no time to do intensive reading and accumulate authentic expressions. The Economist and the Financial Times read a lot, as well as the scallop news (used to practice visual translation and see the translation effect of others). In addition, I have also done some special studies, such as the causes and development of the situation in the Middle East and its impact on China, the strategic significance of the Belt and Road Initiative, and the current progress. , are all hot topics of current affairs that I estimate may be asked. But I just read in general and didn't accumulate special expressions. It's a pity.
The written test is held in the British Consulate General in Shanghai, one hour, two articles, not too long, but there is not much time for you to hesitate. I had a perfectionist attack. At first, I tried to unify the subtitle of each paragraph into a style. As a result, I finally found out that I think too much and write whatever comes to mind. It took me 40 minutes to translate from Chinese to English (about 10 minutes was wasted), so that I could only do it in English. I always feel that the meaning of the last sentence is not fully understood. When the time came, I managed to write a sentence and revised it three times. The surface of the paper was too scrawled (once again, Beth was really tolerant, which Jean did). Jean gave me a special nudge to see if I could understand its true meaning. What's even more maddening is that after I stopped writing, I just glanced at it-typo! I wrote "Si" as "full stop", so I have to change it quickly. I'm in a hurry, and I don't know how many mistakes I made that made me feel ashamed. . . Besides, I'm really going to burst into tears. Buzz is really too tolerant of me. . .
The next day's interview, I was at 9: 50, the second. As a result, after I went, I met my little sister who sat next to me the day before. She booked a plane ticket to come back that day, and the time was wrong, so Sophie transferred her to me, so I became the third interviewer. Boy, what should I do with the extra fifty minutes? I will tell myself one thing-never use it to be nervous. I asked for a glass of water first, took out the Financial Times and began to read. Time flies.
The whole interview lasted for an hour, and consisted of three parts: self-introduction, visual translation and question-and-answer session (although it felt like free conversation, the questions I asked were quite targeted, mainly based on your own situation and why I translated it like this).
First of all, I introduced myself. Jean wants to be brief, and everyone is very familiar with what everyone will say. Then Miguel gave me the topic of sustainable development and asked for 2-3 minutes. My performance in this link can be described as embarrassment. In fact, I have a lot of ideas about this topic, but I have not been able to organize them effectively. I also read some new energy data and examples, but I was so nervous that I forgot what the problem was. . . .
Nonsense. Then the trial translation. Chinese translation is facial recognition software, and Chinese translation is a textbook revised by the Ministry of Education. The eight-year war of resistance was changed to fourteen-year war of resistance. Miguel specifically asked me why I translated local wars and total wars like that, or should I examine the students' background knowledge and thinking angle. Then there is small talk.
Jean asked me what to do if I went to school and found that everyone else was younger than me. Miguel said that a large part of the translators they trained worked in government agencies after graduation. What will happen if I return to work in the government after I finish my studies? In the middle, I explained to them why I want to study now, my wish.
Seriously, I know that many candidates will be better than me, more professional and harder than me. In addition to my major, I personally feel that Bath University will also examine the potential of applicants (potential is what I use to comfort my imperfect performance) and my love for interpretation.
Finally, I hope all friends who have great enthusiasm for interpretation and are willing to study and work hard all their lives will be admitted to their favorite schools as they wish.
See you in the future simultaneous interpretation box