Key words: Analysis, Translation Difficulties Translating SL texts into TL texts is very important for the fourth semester students of English department since it is written in a semester course plan (See Semester Course Plan in Appendix 2). This is obligatory done to get a good translation. However the fourth semester students while doing the exercises often do errors during translating the topics decided. In other words, the translation result is not satisfying the readers. To get the real facts what the students' difficuties or weakness in translation, the teacher-researcher has a purpose to search, analyze and describe the students' difficulties in translating a SL text into a TL text especially a novel with the total focus group is 34 persons, Class A. The teacher-researcher uses two kinds of research instruments that are questionnaires which consist of open and close; and test as the source of content analysis applied as a part of qualitative research method.Based on the research findings, it is found 1378 out difficulties in which the students tend to do errors in 6 aspects which is 678 in the kinds of translation which mostly 32.7% in verb, 145 in diction which mostly 75.17% in noun, 358 in using which mostly 36.87% in noun, 22 in writing which mostly 45.5% in adjective, 94 in meaning which mostly 74.5% in sentence, and 81 in answers which mostly 72.84% in sentence. This is supported by three levels of difficulty (difficult, more difficult, most difficult) to 1 question of 5 items for open questionnaires and 25 questions of close questionnaires that are 20.6%, 11.8%, 14.7%; and 74.1%, 47.1%, 55.9%.On the basis of the research findings above, the students in translating a SL text into a TL text (in this case a novel), they tend to apply literal translation and free translation; semantically the students translate literal/explicit meaning in deciding what dictions are used; it is ungrammatically when constructing sentences or maintaining Indonesian style/version without considering principles of SL; in writing, it is mispelling enough, in finding out the meaning, it is on basis of TL principles and the last is the answers are inaccuracy/less accuracy.In line with the research findings, it is suggested to the lecturers who teach translation to comprehend and analyze deeply the students' difficulties in translating a SL text into a TL text, to the students who learn translation lectures to re-learn far better what is learnt in the classroom and directly applying in doing exercises, and to founder of YAPERTI Nias to support any lecturers to continue studying and choosing Translation major so that being a good translator is idealized by the students.