Inaugurated by DG SCIC's Director-General
On Monday 22 April, the Director-General Genoveva Ruiz Calavera inaugurated An Teanglann: the new interpreting suites at the University of Galway. These state-of-the-art facilities, co-funded by DG SCIC, are aimed at upgrading the university’s conference interpreting training infrastructure.
The three new suites are equipped with cutting-edge technology including 31 computers, double booths, interpreter consoles, and advanced audiovisual and tracking systems to facilitate both on-site and remote interpreting training.
The inauguration comes at a time when the need for skilled Irish interpreters has been growing, evidenced by increased demand since 2022, and is part of DG SCIC’s broader actions to prepare for the upcoming Irish Council Presidency in the second semester of 2026.
The Director-General's visit included a meeting with the Department of Culture, Arts, Tourism, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media, which focused on strengthening DG SCIC’s cooperation with the Irish authorities to enhance the pool of interpreters capable of serving both European Commission and national needs. The enhancements to the training facilities at the University of Galway mark a step forward in this collaboration.
Since the interpreting course was established in 2008, the University of Galway has become recognised as a centre of excellence for interpreter training in Ireland, and it remains the only university in the world to train conference interpreters with Irish.