Charles Cai
Office
Casa Fuente Bulding CF300H
Tel
(831) 647-3541
Email
rcai@miis.edu

Professor Cai discovered his passion for translation and interpretation while translating the stage play Appointment with Death by Agatha Christie for a theater production in Shanghai, where he received rigorous training at one of China’s first undergraduate Translation and Interpretation programs. He has since regarded a career in translation and interpretation as one of the most rewarding and intellectually stimulating in the age of information. He is excited about the new technologies that help improve the efficiency of Translation and Interpretation work, but remains confident that translators and interpreters who truly master the strategies and tactics for cross-cultural communication will only play a greater role in the future.

 

After graduating from the Institute’s Chinese conference interpretation program, Cai served as an in-house translator and interpreter at McKinsey & Company, a global consulting firm. There he traveled extensively across China, supporting numerous consulting projects in a wide array of industries. As a change agent for computer-aided translation (CAT), he spearheaded the adoption of CAT systems across the three Translation and Interpretation offices of McKinsey Greater China. Cai stays active in his freelance work, providing regular translation and interpretation services to private and social sector clients, which allows him to incorporate real-world content and practical experience into the courses he teaches.

Areas of Interest

Professor Cai is determined to help his students develop not just the basic translation and interpretation skills, but also the ability to improve continuously based on a clear understanding of their personal strengths and weaknesses. He is constantly looking for innovative ways to simulate real-life scenarios in the classroom, so that students may be allowed to experiment with different strategic options. He also seeks interactive methods to expose students to the topics frequently encountered by practicing translators and interpreters.

Academic Degrees

  • MA in Conference Interpretation (English and Chinese), Monterey Institute of International Studies
  • BA in Translation and Interpretation (English and Chinese), Fudan University, China

Professor Cai has been teaching at the Institute since 2014.

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