The purpose of this empirical study is to evaluate the curricula and pedagogical approaches of undergraduate translator training programmes, to improve training and prepare students adequately for the dynamics of the evolving professional translation market, particularly in Saudi Arabia and for the Arabic-English language pair and to suggest remedies for the current weaknesses. This study employs a mixed methods approach. A survey is conducted among Saudi students and translation instructors. Professional translators, translation instructors and students about to graduate are also interviewed.
The results show that the objectives of the courses are ill-designed, the materials used are irrelevant to the translation courses, there is a lack of training in the translation courses, and the duration of the courses is insufficient. The results also indicate that the majority of translation instructors do not have a degree in translation, but are mostly bilingual academics who use old teaching methods. The results reveal that most participating students perceive there to be a dearth of translation labs, machine translation, translation software, print media, and audio and visual materials in universities. In addition, the findings show insufficient utilisation and adoption of technology and learning resources in translator training programmes. The most obvious finding to emerge from the analysis is that there is a huge gap between academic training and the requirements of the Saudi translation market.
It is suggested that the course objectives, teaching materials, and approaches of a translation course should be more carefully selected. It is also recommended that Saudi universities not only acquire technologies and learning resources, but also recruit motivating instructors who can use these tools in translation instruction. Translator training programmes also need to be constructed to meet Saudi translation market demands.
