Courses | Benefits | Refresher Courses | Student Experiences
Infrastructure
Beginning on the first day of classes, students work in a laboratory booth. The material in the laboratory is based on digital recordings of actual conferences, grouped according to their speeds and subject matters. Each student is required to attend a minimum of 3-and-a-half hours weekly. McDonough trains students in approximately 130 conferences each year, selected from our digital audio library. Our continual participation in events enables us to incorporate new material each day so that we offer our students the most challenging and varied subject matters.
Interpretation booths
The laboratory is equipped with 18 simultaneous interpretation booths with a console, microphone, and tape recorder in each booth. It also includes a digital main audio mixer that allows two professors to monitor students. The technical floor, suspended and sealed for cabling, allows signals to be distributed to every booth without any interference.
Multimedia (LCD) projection
The projection equipment for transparencies helps students learn to interpret with visual material. The laboratory relies on two types of projection systems, one for transparencies and another for multimedia, both of which are indispensable for teaching students the importance of visual aids in events.
Microphones
McDonough uses professional microphones with on/off and mute switches. The lab has two recording systems, central and individual, both of which come with the most reliable SONY equipment. Students can record their interpretations from each class in order to monitor their performance.
On-line Exercises and Extranet Resources
These exercises for learning terminology and general culture are provided in HTML format, and are accompanied by an answer key to immediately check your answers.
In 2005, we implemented an extranet so that students could gain access to the laboratory schedule online, make schedule changes, write down observations of events in which they participated, schedule times for practicing in a booth, read internal news about McDonough, and use and download online glossaries and terminology.
Observing the Professors
Since 2002, and with the technical support of our sound personnel, we have implemented observations into events. We are the only simultaneous interpretation school in Argentina that offers students the opportunity to observe their professors interpreting speeches at actual events. We would not have been able to do this without the support of the Company's sound department.
Class Material
McDonough's courses are a mirror image of the event and use only current class material. They rely on recorded exercises, containing PowerPoint presentations and terminology transparencies. Moreover, students research the anticipated subject matter in the same way that an interpreter studies the terminology before a conference. In addition, our laboratory, which uses overhead and multimedia projectors, projects PowerPoint presentations from events, imitating the conference environment.
Professors
We firmly believe that our professors not only have to be active interpreters, but that they must have the methodology and teaching skills necessary to achieve the best effectiveness in class. Some of the professors, such as Martin Soriano, are certified AIIC interpreters. All professors are required to design a demanding syllabus and to utilize only McDonough's methodology in order to offer a homogeneous interpretation training at all levels. Students frequently evaluate their professors using customer satisfaction surveys, and in this way, we guarantee the best performance from our teachers.
Professional Contributions
McDonough provides a clear picture of the simultaneous interpretation market to all its students, from explanations on sound and projection equipment, preparation of glossaries, pre-event topic preparation and research, to the proper way to behave in conferences. McDonough staff members contribute to your experience in simultaneous interpretation, sharing their experiences as interpreters at events in the country and abroad, providing a contrast with the way to work in Argentina.
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