NATIONAL ECONOMICS UNIVERSITY

FACULTY OF FOREIGN LANGUAGES

ENGLISH FOR BUSINESS DEPARTMENT

GENERAL INTERNSHIP REPORT ON TRANSLATION IN FACULTY

OF FOREIGN LANGUAGES AT NATIONAL ECONOMICS
UNIVERSITY

Internship student Nguyen Thi Thanh Thanh

Student ID 13171028
Intake 58
Instructor Mrs. Le Thuy Linh

Hanoi, November 2020

TABLE OF CONTENTS
1. Overview of National Economics University..............................................1
2. Overview of. Faculty of Foreign Languages...............................................2
2.1. Main departments.....................................................................................3
2.1.1. Department of Vietnamese and language theory................................3
2.1.2. Department of Non-professional foreign language.............................3
2.1.3. Department of Business English.........................................................4
2.1. Career opportunities after graduation....................................................4
3. Role of teaching and learning English at universities in Vietnam and in
National Economics University..........................................................................5
4. Role of training and learning translation and interpretation in other
universities and in National Economics University..........................................7
4.1. Translation and interpretation training at other universities................8
4.2. Translation and interpretation training at National Economics
University.......................................................................................................10
4.2.1. Overview of three modules of translation........................................10
4.2.2. Overview of three modules of interpretation...................................12
6. Translation internship orientation for students of Business English
Major.................................................................................................................. 14
7. Evaluation of my translation internship experience................................16
7.1. Assignments during internship...........................................................16
7.2. Difficulties and valuable experiences..................................................16
APPENDIX.........................................................................................................18
 1. Overview of National Economics University
National Economics University is one of the most reputable public
research universities in Hanoi, Vietnam. Founded in 1956, National Economics
University has always been among the top of the leading universities in
Economics, Public Administration and Business Administration in Vietnam.

National Economics is now charging a network of more than 40

universities in Vietnam in the same fields. Since establishment, the university has
received numerous prestigious awards from the Vietnamese and Lao
governments, granted Bachelor’s degrees to more than 100,000 students,
Master’s degrees to 10,000 students and PhD degrees to 1400 students.

Throughout 60 years of development, National Economics University has

maintained the position as:

- One of the largest centers for economic management and business

administration in Vietnam. Besides training programs for bachelors,
masters and doctoral degrees, National Economics University also provide
short-term professional programs in economic management, business
administration and economic staff in the scope of nation. Up to now the
university has been training a lot of excellent generations of economic
staff, many of which are holding crucial positions in large units, including
governmental organizations.

- A prestigious center for economic research for training, making socio-

economic policies of the Party, Government, sectors, regions and business
strategies of entrepreneurs. Furthermore, the University has conducted
major economic and commercial research works in Vietnam and directly
receive critical and dominant research topics from the Government.
Internationally, the university has collaborated with other universities and
institutes for more researches.

- A consulting center in economics, business and management. The

university has had considerable contribution to consulting with central and
local organizations and enterprises.

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 National Economics University has had collaborations in training and
researching with various famous foreign universities and institutes from countries
comprising Russia, China, Bulgaria, Poland, Britain, France, America, Australia,
Japan ... Especially, the university receives sponsorships from other countries and
international organizations such as SIDA (Sweden), UNFPA, CIDA (Canada),
JICA (Japan), Dutch government, ODA ( The United Kingdom), UNDP, World
Bank, Ford Foundation (USA), Hanns Seidel (Germany) … to conduct
researches, develop training programs and open master training courses in
economics, management and business administration… Parallel, the university
has collaboration with other oversea companies in training, researching and
providing scholarship for students.

Setting a goal to become one of the most modern universities with

international standards teaching quality in 2020, National Economics
Universities has upgraded classrooms, equiped with modern teaching aids,
written and published textbooks and references, developed information systems
for training and research, replace and upgraded facilities to create the best
environment for students’ and lecturers’ studies.

In the context of integration and globalization, English is a decisive factor

for economists and entrepreneurs to access global knowledge and penetrate
international markets. Considering foreign language skills are indispensable keys
of students, as a leading economics university in Vietnam, National Economics
University made decision to the official formation of The Economic Foreign
Language Center in 2003 – precursor of current Faculty of Foreign Languages
carrying the mission to provide English skills to students and train English
Bachelors with both great English ability and sustainable economic background

2. Overview of. Faculty of Foreign Languages

Faculty of Foreign Language is an essential department in the
development of National Economics University in these years. Faculty of
Foreign Languages has always been accompanying students in the way to
develop further in the context of globalization with a key: Foreign languages

Founded in 2003, formerly known as The Economic Foreign Language

Center of NEU, Faculty of Foreign Languages is the only department in National
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Economics University providing students with linguistic knowledge and
intensive training in foreign languages, focused mainly on English to support
studying and career development.

With the experience of nearly 20 years in training English, Faculty of

Foreign Languages has been through considerable growth and gained great
achievements. Since 2012, it has been in charge of the Business English Exams
(BEC) at all three levels, English for Law and English for Finance. In 2014,
Faculty of Foreign Languages was the representative of National Economics
University and signed a Memorandum of Agreement between the British Council
Vietnam and the National Economics University on becoming a partner to sign
up for the official IELTS test of the British Council.

Not only trains students with advanced English ability, Faculty of Foreign
Languages also provides with economics and business administration subjects,
which broadens its students’ career opportunities with “English Language” as the
main major and “Business Administration” as the sub major. In addition, they
develop in a professional environment where English is used most of the
studying process, therefore, Bachelors are capable of using English as one of soft
skills in business activities. Because of the good background to both English and
economics, students after graduation are able to work in various fields including
tourism, education, business, logistics, marketing… in both domestic and
international markets.

2.1. Main departments

There are 3 main core parts in Faculty of Foreign Languages which are:

2.1.1. Department of Vietnamese and language theory

This department is in charge of teaching subject to students from Business

English, foreign students, students from Faculty of Tourism and Law and
students from IBD.

2.1.2. Department of Non-professional foreign language

The students this department focuses on are the one from other faculties in
National Economics University. They will take a course including 3 modules

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(equivalent to 9 credits). All these three modules are English for Specific
Purposes (ESP) at three different levels.

In modules 1 and 2, students will learn English in Business

Communication, Pre Inter 1 and Pre Inter 2. In module 3, they will learn
Economics and Business English, Intermediate level 1.

All students have to accumulate and complete all these three modules
before graduation.

2.1.3. Department of Business English

The training goal of this department is to help students be capable to work

in sectors in socio-economic fields where English communication is required.
Learners must master general knowledge Marxism-Leninism, Ho Chi Minh
Ideology and other subjects as the background for training ethical political
qualities and professional capacity in the future. Students must master basic
knowledge about aspects of language, English, Vietnamese and cultures of
English-speaking countries (Britain and American) and Vietnamese culture as
well. After completing the course, scholars’ English ability levels must be
equivalent to the C-CAE level of Cambridge University (the UK) or 550 points
in TOEFL of EST (USA) to support career purposes and studying. Students must
be proficient in translation and interpretation skills and apply effectively in work.
Beside, basic knowledge about business administration and business English for
other purposes. Furthermore, soft skills such as presentation, negotiation,
network, sharing, management and self-study skills are improved as well.

2.1. Career opportunities after graduation

The areas in which a Bachelor of Business English can work in widely
range from journalism to education, marketing, translation and governmental
organizations.

Journalism includes branch industries such as television, newspapers,

advertising or public relations. A Bachelor of Business English are totally
capable of working in any branch of journalism since this sector requires good

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communication and writing skills to excellently convey messages. With the
background of language, English majors are totally suitable for this job.

It is also easy for English majors to become a teacher with a certification.

The English background attracts employers’ attention and bring more job
opportunities. Graduates can work in English centers or work as an English
teacher in schools.
The major of Business English is translation and interpretation, therefore,
this is a potential environment for them to continue their translation and
interpretation training. With integration trend, translation and interpretation
requires a huge amount of human resource, hence, the opportunities are plenty.

Because of the globalization, English has gradually become a compulsory

skills in many fields including marketing, communication and governmental
jobs. As a result, students of English can easily take the chance to develop
themselves in those areas.

3. Role of teaching and learning English at universities in Vietnam

and in National Economics University
With the ever-growing levels of interconnectivity and globalization
around the world, the significance of immediate and appropriate models of
communication has been increasing very rapidly in this modern world. It is an
undeniable fact that there is a need for a common language to communicate with
the present growing commerce and trade between companies from all over the
world. With the development of information as well as globalization, it is evident
that most people all over the world are communicating with the people of other
regions in only one internationally recognized language, that is, English. English
is the language that is almost used between an agent and an international
company. English, being the first world language, is said to be the first global
lingua franca and it is the most widely used language in the world in international
trade, diplomacy, mass entertainment, international telecommunications and
scientific publications as well as publishing newspaper and other books.

As English is a lingua franca, most of the native and non-native speakers

of English as their mode of communication in their business matters or business
organizations. English has become the fastest increasing language in this modern
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world and it occupies the status of a commercial language by connecting the East
and the West and the North and the South. English language is spread all over the
world into almost all the fields such as science, engineering and technology,
medicine, trade and commerce, scientific research, education, tourism, internet,
banking, business, advertising, film industry, transportation, pharmacy and to
name a few. The number of people who have learned English as a second
language has significantly increased with the number up to 1.27 billion speakers,
among which are people from 50 countries where English is considered as an
official language and the ones from other 100 countries where English is
considered as a second language. In the context of globalization, the use of
English is growing county-by-country internally and for international
communication. Currently, a majority of positions in Vietnam require certain
levels of English depending upon the markets they target to. English certificates
give employees more opportunities of promotion and increase of wage such as
tourism, business, trade, transportation, technology and etc. With the direction of
international integration, learning English in Vietnam has been strongly
encouraged and received the attraction of a large number of students besides
universities’ concentration on teaching English.

After Vietnam opened its door to reintegrate to the world in 1986, under
the impact of globalization and internationalization in higher education,
considering the predominant role of English, many universities in Vietnam have
brought English as a compulsory subject in their syllabuses. Considering the
urgency of teaching and learning English, National Economics University
provided English course as a compulsory subjects to students. Do not stop at
teaching general English, National Economics University focuses on training
specialized English to help students have a better background of economics and
English. Therefore, the roles of teaching and learning English in National
Economics are supportive to each other.

As an English teacher, lecturer should be a motivator for students. English

for Professional Purposes taught in universities must be extremely challenging
for those without English background and major background. Hence teachers
now are responsible for encouraging students to overcome difficulties and
helping them to improve. Furthermore, English teachers should be authority
information providers. Since knowledge gained at university is not from books
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only but real cases, English lecturers have a mission to help them with learning
activities and self-development, which requires teachers to have good knowledge
about language and majors. Most importantly, English teachers are the
connection between students and international environment. Through teaching
English for Professional Purposes, teachers have to accurately reflect differences
in working culture of countries as well as the rules and etiquettes that are
noticeable when working in international environment. Therefore, being an
English lecturer in National Economics University is really a challenging task.

However, training English does not stop at teachers’ attempt but also from
students’ collaboration. To effectively obtain knowledge taught by teachers,
students must develop their self-studying spirit which help them a lot in their
future career because to a student of National Economics University, English has
a crucial role. English helps them integrate with the world to help them update
economic trend and situation, serving their learning major subjects. Moreover,
English gives them opportunities to experience international learning
environment to obtain global knowledge. Lastly, English connects them with
ideal job since English now is an advantage for candidates to be hired in this
globalization trend. Therefore, learning English for Professional Purposes is one
of the decisive factors that is responsible for students’ success in the future. This
require a lot of efforts not only from universities but also mainly from students.

4. Role of training and learning translation and interpretation in

other universities and in National Economics University
Translation appeared to have an important role with the demand of cultural and
global exchange since thousands years ago but it just has been added as an
official training course in universities for recent years. The role of translation is
undeniable. It appeared thousand years ago with the mission of contributing the
world, motivating knowledge discovery, enhancing human life as a mean for
communicating and interacting among cultures and regions. In the context of
integration and globalization, translators are higher required in terms of accuracy
and speed. Because of the dramatic development of technology, there are many
technology are applied to translation to meet the strict needs of people. Back to
thousand years ago, translation mainly used in publication, nowadays it also
serves in business sector and hold a vital role to enterprises’ development due to
determination of international collaboration and oversea expansion. Therefore,
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translation training and learning are the important key to become a professional
translator even though it has just been recognized since 20th century. Translation
training is oriented toward producing qualified and highly competent translators
by providing them with different skills, knowledge and tools required by
different translating professions.
4.1. Translation and interpretation training at other
universities
Universities in Vietnam also pay attention to training translation and
interpretation. Although they have the same purpose, training process still differ
a little from each other. I would like to make comparison in translation trainings
between the group of universities which are well-known for specializing foreign
languages and the group of universities whose specialization are not foreign
languages.

These universities share the same purpose in training Bachelors in terms

of knowledge, skills and foreign languages. Students after graduation must assure
to have wide professional knowledge and job skills in translation, interpretation,
teaching, researching, etc as well as proficiently apply them in work. To skills,
they have developed:
- Abilities to analyze, debate, evaluate and explain layers of meanings
conveyed through texts, select and aggregate information, organize and
present ideas logically;
- Capacity of advanced knowledge about rules of grammar, text and
pragmatics;
- Knowledge about translation skills and abilities to use language creatively
and accurately;
- Capacity of conducting science researches;
- Skills and techniques to analyze documents in English;
- Abilities to build relationships, interaction and empathy and give support to
co-workers in international environment.
Plus, they are able to use both English and another required foreign language
effectively.

All students go through a 4-year course, equivalently to 8 semesters. In the

first and second years, learners study general subjects before they start
specialized subjects. Parallel with translation and interpretation practice, they are
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introduced with modules in which they explore more about Vietnamese and other
cultures, and learn more about grammar, sentences structure and vocabulary in
both English and Vietnamese. These modules are background knowledge that
give them great support for practicing translation and interpretation. The number
of general subjects may increase or decrease due to the universities’ training
purposes and what kind of degree they will receive over the graduation.

Normally, students of English Major will practice translation and

interpretation in specialized subjects when they are in the third year. From now
on, there are differences in training process among universities. The Foreign-
language specialized universities provide a more methodical translation training.
Students primarily acquire knowledge about language through linguistics
subjects in which sentence structures, words and meaning are analyzed in detail.
After that, they are introduced with theories of translation and interpretation
before practicing them in the next modules. For example, at Hanoi University,
students have to take some credits for 2 subjects: Comparative Linguistics and
Introductory of Translation and Interpretation besides other supporting subjects
such as English-speaking countries’ literature, social linguistics and pragmatics.
Therefore, after graduation, they can take positions in the fields of translation,
education, tourism, communication, journalism, etc.

In contrast, universities of other areas like economics or technology have a

different training method with the aim of producing translators who are
specialized in one area. Students are provided with general knowledge about
those fields to help to understand meanings and convey them in the target
language better. They also learn linguistics and improve abilities to analyze
words and sentence structures. Instead of learning translation theories, students
start to practice translation and gradually enhance relevant skills. Take Foreign
Trade University as an example, supplementary subjects including Logistics,
International Payments, Laws on International Business, International Economic
Relationship, Insurance in Business take a major part in students’ study program.
FPT University and National Economics University share some similarities of
this method. Bachelors with specialized translation training have more
opportunities in choosing their career path. In addition to aforementioned
positions, these students are capable of working as a marketer, manager or
entrepreneur.
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 4.2. Translation and interpretation training at National
Economics University.
Students of Business English major are taught a wide range of subjects related to
economics and linguistics, among which, translation and interpretation are the
ones that provide a large amount of knowledge in different areas. Throughout 15
weeks for each module, students’ vocabulary and ability to translate between
English and Vietnamese will be enhanced.
4.2.1. Overview of three modules of translation
4.2.1.1. Translation 1
In this first module, students are introduced to technical translation
practices and basic translation skills. Afterwards, students can proficiently apply
gained skills in translation practices.

By the end of the course, students will be able to

 Process and translate short texts of 150-200 words in 3-5 connected
paragraphs.
 Process and translate texts of general life contents, using different
meanings and combinations of words and phrases to have the best
equivalent version in the target language.
 Select the right words in terms of forms, meanings, structural
combinations, collocations, rhetorical strategies, etc, when translating
texts.
 Alternate structures between original and target languages when
translating texts to ensure the best equivalence and the original meaning.

4.2.1.2. Translation 2
Translation 2 aims at enhancing students’ skills of translating more
professional documents related to economics, management and business. The
course contents are parallel and compatible with those of the course
Interpretation 2.

The course provides more practice of translation of formal and complete

texts which requires applications of achievements from Translation 1 and general
knowledge about economics to professional translation.

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 By the end of the course, students will be able to: 
 Process and translate full texts of 400-500 words taken from public media
sources, whose topics vary with economics, business administration,
marketing, human resource management, financial management,
accounting, international business and trade, investment, etc.
 Select the right words and terminology in terms of forms, meanings,
styles, rhetorical strategies, etc, when translating texts of different sources
and contexts.
 Alternate structures between original and target languages when
translating texts to ensure the best equivalence and the original meaning.

4.2.1.3. Translation 3
This course is designed to advance students further practice with
professional activities of translation and enhance their skills of translating more
professional documents in the fields of economics, management and business. 

By the end of the course, students will be able to

 Process and translate full texts of 700- 1000 words taken from formal
sources, whose topics vary with economics, business administration,
marketing, human resource management, financial management,
accounting, international business and trade, investment, etc.
 Summarize main points, translate main ideas in their logical connection
with other sub- points as well as levels of structures in the source texts.
 Select right terminology and expressions in terms of forms, meanings,
styles, rhetorical strategies, etc when translating texts of different sources
and contexts, including research reports, business reports, contracts or
bidding profiles, etc

4.2.1.4. Difficulties and achievements students may

encounter during translation modules:
Difficulties
 The limited vocabulary both in English and Vietnamese makes students
regularly find difficulties in finding equivalent meaning and choosing the
right words to express the meaning of the texts.
 They lack background knowledge in different fields which leads to not
understanding or misunderstanding the ideas or meanings of the texts.
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  Students are not really able to employ the process of 5 steps of translation
in work, thus they translate texts word by word, which makes the texts
unnatural in target language.

Achievements:
 Their vocabularies as well as their knowledge in many sectors have been
significantly improved. 
 Students have been practiced translation techniques and improved their
skills of analyzing texts, re-structuring sentences, summarizing main ideas
and selecting suitable words to convey meanings.

4.2.2. Overview of three modules of interpretation

4.2.2.1. Interpretation 1
In the first course of interpretation, students will be introduced to
professional interpretation activities and primary lessons of interpretation.

The course aims at training students to apply the process of interpretation

through steps: listening, analyzing, understanding, finding equivalent expression
in oral form, followed by background knowledge and updated information and
news of daily life to support interpretation training.
By the end of this course, students will be able to:
 Process and orally translate short news broadcasted in 10- 15 minutes.
 Process and orally transfer main points of talks with long sentences with
logical links of ideas within a sentence.
 Employ listening and summarizing skills learnt from previous courses of
EAP, in combination with short hand-writing techniques to support note-
taking and memorizing information wen performing interpretation.

4.2.2.2. Interpretation 2
Interpretation 2 aims at enhancing students’ skills of orally translating
more professional documents related to economics, management and business
which contains a large number of terminology. The course contents are parallel
and compatible with those of the course Translation 2.

The course provides more practice of translation of formal and complete

talks which requires applications of achievements from Interpretation 1,
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Listening skill and general knowledge about economics to professional
interpretation.

By the end of the course:

 Process and interpret talks of 15-20 minutes from public media sources,
whose topics vary with economics, business administration, marketing,
human resource management, accounting, international business and
trade, investment, etc
 Listen to and interpret ides of long piece of news, showing logic links of
ideas within the passage
 Summarize main ideas with the assistance of note-taking

4.2.2.3. Interpretation 3
This course is designed to advance students further practice with
professional activities of interpretation and enhance their skills of orally
translating more professional documents in the fields of economics, management
and business. 

By the end of the course, students will be able to

 Process and interpreting full talks in 3-5 minutes taken from formal
sources, whose topics vary with economics, business administration,
marketing, human resource management, financial management,
international business and trade, investment, etc.
 Summarizing main points, translate main ideas in their logical links with
other sub-points as well as levels of structures in the sources talks.
 Select the right terminology and expressions in terms of forms, meanings,
styles, rhetorical strategies, etc when translating talks of different sources
and context, including business meetings, conferences, negotiations,
lectures, etc.
4.2.2.4. Difficulties and achievements students may
encounter during interpretation modules:
Difficulties:
 Interpretation is a completely new subject to students when they start 
 Students have difficulty in finding main ideas of the talk because of poor
listening skill or/ and speakers accent being too hard to understand.

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  Most students are not familiar with note-taking techniques at high speed,
which requires regular practice, thus they often miss the main keys in the
pieces of news
 The limited vocabulary and background knowledge in sectors again
prevents them from understanding the conveyed meanings and finding
equivalent words in target language.

Achievements:
 Students are equipped with interpretation skills and further understandings
in different sectors.
 Their reaction and linguistically processing speed are enhanced, which
assists them a lot in their future work and common communications.
 Improve note-taking technique and time controlling.

6. Translation internship orientation for students of Business English

Major
English language is a field of linguistic study that helps students have a
better insight into Englsih as well as trains students to use English fluently in
work and life. During the course, students have chances to learn about both
Vietnamese and English language, research on further aspects of these two
language, on the history, people, culture of the nations and ethnic groups in
Vietnam and in English speaking countries.

Additionally, students are equipped with economics knowledge such as

economics, finance, tourism, events, teaching ... to meet the needs of the current
job market.

General education knowledge: Like other faculties, Students of FFL must

study general subjects such as Basic Principles of Marxism-Leninism, Ho Chi
Minh Thought, Physical Education, etc. This course usually requires learning a
second language such as Japanese, French, and basic Chinese.

Language skills: Students hone and perfect the 4 skills of listening,

speaking, reading and writing. There are also other subjects of linguistic
knowledge such as: Phonetics, morphology, grammar ...

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 Specialized education knowledge: Depending on the majors selected, the
subjects in this section are very different. The most common are translators-
interpreters and pedagogy. In addition, there are many other disciplines such as
Business English major that also requires a lot of general economic subjects such
as accounting, marketing, business administration, ...
After graduation, translation is considered as one of the major professions
of English language students. Having good English skills and strong background
knowledge in many fields, students are able to work at the following institutions:

- English translation and interpretation facilities: broadcast, television,

publisher, library, departments, branches, research institutes, airlines,
diplomatic agencies, joint-venture companies with countries In addition,
foreign companies doing business in Vietnam and agencies using English.

- Language, culture and literature research establishments.

- Education and training establishments.

In terms of Knowledge: Students have in-depth knowledge of English

language, culture, society and English-American literature.

In terms of skills:
- Having professional qualifications to operate and work effectively in the
professional field, mainly translating and editing, editing in many fields of
economics, tourism, journalism education and communication. .

- Highly adaptable to be able to undertake work at agencies related to the

economy, as well as agencies with international cooperation in all fields
such as politics and culture. , Socioeconomic…

- Good English communication skills in social situations and other common

professional fields.

- Having effective study skills to be able to self-study in order to further

improve knowledge, ability to practice language, initially formulate

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 thinking and capacity for scientific research on language, cultural issues or
culture - civilization of the English Community countries.

7. Evaluation of my translation internship experience

7.1. Assignments during internship
Thanks to the enthusiastic and guidance of lecturers of Faculty of Foreign
Language and my instructor, Mrs. Le Thuy Linh, I can complete my internship
and gain plenty of valuable knowledge as well as experiences in translation.
Under the instruction of teachers, I have to complete a general internship report
and a research report to the faculty by the given deadline, after that I give a
representation in front of a council before receiving the final result from the
faculty. In addition, I have translated 50 pages of documents from English into
Vietnamese and of another 50 pages of documents from Vietnamese to English
on topics related to translation and interpretation so that I can have more
comprehensive overview on what I need to research as well as the directions to
conduct the survey.

7.2. Difficulties and valuable experiences

Translation is really a challenging subject for students but an interesting
one since it requires a lot factors including knowledge in various sectors and
linguistic ability from translators to complete their work. The more challenging
the text is, the more knowledgeable and skillful students are. Recognizing
achievements gained from this subject, I decided to take my internship in this
major.

After completing 3 modules of translation, I have found out some

outstanding drawbacks in my English knowledge. Firstly, my vocabulary is
relatively limited. This has caused me a lot of difficulties in finding the right
equivalent in the target language and prevented me from convey proficiently the
meaning of the original text. Moreover, the limited vocabulary has made texts in
English very hard for me to understand and identify the main ideas.

Besides, I myself confused in how to deal with grammar and sentences

structure when render from Vietnamese into English and vice versa. Especially
when I am exposed to cultural texts. I find that Vietnamese language used in
cultural description is relatively complicated therefore, to students, process
16
difficult structure and translate them without making mistakes is really
challenging.

However, the internship at Faculty of Foreign Languages of National

Economics University has given valuable lessons and the improvement in my
translation skills. Particularly, I have spent more time to practice translation from
Vietnamese into English and vice versa. Besides, conducting research requires
me to read a large amount of documents in English, which has help to improve
my vocabulary and writing skill. Also, I am able to handle with a majority
grammatical mistakes to convey the meaning in the most accurate way.
According to my personal experience and observation, I have found out
that many students are faced with similar difficulties when they start to learn
translation. Among of them are grammatical and structural issue which have a
huge influence on the meaning in the target language especially when the
translation contain cultural factors. Recognizing the current situation and
consequences, I have decided to conduct a survey on “Grammatical errors in
cultural news translation from vietnamese into english, third-year majors,
national economics university” to find practical suggestions to solve this
problem.

When this research is finished, I really hope that my results will be

effective solutions for students of Faculty of Foreign Languages and provide a
good preparation for future translators. Moreover, I hope suggested solutions will
not be limitedly applied to tourism translation but also in translation of other
sectors.

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 APPENDIX

SYLLABUS FOR TRANSLATION 1

Week 1: Introduction
In the first week, students will learn about translation and the syllabus to
understand what they will do during the semester. 

Week 2: News brief – Local news

Students will learn about the process of 5 steps of translation through practicing
translating briefs of local news which are: reading texts in the source language
(SL)- understanding in SL- finding equivalence in TL- selecting appropriate
words, phrases and structures in TL- rewrite product texts in TL.

Week 3: News brief – Local news

Students focus on learning about language patterns of news reports and how to
employ the skills of understanding word’s meaning in contexts. Also, students
learn about equivalent English words of the name of Vietnamese organizations.

Week 4: News brief – World news

Student learn about sentence structures and collocations in SL through translating
briefs of world news and practice re-structuring while translating it into TL.

Week 5& 6: News on social life

Students continue to learn about typical collocations, idiomatic expressions of
English in different areas as well as their Vietnamese versions through articles of
social life on popular topics such as family, city life, work and study, youth, etc.

Week 7 & 8: News on education

Students learn to analyze long and complex sentences, typical collocations,
idiomatic expressions from articles on topics of schools, educational technology,
learning styles, etc and their Vietnamese equivalences.

Week 9: Midterm test

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Students take the test in 60 minutes, translating paragraphs in both English and
Vietnamese without any aid of dictionary.

Week 10: News on tourism 

Students focus on more complex sentences appearing in news articles on popular
environment issues such as popular destinations, eco-tourism, etc. Therefore,
changing structures to express equivalent meanings is needed.

Week 11: News on leisure and entertainment

Students work with more complex sentences, which requires more analysis of
logical links between ideas to express equivalent meanings more clearly. They
practice translating articles on leisure and entertainment topics, for examples
music, art exhibition, performance, sports, stars, etc.

Week 12: News on culture

Students handle with more challenging issues of understanding different cultures,
thus dealing with values of multi-cultural environment. This may require more
explanation or comparison in translation.

Revision
Students review language/ linguistic issues, skills and techniques involved in
translation.

19
 SYLLABUS FOR TRANSLATION 2
Week 1: Introduction
Similar to Translation 1, in the first week, students get to know the plan and the
work they have to do in this course through the syllabus.

Week 2: Economics
Students practice translating economic documents and learn about new
terminologies, their equivalent meaning and principles to deal with them. 

Week 3: Development economics

Students practice translating texts on development economics and learn about
new terminologies as well as improve the skill of analyzing purposes and context
of the texts.

Week 4: Public management

Students practice translating texts on public management and learn about new
terminologies as well as improve the skill of analyzing purposes and context of
the texts.

Week 5: Business administration

Students practice translating texts on business administration and learn about
new terminologies as well as improve the skill of analyzing purposes and context
of the texts.

Week 6: Human resource management

Students practice translating texts on human resource management and learn
about new terminologies as well as improve the skill of analyzing purposes,
understand main ideas and context of the texts.

Week 7: Marketing
Students practice translating texts on marketing and learn about new
terminologies as well as improve the skill of analyzing purposes, understand
main ideas and context of the texts.

Week 8: Investment

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Students practice translating texts on marketing and learn about new
terminologies as well as improve the skill of analyzing purposes, understand
main ideas and context of the texts.

Week 9: Mid-term test

Students take the test in 60, translating paragraphs from English into Vietnamese
and vice versa without dictionary

Week 10: Tourism

Students practice translating texts on tourism and learn about new terminologies
as well as improve the skill of analyzing purposes, understand main ideas and
context of the texts.

Week 11: Trade: import and export

Students practice translating texts on trade, particularly import and export,
through which they learn about new terminologies and their Vietnamese
equivalent meanings as well as the right words that are suitable for the style and
context of the texts.

Week 12: Banking and finance

Students practice translating texts banking and finance through which they learn
about new terminologies and their Vietnamese equivalent meanings as well as
the right words that are suitable for the style and context of the texts. 

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 SYLLABUS FOR TRANSLATION 3

Week 1: Introduction
In the first week, students get to know the plan and the work they have to do in
this course through the syllabus.

Week 2: Business administration

Students practice translating business reports, through which learn about features
of a business report and popular language patterns of reports in both English and
Vietnamese.

Week 3: Marketing
Students practice translating extracts from textbooks on marketing, through
which learn about new terminology of the fields as well as the formal academic
styles to adjust translated version accordingly.

Week 4: Human resources management

Students practice translating research reports for conference on human resources
management, through which learn about new terminology of the field as well as
the formal language of conference report/ presentation to adjust translated
version accordingly.

Week 5: Financial management

Students practice translating financial reports, through which learn about new
terminology of the fields as well as the features and stylesof business reports to
assist translating.

Week 6: International Business

Students practice translating contracts and articles, through which learn about
style and language of the business contracts as well as the requirements of
consistence and confidentiality in translating contracts.

Week 7: Globalization
Students practice translating articles related to globalization including internal
reports, external analysis and agreement, through which learn about new
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terminology of the fields as well as the requirements of consistence and
confidentiality in translating the documents.

Week 8: Business communication

Students practice translating extracts from textbooks on business communication,
through which learn about new terminology of the field as well as the formal
academic styles.

Week 9: Midterm test

Students take the test in 60 minutes, translating paragraphs in both English and
Vietnamese without dictionary.

Week 10: ICT

Students practice translating on ICT, through which learn about new terminology
of the field of technology as well as the skill of analyzing purposes and context
of the texts.

Week 11: Environment

Students practice translating reports on environment impact assessment, through
which learn about new terminology of the fields as well as the kill of analyzing
types and style of the text.

Week 12: Revision

Students review language/ linguistic issues, skills and techniques involved in
translation.

23
 SYLLABUS FOR INTERPRETATION 1

Week 1: Introduction
In this unit, students will learn about the job of interpretation and their task
during the course through the syllabus. They also are introduced with types of
interpretation so that they can have a comprehensive overview about
opportunities as well as challenges they may confront if they choose it as a career
in the future.

Week 2: News brief – Local news

Students learn the features of news broadcast in parallel with 5-step process of
interpretation: listening to talks in source language – understanding – finding
equivalent in target language – selecting appropriate words, phrases and
structures in target language – producing oral translation work in target language.

Week 3: News brief – Local news

Students learn about language patterns in news reports, learn how to employ the
skills of listening for gist and details, Also, they learn about equivalent English
version of the names of Vietnamese organizations and practice memorizing
techniques.

Week 4: News brief – World news

Students practice interpreting briefs of world news and finding equivalent
Vietnamese version of the names of international organizations. Besides, they get
acquainted with shorthand writing techniques to choose the suitable one.

Week 5 & 6: News on social life

Students practice translating news reports of social life on popular topics such as
family, city life, work and study, youth, etc. In these two weeks, they are
provided with typical collocations and their equivalent in English and
Vietnamese. 

Week 7 & 8: News on education

Students practice translating news articles on educational issues such as schools,
educational technology, learning styles, etc. They are train to process long and
complex sentences, typical collocations and idiomatic expressions.
24
Week 9: Mid-term test
Each students take the test in 10 minutes, orally translating pieces of news in
both English and Vietnamese.

Week 10: News on tourism

Students practice interpreting news reports on popular environmental issues such
as popular destinations, eco-tourism, etc. Students learn to re-structure when
process complex sentences to convey the equivalent meanings.

Week 11: News on leisure and entertainment

Students practice translating news reports on leisure and entertainment topics
such as music, arts exhibition, performance, sports, stars, etc. They continue to
analyze further logical links among ideas in complex sentences to express
equivalent meanings clearly.

Week 12: News on culture

Students practice translating new reports on cultural life of local communities.
They continue to analyze further logical links among ideas in complex sentences
to express equivalent meanings clearly.

Revision
Students review language/ linguistic issues, skills and techniques involved in
interpretation.

25
 SYLLABUS FOR INTERPRETATION 2

Week1: Introduction
Similar to Interpretation 1, in the first week, students get to know the plan and
the work they have to do in this course through the syllabus.

Week 2: Economics
Students practice interpreting talks on economics, through which they learn about
new terminology in economics, understand complex sentences in source
language and find equivalent meaning in target language. Students also learn
some principles in dealing with terminology in interpretation.

Week 3: Development economics

Students practice interpreting talks on development economics, through learn
terminology in the fields and train the skill of analyzing purposes and context of
the talks.

Week 4: Public management

Students practice interpreting talks on public management, through which they
learn terminology of the field and train the skill of analyzing types and style of
the talk.

Week 5: Business administration

Students practice interpreting talks on business management, through which they
learn terminology in the fields and train the skill of separating ideas from
complex sentences.

Week 6: Human resource management

Students practice interpreting talks on human resource management, through
which they learn about new terminology of the fields as well as the skill of
summarizing main points from a passage.

Week 7: Marketing
Students practice translating talks on marketing, through which they learn about
new terminology of the field and train the skill of identifying inference and
implication.
26
Week 8: Investment
Students practice translating talks on investment, through which they learn about
new terminology of the field as well as the skill of alternating verb and noun
phrases in interpretation.

Week 9: Mid-term test

Students take the test in 10 minutes, orally translating talks in both English and
Vietnamese without dictionaries.

Week 10: Tourism

Students practice interpreting talks on tourism, through which they learn about
new terminology of the field as well as the skill of analyzing purposes and
context of the talks.

Week 11: Trade: import and export

Students practice interpreting talks on trade, particularly import and export,
through which they learn about new terminology of the field as well as the skill
of analyzing types and styles of the talks.

Week 12: Banking and finance

Students practice interpreting talks on banking, through which they learn about
new terminology of the field as well as the skill of separating ideas from complex
sentences. 

27
 SYLLABUS FOR INTERPRETATION 3

Week 1: Introduction
In the first week, students get to know the plan and the work they have to do in
this course through the syllabus.

Week 2: Business administration

Students practice interpreting in a business review meeting, through which they
learn about features of a business meeting and popular language patterns of
meeting communication in both English and Vietnamese.

Week 3: Marketing
Students practice interpreting extract from lectures on marketing, through which
they learn about new terminology of the field as well as the formal academic
styles.

Week 4: Human resource management

Students practice interpreting research presentation in a conference on human
resource management. Through which they learn about new terminology of the
field as well as the formal language of conference presentation.

Week 5: Financial management

Students practice interpreting in a project presentation with focus on financial
matters, through which they learn about features of a business meeting and
popular language patterns of project management communications in both
English and Vietnamese.

Week 6: International Business

Students practices interpreting in a negotiation session, through which they learn
about language of the business negotiations as well as the requirements of
consistence and confidentiality in interpreting the similar topics.

Week 7: Business communication

Students practice extracts from lectures/ talks on business communication,
through which they learn about new terminology of the field as well as the formal
academic styles.
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Week 8: Mid-term test
Students take the test in 10 minutes in class, interpreting talks in both English
and Vietnamese without dictionaries.

Week 9: Labor market

Students practice interpreting presentations of forecasting the labor market
development in different scenario of GDP and other impacts, through which they
learn about new terminology of the files as well as the skill of summarizing
points from sentences.

Week 10: Globalization

Students practice interpreting a round table discussion session which is related to
economic trends in the context of globalization, through which they learn about
new terminology of the field as well as about dealing with different talking styles
of panelists.

Week 11: Business laws and regulations

Students practice interpreting business legal consultancy meetings, through
which they learn about new terminology of the fields as well as the skill of
analyzing types and style of the talk.

Week 12: Revision

Students review language/ linguistic issues, skills and techniques involved in
interpretation.

29