Impact of Dual Specialisation on Students’ Competence

This paper describes the structure of the translation and interpreting programme of the University of Rwanda at the undergraduate level. By analysing theoretical and practical components underlying the two disciplines involved, secondary data from different scholars depict the competencies that are expected from a well-trained translator and interpreter. Though training in the two areas have some aspects in common such as linguistic, intercultural, technological competencies, etc., translator trainees need to acquire advanced skills in textual analysis and writing. On the other hand, apart from listening and speaking skills, the trainee interpreters are required to develop, at a very high level, their speech analysis skills, their memory, and their rhetorical skills. The results in this paper prove that all these competencies that are too exerting on each of the two sides cannot be fully developed in a dual specialisation programme like that of the University of Rwanda, in which trainees major at the same time in translation and interpreting. As shown by the data collected from different respondents, this approach impacts negatively on the trainees’ performance in both disciplines, and produces – trainees who have not reached an optimum level of competence. As a solution to this crucial problem, the paper recommends tt a fundamental shift in the programme by redesign it to give more space to each of the two areas of specialisation.