Those with strong writing skills and an aptitude for computers are encouraged to enter this program. Taught by practicing professionals from the high tech industry, students learn to use the most current technologies and processes. Students enrolled in this certificate program are eligible for special internship opportunities and can apply for scholarships sponsored by the Society for Technical Communication.

Required Courses: (4)
42.408 Principles of Technical Writing
42.412 Software Writing
42.413 Advanced Software Writing
90.306 Introduction to XML

Electives - Choose 2:*
42.221 Writing for Interactive Media
90.227 Developing Interactive Help Systems: Macromedia® RoboHelp®
90.228 Introduction to Adobe® FrameMaker
90.291 Intro to DHTML


*Note: This is a partial list of elective courses. For a complete list of courses that may be applied as electives to this program, check our online course listings for computer courses with a 90.xxx prefix. For assistance with your course selection, please contact the Faculty and Student Support Center at (978) 934-2474.

Certificate Requirements
Students enrolled in UMass Lowell certificate programs must complete all courses, generally consisting of both required courses and electives. Students may complete the certificate program at their own pace, enrolling in one or two courses each semester. Courses on-campus typically meet one night per week, three hours each night, for 14 weeks during the Fall and Spring semesters. UMass Lowell's online courses meet for either 10 or 14 weeks, however, students generally log on to their course site once per week to retrieve lectures and assignments or to participate in a chat session. For more information on online courses, click here to go to UMass Lowell's online courses website. In addition to the Fall and Spring semesters, students may also have the opportunity to accelerate their programs of study during two concentrated six-week Summer sessions. Online courses are also offered during the Summer semester, but unlike the on-campus courses, the online summer courses meet from May through August for a period of 14 weeks unless otherwise noted. All students should anticipate at least two hours of preparation for every hour of classroom instruction. Students are required to maintain a grade point average of 2.0 or better to receive the certificate.

Application into the Program
Those who wish to enroll in the certificate program should submit a completed application form and arrange to have their official high school transcript or GED sent to Continuing Studies. Applications, transcripts, and other correspondence should be sent to: University of Massachusetts Lowell, Admissions/Continuing Studies, Corporate & Distance Education, Dugan Hall, Room 110, 883 Broadway Street, Lowell, MA 01854-5104. Applications are accepted on an ongoing basis and there is no fee to apply. Upon acceptance, notification will be sent to students.

Registering for Courses
Continuing Studies offers courses during the Fall, Winter, Spring and Summer. Information about current course offerings, schedules, and registration procedures is published regularly on our website. If you would like to receive a printed Course Bulletin, please contact our Faculty and Student Support Center at (978) 934-2474.

You may take courses without being officially enrolled in a certificate or degree program, but you must meet the particular course prerequisites. Registrations are accepted on a first come, first served basis. Class size is limited. We recommend that you register early to reserve your place in class.

Transfer Policy
With the program coordinator's approval, one course may be transferred from another accredited institution to satisfy undergraduate certificate program requirements. The course should be equivalent to UMass Lowell instruction, applicable to the intended program, and the student must have received a grade equivalent to a C- (1.70 on a 4.00 scale) or better.

Academic Advising
Program Coordinators and Faculty and Student Support Specialists are available by appointment to help students determine appropriate course loads, discuss admission requirements, and review the transferability of courses. For online advising, email us at Continuing_Education@uml.edu. To schedule an appointment with a Program Coordinator or Faculty and Student Support Specialist, please call Continuing Studies at (978) 934-2474. General academic advising is also available at the Faculty and Student Support Center on a drop-in basis, located in Southwick Hall, Room 202 on UMass Lowell North. Call (978) 934-2474 or stop by the office Monday through Thursday between 8:30am-8:00pm and on Friday between 8:30am-5:00pm.

Awarding of Certificates
Upon successful completion of the certificate program, students must submit a completed Certificate Petition Form to Continuing Studies. Upon verification, students will be mailed their certificates. Receipt of the certificate will be noted formally on the student's transcript with an award date of October, February, or June.

Tuition
Please refer to our current course listings published online each semester for up-to-date pricing information or refer to the Continuing Studies Course Bulletin each semester.

For More Information
For additional information on any of our programs, call Continuing Studies at (978) 934-2474 or email Continuing_Education@uml.edu.

For information on Financial Aid, call the Financial Aid Office at (978) 934-4220.

Course Descriptions

42.221 Writing for Interactive Media
Adds new dimensions to traditional, text-based writing. Hypertext links allow for multiple story lines, while integrating audio, animation, and video presents new challenges for the writer. Participants will examine successful multimedia scripts and work on their own creations. 3 credits.

42.408 Principles of Technical Writing (Formerly 42.401)
Provides the fundamental concepts and principles of technical writing, including technical description, audience analysis, editing, document specifications and outlines, graphics, definitions, and revising documents. Writing assignments include preparing a document specification, editing, and creating graphics. 3 credits. Prerequisite: 42.102

42.412 Software Writing
Focuses on the document preparation process from start to finish, focusing on each stage in the process. Includes document design, document organization, using examples and illustrations, style, creating an index and the review process. 3 credits. Prerequisite: 42.408

42.413 Advanced Software Writing (Formerly 42.403)
Introduces a range of advanced topics in software writing. Topics may include electronic publishing, hypertext, advanced graphics, document set components, and working in project teams. In this course, the student selects some aspect of the computer industry that interests him/her and documents it. 3 credits. Prerequisite: 42.412

90.227 Developing Interactive Help Systems: RoboHelp®
This course is designed for technical writers, project managers, web developers and designers or anyone interested in creating, developing, and managing Help systems. Students will learn to use RoboHelp to create professional Help systems and documentation for desktop and web-based applications, including CD-ROMs, .NET and Rich Internet Applications. Students will learn to create Table of Contents, Index, Glossary, context-sensitive Help, and how to generate Help systems in any popular online Help format, plus press-ready printed documentation. Students will also explore the use of RoboDemo as a potential add-in to make help systems more interactive by incorporating Flash movies and video. Prerequisite: Familiarity with technical writing and/or web/multimedia development. 3 credits. 3 credits. Prerequisite: Familiarity with technical writing and/or web/multimedia development

90.228 Introduction to Adobe® FrameMaker
This introductory course teaches the fundamentals of Adobe FrameMaker, the tool of choice for technical documentation professionals. Using a hands-on approach, the student will learn how to validate an EDD, understand the concepts of DTD, SGML, and XML, work with formats in a structured template, validate XML and SGML documents, work with markup languages, import and export documents to other formats, and more. 3 credits.

90.291 Introduction to DHTML
Starts with the basics of Dynamic Hypertext Markup Language using the tool that most professional Web developers use - HTML-Kit. The course covers the W3C standards for HTML 3.2 and 4.0, Web protocols, Web server basics, Web design theory, and provides a survey of JavaScript, Cascading Style Sheets, XML, Perl, and Dynamic HTML. 3 credits.

90.306 Introduction to XML
XML (eXtensible Markup Language) picks up where HTML leaves off. If you've studied HTML, you've learned the Web's formatting language. To structure content on the Web, you will need to learn XML. In this introductory course, you will learn basics of XML and the DTD (Document Type Definition), XSL (the style sheet for XML), and CDF (Channel Definition Format) commonly used in push technology. 3 credits. Prerequisite: 90.291; students should have a mastery of DHTML and be familiar with database concepts