Curriculum and Schedule

The Fordham University Localization Project Management Certificate Program comprises four courses as follows:

Course 1 – Introduction to the Language Services Industry

With an estimated value of USD 58.3 billion globally in 2021 and projected to hit USD 73.6 billion by 2025, the Language Services industry is one of the biggest and fastest growing industries you’ve never heard of. This course will provide an exploration of the language services industry to give students a clear understanding of its scope and the multitude of challenging and rewarding career opportunities available. Students will finish with a clear understanding of how to navigate the industry to take best advantage of what it has to offer. It will also serve as a basis to help contextualize for students the content that follows in the next 3 courses.

Students will learn:

  • Global industry landscape
  • Definitions of and differences between interpreting, translation, and localization
  • Specializations and subcategories within service offerings
  • Key provider- and client-side roles
  • Intercultural factors and importance of cultural IQ
  • Role of technology
  • Career paths

Instructors: Steve Chu; Steve Lank; Dina Rodrigues

Start date: January 4 to February 10, 2022, T Thu 7:00 – 8:30 PM EST

Class meets on Jan 11, 13, 18, 20, 25, 27; Feb 1, 3, 8, 10, 15, 17

Course 2 – Localization Technology and Engineering

The Localization Technology and Engineering course will survey many different categories of tools and technologies used in the language industry. The emphasis will be on the technical and engineering aspects of localization. The course will cover topics such as user interface localization (UI) engineering, website and web application localization best practices, issues and topics related to globalization, internationalization, and localization, machine translation tools, and advanced file preparation techniques.

Students will learn:

  • Localization engineering tools
  • File processing, preparation, and extraction best practices
  • Localization and terminology management tools
  • Processing tagged file formats
  • Translation memory tools
  • Machine translation tools and techniques
  • Terminology management tools
  • Technology management (tool evaluation, managing assets such as TM’s and glossaries)

Instructors: Gilberto Segura

Start date: February 22 to March 31, 2022, T Thu 7:00 – 8:30 PM EST

Class meets Feb 22, 24; Mar 1, 3, 6, 10, 15, 17, 22, 24, 29, 31

Course 3 – Translation and Localization Project Management I – Overview

This course will cover the fundamentals of project management in the translation and localization industry. Using the latest tools and technology, students will learn project management skills to take a translation and localization project from beginning to end. By the end of the course, students will learn the key to successfully manage translation and localization projects.

Students will learn:

  • Project types: documents, audio/visual translation, User interfaces localization, dubbing, website translation; Transcreation / transcription, gaming
  • Client-facing communication / managing expectations
  • Partner-facing communication
  • Project estimation (scope / file analysis / cost estimate / turnaround time)[SL6]
  • Building the translation project team (sourcing to suppliers, account managers, sales)
  • Launching projects
  • Project monitoring
  • Quality assurance
  • Managing client issues / complaints
  • Client invoicing / Supplier invoicing

Instructors: Steve Chu; Steve Lank; Dina Rodrigues

Start date: April 5 to May 17, 2022, T Thu 7:00 – 8:30 PM EDT

Class meets April 5, 7, 12, 19, 21, 26, 28; May 3, 5, 10, 12, 17

April 14 (no class)

Course 4 – Translation and Localization Project Management II – Advanced Topics

This course is a follow-up to the Translation and Localization Project Management I – Overview course and covers advanced topics in localization project management. This course will cover a broader range of not only project management topics but also program management and general management concerns.

Students will learn:

  • Localization project and program management on the client side
  • Managing machine translation post editing (MTPE) projects
  • Quality management
  • Vendor management
  • End-to-end program management
  • Building localized products
  • Working with vendor-side project managers

Instructors: Steve Chu; Steve Lank; Dina Rodrigues

Start date: May 31 to June 30, 2022, T Thu 7:00 – 8:30 PM EDT

Class meets May 31; June 2, 7, 9, 14, 16, 21, 23, 28, 30

For more information, please contact the Program Director Steve Chu at schu14@fordham.edu.