History of the Faculty of Translation, Interpreting and Communication of the University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria

The study of Translation and Interpreting has only recently been incorporated into Spanish university education. Its inclusion was the result of a growing social demand and a professional interest and concern with translation studies.

There are many reasons why developing Translation and Interpreting studies in Spanish Universities has been encouraged. Firstly, translation was frequently practised by non-professionals who felt that simply knowing another language qualified them for work in this field with the consequent risk of not attaining acceptable standards of translation. Secondly, for many years translators were self-taught, due to a lack of suitable teaching institutions. The only training available to them was through language schools, which were unable to train translators since, as experience has shown, mere knowledge of a language is not sufficient to carry out translations of a professional standard. Thirdly, recognition of the importance of translation led to a demand for specialised training from institutions of higher education. 
       
 In this context, an intellectual movement arose, promoted by conferences, journals and lectures that raised awareness of the need to create an academic institution in Spain whose objective was to train translators. In Europe, the Geneva School of Translation and Interpreting had been functioning since 1941 and, in 1953, under the sponsorship of the UNESCO, the International Federation of Translators was established. In a society that was on the road to globalization, these initiatives provided official support for a profession in great demand.

As a result, Schools of Translation and Interpreting were introduced in the 1980s to teach students the ability to mediate between languages and cultures. Later, these schools became the current faculties which brought the degree in Translation and Interpreting into line with other European Translation qualifications. This provided students who had obtained a diploma from the Las Palmas School of Translation with the opportunity, not only to obtain a university degree, but also to become a professional translator. Likewise, it allowed graduate students of other related degrees to access training in Translation and Interpreting.  

The precursor of the current Faculty of Translation, Interpreting and Communication of the ULPGC was the School of Translation and Interpreting, this being the third educational institution of its kind founded in Spain after the Schools of Translation and Interpreting at the Universidad Autónoma de Barcelona, and the University of Granada. Therefore, it is one of the pioneering institutions in its field. The Las Palmas School of Translation and Interpreting opened in the academic year in 1988-89 at the heart of the old Polytechnic University of the Canary Islands (later to become the University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria) as the first centre of Humanities of the University. This was a response to an increased social demand for translations to facilitate communication in business, maritime trade and tourism, emerging from the geographical location of the archipelago which serves as a commercial meeting point between Europe, Africa and America.

On the 30th of September 1991, Translation and Interpreting became a fully recognised university degree. Procedures were started to implement the degree and, consequently, the creation of the corresponding Faculties which were to replace the previous Schools of Translation.
In its short history, the degree has undergone four major changes implemented by central government: firstly, the curriculum of the original  Schools of Translation and Interpreting which lasted 3 years; this was followed by the conversion of the original Schools into Faculties, with the transformation of the curriculum into a 4-year undergraduate degree. After this came the second curriculum change for the degree in the year 2000 and finally the current adaptation of the degree to the Bologna Process. These modifications reflect the change in attitude towards the teaching/learning process, not only at Faculty and Department levels, but also in cooperation with the CCDUTI (Spanish Confederation of Translation and Interpreting Faculties). The Dean of the FTIC of ULPGC was Secretary of this organisation in 2004 and President in 2005.