Since LEIT completed its initial phase, a great deal has changed, but the need for education has not. The demand for qualified employees in the localization industry has skyrocketed—the number of localization jobs listed on online job posting sites like dice.com has more than tripled in less than three years, despite present worries about the economy. In response, more and more localization programs are springing up in places one would not expect, and even some of the most conservative translation education programs in the U.S. and Europe (that scarcely knew what localization was a few years ago) are eager to give their students experience in localization. But despite a number of new high-profile localization courses, we are clearly even further than ever from meeting the real demand for skilled and knowledgeable graduates from localization-related programs.

While this kind of growth is definitely what LEIT predicted—and has attempted to foster—we have been tardy in reflecting the changes in education in the language industries. Because of this, the LEIT website is in the process of being overhauled and updated to reflect present academic training programs as well as to provide new types of content. Among the items scheduled for roll-out on the LEIT website this year are:

• An updated list of educational programs around the world with information and content details about them.
• Lists of localization-related books and suggested reading lists to allow industry professionals to learn about topics of importance in the localization industry.
• Links to localization material on the web with an educational bent.
• A selection of quality theses and student-authored research papers.
• A place for students to post their CVs free of charge
• Listings of internship opportunities for students and proposed ATA/LEIT guidelines for companies and students wishing to sponsor or pursue internships.
• A place for companies to post white papers and other materials of use to those learning about localization

While a wealth of real information about localization is already available on the Web, much of it is difficult to find and is mixed with marketing and other information. The LEIT site will provide a central repository of information related to the language industries from an educational perspective and will allow academic work to receive world-wide attention. This will help participants in educational programs gain a better education and help foster a sense of community among them.

If, however, we limit our focus to students and professionals who have ready access to continuing education courses alone, we then ignore the very real needs of professionals already working in the industry whose day-to-day responsibilities or location do not allow them to attend existing conventional educational programs aimed at college students. While programs such as the University of Washington’s are already addressing the needs of these individuals, more remains to be done.

As LISA launches its new Industry Professional membership level (see Jaap van der Meer’s article in this issue of the LISA Newsletter), which is designed to extend the benefits of LISA to individuals who may have been unable to participate actively in LISA before, we are faced with the issue of how to extend learning opportunities to those already working in the industry. Few localizers have any formal training in localization and many of them have come to head localization projects through circumstances they could never have foreseen. Their need for education is as great as that of those in localization programs.

LEIT is launching a series of low-cost short workshops in order to help these individuals. Designed to provide basic and essential knowledge about GIL, these workshops will include an overview of the localization industry, discussion of translation technology and an introduction to localization business issues, among other topics. These workshops will allow individuals new to localization, as well as those already in the industry who need a refresher, to participate confidently and knowledgeably in typical localization settings and at LISA meetings, as well as prepare them to participate in more detailed continuing education programs.

These workshops will initially be held in conjunction with LISA forums, with the first one tentatively planned for November of this year in Vienna. Later LEIT will hold these workshops in other locations or during other events in order to reach out to individuals with an interest in localization who may not be able to attend major LISA events.

We invite LISA members and prospective members to participate in the new LEIT and to help extend the benefits of your knowledge and skills to others in the industry. Furthermore, any individuals who know of l10n-related educational activities in their local areas are invited to provide pertinent contact information so that we can continue to stay abreast of new developments around the world. Information can be sent to LEIT@lisa.org.

For more information on LEIT and its activities please visit www.lisa.org/leit. Be aware that we expect this site to evolve considerably over the next few months, so bookmark the site and visit it frequently to see what we are doing.

About the authors

Sue Ellen Wright (sewright@neo.rr.com) is an Associate Professor teaching in the Institute for Applied Linguistics at Kent State University. She specializes in computer applications for translators and is active in teaching terminology theory and tools, localization, and project management related courses in the two-year IAL translator training program. She is chair of LEIT.

Erika Walker (EWalker@ese.washington.edu) is a Program Manager at the University of Washington Extension. She has been responsible for the continued development and administration of the existing University of Washington Software Localization certificate program and a UW Summer Localization Institute to be offered in Summer 2002.

Arle Lommel (arle@lisa.org) is a project manager with LISA and a member of the Brigham Young University Translation Research Group (http://www.ttt.org).

Alison H. Rowles (alison@smp-m.com) is the Director of SMP Marketing Sarl. Formerly LISA’s Business Manager and Controller, she is now running LISA’s outsourced Marketing arm. She was Project Manager for the initial LEIT program when it began in 1998.