Intensive Summer Course in Translation Technology

To be an efficient and competitive translator, you need to make the most of the available translation software as well as your own translation capabilities.

Overview

This twenty-hour intensive online course will introduce participants to working with machine translation (MT), using translation memory (TM)/computer-assisted translation (CAT) tools, and combining the two technologies to balance efficiency and quality.

DATES: Mondays: 20, 27 July and 3, 10, 17 August 2026

TIMES: 10:00-12:00 (BST) – 13:00-16:00 (BST)

This professional training course is open to:

  • freelance translators and interpreters
  • undergraduate and postgraduate translation and interpreting students
  • translation and interpreting tutors
  • individuals considering expanding their translation career

You will need a good working knowledge of English and at least one other language to translation-proficiency level. The course is particularly appropriate for those who are or will be working from English into another language but is open to all language combinations and translation directions. You will also need a high level of competence with computers. 

Your own computer and access to the internet (preferably with a high-speed connection) are essential. It should ideally be a Windows computer or be able to emulate a Windows environment as not all TM/CAT tools are compatible with the Mac OS. The tutor will not be able to provide detailed troubleshooting or technical advice on this.

MT and post-editing: fundamentals

  • What is machine translation and what is post-editing?
  • What levels of post-editing are there and when are they appropriate?
  • What sorts of texts are (not) suitable for machine translation?

TM/CAT tools: fundamentals

  • What is a TM/CAT tool and how do they work?
  • Setting up and completing a project in a CAT tool
  • Growing and managing TMs organically

TM/CAT tools: leveraging additional resources

  • Growing and managing TMs by integrating additional resources: aligning existing translations
  • Creating, managing and using termbases (TBs) for terminological consistency

Combining machine translation and CAT tools

  • TM/CAT tool quality assurance (QA) functions and how they can be used to balance some of the weaknesses of MT
  • Balancing productivity, quality and risk when using translation technologies

You'll receive a certificate of attendance on completion of the course.

David Stockings MITI MCIL CL is a translator working from French and German to English and specialising in sustainability, alongside other areas of scientific and technical translation. He has been working as a translator, primarily freelance, since 2017 and teaches practical translation and professional skills within CenTraS. Various translation technologies, including memoQ and SDL Trados Studio, are a regular feature of his professional work. 

  • Standard Rates £800.00
  • UCL Students & CenTraS Alumni £275.00
  • UCL Staff Academic Visitors & Affiliates £660.00

CenTraS professional courses affiliates include:

  • Institute of Translators and Interpreters (ITI)
  • Chartered Institute of Linguists (CIoL)
  • The Subtitlers’ Association (SUBTLE)
  • local organisations including ATAV, ATA, APTRAD, PEM and Translators and Interpreters Australia

To book your place, please use UCL Online Store: click here.