CAPSTONE PROJECTS FOR THE MINOR IN TRANSLATION STUDIES: INTERVIEW WITH SARA CUSACK

The Minor in Translation Studies gives undergraduates at the University of Michigan an opportunity to explore translation from multiple perspectives, as a movement between languages, media, disciplines, and cultures. 

Students who choose the minor come from a wide range of departments, and they complete a capstone project that allows them to engage translation in various literary and professional settings,including internships, community outreach, and creative collaborations.  

In a series of interviews conducted by the Department of Comparative Literature, students describe their unique capstone projects. They explain why they are interested in translation, how they developed their interests through the capstone project, and what they learned from the experience.  

Sara Cusack ’17 (BA, Asian Studies-Chinese and Cognitive Science-Language and Cognition; Minor in Community Action and Social Change) dedicated her capstone project to volunteering as a law clerk at the Michigan Immigrant Rights Center (MIRC). She worked with Spanish and also with Chinese in translating client declarations and correspondence, and interpreting for client meetings. As she practiced literary, legal, and technical translation, her internship also provided a platform to engage with translation as civil service and social justice, and to reflect on the ethics of translation. Sara will continue this work as Engelhard Social Justice Fellow, supported by the U-M Center for Engaged Academic Learning.