Middlebury Institute graduates discuss where they are working today, how the Institute helped them get there, and what advice they’d give to current and future MIIS students.
My name is Veronica Fried and I graduated with an MA in Translation and Localization Management from the Middlebury Institute in 2021. My language pair was Japanese-English. Prior to coming to Monterey, I earned my BA at Ursinus College in Collegeville, Pennsylvania. I am now a localization coordinator with Naughty Dog in Santa Monica, California.
At Naughty Dog—the game development studio that created The Last Of Us, among others—I assist in managing most aspects of the localization pipeline for text and audio assets. My responsibilities include prepping reference material for translators/voice talent, answering queries, and working with localization quality assurance (LQA) on bugs. I also do transcription for subtitles, audio editing, and documentation. We also work closely with other departments on various aspects of the game that affect localization, from fonts and UI layouts to terminology and audio accessibility features.
The courses I took gave me the foundational knowledge I needed to be successful at what I now do day-to-day.
I heard about the position from a friend—a classmate from my year—who saw it on LinkedIn and recommended that I apply for it. The internships I did during my time at the Institute turned out to be important, because they showed employers that I had already demonstrated my skills in localization in roles similar to those for which they were hiring. Many of the courses I took gave me the foundational knowledge I needed to be successful at what I now do day-to-day. Project management, vendor management, A/V localization, and knowing the basics of programming/HTML are essential to me in this role.
My best advice for current students is to take advantage of the many resources or opportunities available to you, especially the free ones! Go to talks and networking events, seek out mentors, visit the career office, etc. Take care to not overwhelm your schedule, but you’ll probably feel better later knowing that you made the most of your experience. For free resources beyond MIIS, check your local library, since many offer access to Coursera, LinkedIn Learning, language study apps, and more.
Also, keep learning after graduation, but find ways to make it fun for you. “Learning” doesn’t have to only mean researching industry trends or grinding programming lessons to look good on your résumé. Learn things that make you happy, engage you, and that you can take at your own pace. This can be reading an interesting book, trying a new craft, watching a documentary, etc. Give yourself time to heal and reignite your curiosity, and you’ll be more ready to take on bigger challenges later.
| by Cissy Liu MATLM ’19
Translation and Localization Management graduate Cissy Liu shares how researching her industry and networking helped her launch a career as a localization professional in the tech industry.
| by Francesca Tantussi MATLM ’22
Alumna Francesca Tantussi shares how support from faculty and staff helped her launch a career in localization.
| by Sarah Blackwell
The team of translation and localization students created their own Japanese version of a time travel game in just four days.
