News

SCIT takes part in EMCI General Assembly Meeting in Brussels

On 4 April the EMCI General Assembly meeting took place in Brussels. SCIT was represented by Deputy Director Angelique Antonova. The participants discussed the preparations for the student meeting in Prague which is to take place on 24-28 April. The meeting will be attended by four SCIT students.   Also much attention was given to the implementation of the European Commission grant projects in quality assurance control and developing resources and speech repositories for graduates about to take language examinations for IOs. SCIT is an active participant of these projects.

SCIT opens doors to potential students

On 21 February SCIT opened its door to potential applicants. Director Irina Alexeeva welcomed the guests and explained the selection procedure at SCIT aptitude tests.  She underlined that the selection process is rigorous, and successful applicants should prepare themselves for a year of hard work. “When we launched SCIT in 2008, said Irina Alexeeva, we were primarily concerned about raising the status of a translator or an interpreter in our country. Our second goal was  to turn out top-notch specialists for  international organizations able to maintain the high quality of work across the world”.

Deputy Director Angelique Antonova descibed the job prospects after graduation. She backed up her speech with illustrative statistics: out of 129 SCIT graduates 21 are UN staff interpreters and translators, 18 have worked for the MFA of Russia, around 30 are employed by the UN or its agencies on temporary contracts. A lot of graduates work successfully in business or free lance.

One of SCIT’s present day students shared his impressions: «Just a year ago I was sitting in your place and thought that getting into SCIT was impossible. But everything is in your hands. Just like us, you can succeed in the exams, if you are intent on learning and mastering the profession. I certainly advise you to try it. I won’t be easy, but you can do it, like we did. ».

SCIT trainers Tatiana Maruschenko, Yuri Shashkov and Sergey Afonin took the questions from the auadience.

SCIT celebrates the Diplomat’s Day

On 11 February a reception to celebrate the Diplomat’s Day took place in the Marble Palace, St. Petersburg. The representatives of diplomatic services, general consulates and the Government of St. Petersburg were invited to the reception. The MFA Office in St. Petersburg is a long-standing partner of Herzen University. Vladimir Zapevalov, MFA Representative in St. Petersburg, and the MFA Office in St. Petersburg took an active part in launching and developing the St. Petersburg School of Conference Interpreting and Translation. 20 SCIT graduates have been employed with the MFA of Russia over the past years.

The MFA Office in St. Petersburg recognized the achievements of Herzen University and its Rector Gennady Bordovsky (1986 – 2011) in promoting international cooperation. In 2009 Rector Bordovsky was awarded the Alexander Gorchakov Silver Medal “For the efforts in strengthening Russian sovereignty and unfailing service to the country” in recognition of his efforts in launching the St. Petersburg School of Conference Interpreting and Translation. In 2018 Director Irina Alexeeva and Deputy Director Angelique Antonova were awarded the Contribution Medal from the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs to mark the 10th SCIT anniversary.

The ceremony in the Marble Palace was attended by Gennady Bordovsky, President of Herzen University, Yulia Komarova, Vice-Rector for International Cooperation, Director Irina Alexeeva and Deputy Director Angelique Antonova.

SCIT at Training for Trainers Seminar in Brussels

Early in 2019 SCIT graduate and trainer Elena Zheltova attended the traditional Training for Trainers seminar organized by DG SCIC of the European Commission in Brussels.  The training was conducted by acting interpreters from the Spanish booth Carlos García Vico и Marta Igártua. Among the participants were interpreter trainers from various universities in Spain including La Laguna University, SCIT’s partner in EMCI, also trainers from Argentina, Cuba, Great Britain, Denmark and other countries. The seminar is a perfect opportunity for interpreter trainers to systematize their training skills and exchange good practices.  Young trainers from SCIT grab the chance to upgrade their qualifications and are grateful to the European Commission for help. 

Master-class of AndreyFalaleyev at SCIT

Crushing logic, swift responses, vivid examples, sudden revelations and overpowering energy of the accomplished professional – all these are in the master-class of the legendary interpreter Andrey Falaleyev at SCIT. The traditional meeting with SCIT students took place on 22 January. So with the goals set and priorities determined, SCIT students are ready for more work!