Miroslava Melicherčíková

Univerzita Mateja Bela, Banská Bystrica

[email protected]

 0000-0002-0509-9535

 

Drahoslava Urblíková

Univerzita Mateja Bela, Banská Bystrica

[email protected]

 

Abstract

Perceptions of the Translator and Interpreter Profession among Philology and Teacher Training Students

The present study examines the perception of the translator’s and interpreter’s profession among philology students specializing in translation and interpreting and students of English language teacher training at Matej Bel University in Banská Bystrica. The main aim of the research was to identify how students perceive the social status and prestige of translators and interpreters at the beginning and at the end of their university studies, and whether these perceptions differ. The study also explored the potential influence of cultural capital, as represented by parents’ education and the number of books in the household, on perceptions of these professions. The research was conducted through a questionnaire survey involving 105 respondents. The questionnaire combined quantitative and qualitative items. The collected data were analysed using descriptive statistics and the non-parametric Kruskal-Wallis test. The results indicate that respondents perceive translators and interpreters primarily as intellectual and highly skilled professionals. Translators were most frequently associated with the translation of non-literary texts, while interpreters were predominantly perceived as “standard interpreters”. A statistically significant difference was identified only in the perception of translators’ prestige between bachelor’s and master’s philology students. The influence of cultural capital on prestige perception was not statistically confirmed.

 

Keywords: translator, interpreter, social prestige, students, perception

 

https://doi.org/10.24040/nfr.2026.18.1.70-91