Who should come?

Experience shows that those who derive the most benefit from the Course include:

	Interpreters having worked for a number of years, who would like to benefit from objective criticism with a view to updating and honing their skills
	Interpreters who wish to practice and perfect new language combinations
	Interpreters who teach or translate and who, due to time constraints, find themselves increasingly unable to maintain their own skills
	Working interpreters who have had little formal training, and desire objective, in-depth, professional advice and feedback
	Interpreters who have had limited working experience since graduation
	Interpreters who have been working in markets other than the conference interpretation market, and who would like some experience of the conference milieu
	Translators who interpret occasionally

Is there a deadline for applying?

There is no deadline; however, as the student:teacher ratio is never more than 3:1, the spaces fill up rather quickly. We have 24 places for students, and six working languages depending on demand, with a quota per language. It is highly recommended that, if you are interested, you apply as soon as possible.

What is the Course “Package” or “Option” I am supposed to choose?

This is where you decide where you would like to stay during the Course. Everyone’s tuition is the same. However, everyone may not be staying at the hotel; if they are, not everyone may choose to dine at the hotel. The three Course packages available are:

	tuition only (you stay elsewhere, though coffee breaks and lunch on weekdays, as well as the official opening and closing dinners, are included);
	tuition plus B&B (the tuition package, plus you stay at the hotel, with a full English breakfast every day);
	tuition plus full board (the tuition plus B&B package, plus a three-course dinner on weekdays )..

If you opt for ‘tuition plus B&B’, you may still dine at the hotel for an extra charge.

The tuition will be charged in mid-June, using the payment method you have provided ahead of time for this purpose. Your accommodation will be charged separately, while you are at the hotel.

If I am unable to attend for the entire two weeks, may I come for only one?

If you wish to come for only one week, you must find another person who would come for the other week. We would then count you as one student, and divide all fees in half. If anyone notifies us of wanting to do this, we will let that applicant know if any other prospective student has already expressed a similar interest.

If the Course Directors receive no payment, why do they come?

Some (though not all) of the reasons the Course Directors come to teach in Cambridge, include: giving something back to the profession in which they have thrived; helping other interpreters to become better in all facets of their careers; helping to ensure that the profession is served and represented to the highest possible ethical standards by well-trained practitioners; and sharing their love and esteem for interpreting as an art-form. All of us have thought on many occasions throughout our careers, “wait a minute – my teachers never told me about that!” This is one way of spreading the word.

There are, of course, many other reasons, but you would have to ask each member of the teaching staff individually.

If the Course Directors are volunteers, what do tuition payments finance?

The Course is not profit making. Course directors are volunteers, but are not asked to go out-of-pocket to come and teach.

Course fees cover the costs of all the teachers’ room, board and travel; state-of-the-art simultaneous interpretation equipment and two-person booths; 25 hours of formal interpretation tuition per week; all extracurricular classes; teaching materials; photocopies; the conference venue; special activities; guest speakers’ expenses, and mid-morning coffee, a buffet lunch, and mid-afternoon tea on workdays.

If any tuition fees are not expended on Course needs, they are refunded equally to all students after the accounts for the Course are paid in full.

Is there any form of financial assistance available?

Unfortunately, as the Course is not a profit-making inititative, and has no commercial links of any sort, we are unable to do anything to help those for whom the tuition fees are simply too high -- much to our regret.

Some students have been sent by their employers (the OPCW, the UN Vienna, the George Marshall Center, NATO, the Islamic Development Bank); some students may receive reimbursements from their employers. The full cost of the Course is a tax write-off for US taxpayers, and may be for taxpayers from other countries as well.

There are housing options in Cambridge that are less expensive than the hotel: B&B’s, student accommodation in Colleges etc. If you choose this option, we can give you some ideas where to call or look.

Which airport should I fly into?

The Course is held at the

Royal Cambridge Hotel, Trumpington Street, Cambridge CB2 1PY, U.K.
Telephone: (44 1223) 351631
Fax: (44 1223) 352972
E-mail: royal.cambridge@forestdale.com
Website: www.forestdale.com

If you arrive by air from outside England, then Stansted Airport is the closest (± 1 hour by coach), followed by Luton and Gatwick. Heathrow is further away (± 2 ½ hour coach ride).

We have found two websites for information on how to get from the various airports. They are www.nationalexpress.com, which gives information on all their bus services from Heathrow, Stansted, Gatwick, and Luton airports (with many departures daily), and www.centraltrains.co.uk for train services from Stansted Airport (which I think is part of the National Express service). National Express allows you to buy your ticket in advance, and online.

Also, there is www.nationalrail.co.uk for the national rail service if you are already in England and wish to take the train from London or other cities.

FYI, a taxi from Stansted airport to Cambridge will cost about £50 one way.

Whether you arrive by coach or by train, we suggest you take a taxi to the hotel. This should not take more than about 10 minutes total, and the cost is not high. If you have no luggage, it is approximately a 20-minute walk.

Why should I stay at the hotel?

The hotel is where the Course will be held, so it will be easiest for you to stay there, as the days are always acknowledged to be much longer and more exhausting than may at first appear. It is also a lot of fun staying and dining with your colleagues (who include the teachers!). Meals have been good, and do not resemble typical heavy English fare.

The package that we have is the best in the city for this type of Course, though there is other accommodation in the city that will save you approximately half of this cost. If you need help in finding alternative accommodations, please call the Cambridge Tourist Information Centre (Tel: +(44)1223 464 732).

If you stay outside the hotel, we strongly recommend that you hire a bicycle for the duration. We can provide details.

May I invite a family member or friend to stay with me at the hotel?

Course participants may invite someone to stay in their room, for a charge of £30 per night for B&B. If the hotel has special deals for that time period that you satisfy, the lesser of the two charges will apply (for example, if the hotel has a special rate for 2 people in a room over a weekend during that period, that charge will apply rather than the package that has been negotiated for the room charge during the Course). If the guest wishes to have lunch or dinner with the Course, they may do so for an extra charge. The guest will only be allowed in the Course room on an exceptional basis.

What does the Hotel provide in the rooms?

Besides the usual, rooms all have telephones, hair dryers, a kettle with coffee and tea supplies, a television, and a trouser press and/or iron.

You can request wake-up calls from the front desk, so there is no need to bring an alarm clock.

There are no air conditioners in the rooms, as the building is a listed one, though the hotel does have fans enough for all rooms, and the Course room is air conditioned.

What is an example of other housing options students have used and have been satisfied with?

Westcott House, Jesus Lane, Cambridge CB5 8BP, UK.
general-enquiries@westcott.cam.ac.uk
www.westcott.cam.ac.uk.
+44-1223-741 000 tel, fax 741 002

This is a seminary on the other side of town. They do bed and breakfast accommodation in student ‘sets’ (flats or bedsits), and have been an economical and popular choice for students in the past. They are approximately a 30-minute walk, or a 10-minute bicycle ride from the Course.