Building Distinctive Postgraduate Programs at an Ordinary University: A Case Study of the MTI Program at Southwest Minzu University of China

— As the education patterns and curricula of degree programs at different universities are becoming increasingly similar, a postgraduate program could only stand out and distinguish itself for prospective applicants and employers by demonstrating its uniqueness and advantages. This paper attempts to reveal the ways of improving postgraduate programs in order to better attract applicants and score high in the assessment by the educational authorities. Taking for example the MTI (Master of Translation and Interpretation) program of the Southwest Minzu University of China, a comprehensive university focusing on serving minority ethnic groups, this paper summarizes its five years' experience and finds that a university's program of study could be distinctive only when it has advantageous features. It is advisable for the program committee to design a featured curriculum with clear targets and philosophy after exploring the features of the university's disciplines and location, and based on comprehending the nature of the program type. The teaching contents, instructional resources, and practical/fieldwork training should all be centered around the featured field of the program. The resources of the university and the opportunities in the city should also be utilized to enhance the distinction.