‘It Is Hard to Imagine High-Level Interpretation Being Entrusted to a Machine’

Ksenia Prosyukova and Liang Letian, Chinese booth interpreter and translation instructor at the Department of Foreign Languages, HSE University-St Petersburg

Photo courtesy of Ksenia Prosyukova

In 2024, Russia chairs BRICS, an international organisation comprising nine countries. Throughout the year, dozens of forums, working group meetings, and BRICS sessions took place across various Russian cities. As an interpreter, Ksenia Prosyukova, Associate Professor at the HSE School of Foreign Languages and Candidate of Science (PhD) in Pedagogy, participated in several BRICS events. In an interview, she discussed the personal responsibility of working at high-level events, the challenges and prospects of her profession, and how HSE University trains in-demand translators.

Ksenia Prosyukova interpreted at several BRICS events, including meetings of emergency service heads, the Digital and Literature Forums, the meeting of heads of national statistical offices, and the session of the BRICS Youth Council. At the key event of the presidency—the 16th BRICS Summit held from October 22 to 24 in Kazan—Ksenia Prosyukova interpreted bilateral negotiations with the Ethiopian delegation at the ministerial level.

With booth partner Farhad Fatkullin, and Liang Letian in the Chinese booth

Photo courtesy of Ksenia Prosyukova

— How can a professional interpreter join events of this level?

— Undoubtedly, such events require interpreters with extensive experience. Typically, job offers for international events either come directly from the organisers, provided you have worked with them before, or through colleagues who recommend you. For those aspiring to participate in international events, it is essential to actively collaborate with major agencies and translation companies and maintain connections with colleagues and industry representatives.

For instance, attending events like the Translation Forum Russia and joining professional translator associations are excellent for networking.

With booth partner Nikita Pechunov in the English booth

Photo courtesy of Ksenia Prosyukova

— Did you work as a simultaneous or consecutive interpreter at the BRICS Summit?

— I worked as an oral interpreter, adapting to the event format. This included both simultaneous and consecutive interpretation. All the main sessions and negotiations were interpreted simultaneously, but between sessions, it was also necessary to interpret press briefings, toasts, and congratulations at official receptions, as well as excursions as part of the cultural programme. All of this involved consecutive interpretation or whispered interpretation (chuchotage—a type of oral interpretation where the interpreter translates in real-time for 1–2 guests nearby, rather than from a booth). However, there was, of course, much more classical simultaneous interpretation.

With Emirati poetess Sheikha Al-Mutairi and moderator Albina Absalyamova

Photo courtesy of Ksenia Prosyukova

— What was your workday like at the BRICS Summit?

— A interpreter’s day at an international event is scheduled minute by minute, starting early in the morning and ending late in the evening.

You need to arrive at the venue 30 minutes before the first event and be in the booth 15 minutes before it starts. In practice, interpreters aim to arrive even earlier to clear security, meet colleagues from other booths and the technical team, ensure the equipment works properly, review the participant list, and get into the right mindset.

During the event, two interpreters alternate in each booth every 20–30 minutes. There is no fixed rule for rotation; interpreters decide who starts and the timing of shifts themselves.

— How do you prepare for interpretation? Are there any support materials in the booth?

— Usually, there is an up-to-date printed programme, often bilingual, by the time the event begins. This helps correctly pronounce participant names, titles, and organisations they represent.

Workplace of a simultaneous interpreter

Photo courtesy of Ksenia Prosyukova

Each interpreter has their own preparation approach. I try to find publicly available information about the speakers. For annual events, I review materials and recordings from previous years.

— Is interpreting a promising career? Could professionals be replaced by AI in the future?

— Now it is hard to say clearly how AI will impact the interpreting profession.

When it comes to oral translation, it is hard to imagine high-level interpretation being entrusted to a machine. An interpreter is personally responsible for the quality of translation. History has shown many instances where inaccurate translation caused diplomatic misunderstandings and even tragedies.

With participants of the BRICS Literature Forum

Photo courtesy of Ksenia Prosyukova

Interpreters must account for extralinguistic factors, situational context, and non-verbal cues. I do not think technology can fully replicate this.

That said, like many other professions predicted to face obsolescence, AI already handles simple tasks well in translation. For example, attending international exhibitions no longer requires an interpreter; a smartphone app can easily do this job.

I believe that one thing is certain: the translation market will become more competitive, and aspiring translators must be prepared for this.

With Emirati poetess Sheikha Al-Mutairi

Photo courtesy of Ksenia Prosyukova

— Tell us about your career path and the languages you speak.

— I have always been drawn to foreign languages. At elementary school, I wanted to be a diplomat, but by high school, I was set on studying foreign languages.

I started learning English at the age of four, Arabic and Spanish at university, and then studied French and Italian.

I did an internship at Cairo University, Tishreen University in Latakia (Syria), and the University of Granada (Spain). After graduating from my alma mater, Kazan University, I spent a year at the Higher Language Institute of Damascus University. And as a teacher of translation I also trained at Abdelmalek Essaâdi University (Morocco) as well as at the Centre of Foreign Languages in London and Oxford.

My first job was as a translator for Kazan Helicopters, which involved long business trips. After spending six months in Sudan and Thailand each, I sought more variety. So, I started doing different oral translation projects.

Now, I have enough command of Italian and French to talk with native speakers on common things. I use English, Arabic and Spanish professionally, but only interpret simultaneously with English.

— Are there differences in language-learning approaches in Russia and abroad?

— The methodology of language teaching in the countries where I studied and interned varies greatly.
The languages I studied during internships are structurally diverse; each of them requires its own specific approach. I would say that in the East, more attention is paid to culture—music, literature, and history—as factors that help better understand how the language developed and the stages it went through in its formation. In the United Kingdom, I underwent training for English language teachers, so the focus there was on teaching methodology. An invaluable aspect was the exchange of professional experience, which is unique for each of us. We mainly worked on case studies and were then assigned project tasks—teaching a lesson on a given topic or solving a specific problem. These methods are now also actively applied in Russia when preparing teachers.

— What subjects do you teach at the HSE School of Foreign Languages?

— I teach four courses in the master’s programme (‘Theory and Practice of Oral and Written Translation,’ ‘Scientific and Technical Translation,’ ‘Specialised Translation,’ and ‘Simultaneous Interpretation’) and two courses in the bachelor’s programme (‘Specialised Translation’ and ‘Systemic Relations in the Vocabulary of Russian and English’). The key distinguishing feature of the bachelor’s and master's programmes in Foreign Languages and Intercultural Communication is their practical orientation. In addition to a wide range of elective courses, there are several types of internships where students work on specific tasks in real companies, and their supervisors are employees of these companies. This provides an invaluable hands-on experience, far beyond a simulated work process.

— How can aspiring translators polish their skills and gain experience to start their careers?

— The most important thing to remember is that translation is a skill, not knowledge. You can read hundreds of articles on how to become a translator, but without practice, it will only be a set of useless facts. The rule is simple: if you want to become a translator, you need to translate—analyse material independently, intern at companies, and volunteer at events.

— How can one find their calling?

— Do not be afraid to try new things. It is essential to listen to yourself and stop if you feel that the chosen path is not yours. It can be challenging to push yourself to take risks. I experienced something similar myself when, after many years of working as a consecutive interpreter, I decided to try simultaneous interpretation. At the time, it seemed like simultaneous interpretation was for the elite, and I thought I would never succeed in it. The key is to analyse and understand what exactly you lack to take the first step—whether it is knowledge or skills. By identifying your weaknesses, you can determine where to move next.

This becomes your strategy for achieving your goal, which needs to be refined at every new stage of professional development. It is important to keep reminding yourself that a person who finds their calling is truly a happy person.

With translators of English, Chinese, Arabic, Portuguese, and Farsi after the 16th meeting of heads of BRICS national statistical offices

Photo courtesy of Ksenia Prosyukova

On November 24, 2024, the Open Day for the Master’s Programme 'Foreign Languages and Intercultural Communication' will take place.