Graduation ceremony at the Caspian Higher School of Interpreting and Translation

The Caspian Higher School of Interpreting and Translation held a solemn graduation ceremony on the 2nd of June. For the School this event is one of the most outstanding days of the academic year as the school not only graduates young professionals into the real world of interpreting and translation but also sums up the results, presents its achievements and makes plans for the future.
Perhaps, some think that “a solemn ceremony” is just a beautiful phrase actually referring to an ordinary university-leaving party, but those who have taken part in this event are unlikely to agree. Graduation ceremonies of the Caspian Higher School of Interpreting and Translation are a platform for dialogue between the heads of the region’s ministries, representatives of the Caspian bordering countries’ consulates and our European colleagues from the leading interpreting and translation organizations and schools. This time the ceremony gathered Nikolay Khurchak, vice rector for International Relations of Astrakhan State University, Denis Afanasyev, Minister of International and Foreign Economic Relations of the Astrakhan Region, Geoffrey Westgate, Head of Support Section WIPO PCT Translation Division, Oleg Kolomin, Representative of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation in Astrakhan, (who also delivered an official congratulatory speech of Teimuraz Ramishvili, Director of the Linguistic Support Department of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation), Natascha Dalügge-Momme, President of FIT Europe, Nicolas Stuyckens, a delegate of the Belgian Chamber of Translators and Interpreters, Bekzhan Alikulov, Vice-Consul of the Republic of Kazakhstan, and Adalyat Guseynov, Chairman of the Astrakhan branch of the All-Russian Azerbaijani Congress. People who have achieved such high-level positions know perfectly well how difficult it is to start the career and be sure and confident all the way up, that is why all of them delivered their commencement speeches and wished our graduates success in their difficult but exciting interpreting and translation practice.
Olga Egorova, the Head of the Caspian Higher School of Interpreting and Translation, gave a welcoming speech at the beginning of the ceremony. She prepared a presentation about the School’s achievements, our graduates’ accomplishments, implemented projects and educational initiatives to come. It is true that the previous year was full of local and international events, in which our graduates – Master students just a few days ago and Masters of Linguistics now – took an active part. It is especially pleasant that our four students graduated with honours this year, having defended their theses successfully and shown excellent interpreting and translation skills – the achievements they and their relatives can be justly proud of.
To master the profession of a consecutive and simultaneous interpreter for just two years is a hard task, but our hard-working, talented and persevering students prove once again that nothing is impossible to a willing heart, and the school admits only those who strongly believe in it and want to get something more than just a diploma from their education. Interpreting and translation can open the whole world to you, immerse you into another culture, teach, amaze and give you an impetus to constant development. Though our School did not open the whole world for our graduates, anyway, we hope that it showed them the right path. The rest lies in their hands. May success attend them!