Copy editing certification
January 16, 2022 1:34 PM
I have a friend who enjoys copy editing and who is looking at the UC SD 1 year online certification to open doors as well as to provide a solid foundation. Tell me what you think about this. Yes, this is a pretty open inquiry, but interested in reactions.
Experience - and references who will talk about the quality of your work - matter far, far more.
How do you get a job without experience? How do you get experience without a job? This is like all the job postings you see wanting someone entry-level but with five years experience.
You see similar questions about certifications in tech writer circles from people who want to get into the profession but don't know where to start or how to even get started.
My answer is that if you're starting from zero, a certification course will often give you the groundwork to at least be able to get a job, even if it's just some contract work to give you some experience, work samples, and references.
However, if you're counting on the certification course to be the one key that opens the door, you're usually going to be disappointed. All the certification course does is help you understand what the profession looks like. You're still going to have to do the work to get your foot in the door.
posted by ralan at 2:50 PM on January 16, 2022
How do you get a job without experience? How do you get experience without a job? This is like all the job postings you see wanting someone entry-level but with five years experience.
You see similar questions about certifications in tech writer circles from people who want to get into the profession but don't know where to start or how to even get started.
My answer is that if you're starting from zero, a certification course will often give you the groundwork to at least be able to get a job, even if it's just some contract work to give you some experience, work samples, and references.
However, if you're counting on the certification course to be the one key that opens the door, you're usually going to be disappointed. All the certification course does is help you understand what the profession looks like. You're still going to have to do the work to get your foot in the door.
posted by ralan at 2:50 PM on January 16, 2022
Yeah, the few times we've received a packet from somebody bragging about their copyediting certificate we've not taken the bait. But we're always swamped with applications from wildly overqualified masters-degree-holders, so depending where your friend will be looking their mileage may vary.
posted by Don Pepino at 3:11 PM on January 16, 2022
posted by Don Pepino at 3:11 PM on January 16, 2022
I'm a copy editor, and I've been involved with hiring copy editors. I agree that experience is much more important than a certificate. Also, I've evaluated work samples and tests from people whose resume shows a lot of experience, but who make many, many errors. It was a real shock to me to find out how many people who claim to be professional copy editors are just very bad at it.
As far as getting experience without having experience, I've mostly seen people start at lower level jobs in publishing, then move into copy editing. Job titles for that would include things like editorial assistant or publishing assistant. My first job title in publishing was technical library assistant. From there, I moved into copy editing at the same journal.
(Also, if the job description says to provide a cover letter, provide a cover letter. You wouldn't believe how many people get ruled out for failure to follow this specific instruction.)
posted by FencingGal at 3:22 PM on January 16, 2022
As far as getting experience without having experience, I've mostly seen people start at lower level jobs in publishing, then move into copy editing. Job titles for that would include things like editorial assistant or publishing assistant. My first job title in publishing was technical library assistant. From there, I moved into copy editing at the same journal.
(Also, if the job description says to provide a cover letter, provide a cover letter. You wouldn't believe how many people get ruled out for failure to follow this specific instruction.)
posted by FencingGal at 3:22 PM on January 16, 2022
I am a former copyeditor and have hired copyeditors. I, too, have never heard of a copyediting certification program and would probably not be swayed by one in a hiring decision.
To be a successful copyeditor, you need to be fluent in one or more of the leading style guides. Copyeditors don't get hired because they have a knack for it, or a good ear for it -- they get hired because they know how to adhere to an established style. The AP stylebook is probably the best for a new copyeditor eager to build a foundation. The Chicago Manual of Style is used in book and especially academic publishing. There are several other important styleguides, but these are the Big Two.
Most copyediting these days is done in word processors using Track Change/Accept Change tools, but it's still important to know the "red pen" copyediting conventions for marking up a paper draft, both so you can understand an already-marked manuscript that has reached your desk and so you can make legible on-paper changes to contribute to a piece that is already typeset.
I got my first solid copyediting job by marking up a dreadfully edited piece in an academic publication and showing it to the editor. I got my second solid copyediting job by copyediting student papers and assembling a before-and-after portfolio. Your friend can do the same with websites, newsletters, neighborhood newspapers, and so on. It's volunteer work, but it builds a body of work and a list of grateful references.
These are some of the things your friend can do to get hired as a copyeditor. A certification program sounds like an expensive waste of time to me.
posted by Scarf Joint at 3:27 PM on January 16, 2022
To be a successful copyeditor, you need to be fluent in one or more of the leading style guides. Copyeditors don't get hired because they have a knack for it, or a good ear for it -- they get hired because they know how to adhere to an established style. The AP stylebook is probably the best for a new copyeditor eager to build a foundation. The Chicago Manual of Style is used in book and especially academic publishing. There are several other important styleguides, but these are the Big Two.
Most copyediting these days is done in word processors using Track Change/Accept Change tools, but it's still important to know the "red pen" copyediting conventions for marking up a paper draft, both so you can understand an already-marked manuscript that has reached your desk and so you can make legible on-paper changes to contribute to a piece that is already typeset.
I got my first solid copyediting job by marking up a dreadfully edited piece in an academic publication and showing it to the editor. I got my second solid copyediting job by copyediting student papers and assembling a before-and-after portfolio. Your friend can do the same with websites, newsletters, neighborhood newspapers, and so on. It's volunteer work, but it builds a body of work and a list of grateful references.
These are some of the things your friend can do to get hired as a copyeditor. A certification program sounds like an expensive waste of time to me.
posted by Scarf Joint at 3:27 PM on January 16, 2022
I was an editor until a few months ago and I've never heard of this either. None of the editors I know got started this way.
(I got my experience freelancing in 2014* and got my first editing job in 2015. So I might be a bit out of date, but I'm not a total dinosaur.)
I extremely sympathize with the frustration over this whole situation. Freelancing was a shitty, precarious way to make money, and I switched from freelancing to a steady job as soon as I can. I really, really wish there was a certificate that could take its place. But I don't think this has any recognition.
I agree that if you don't have the basic skills, it would be worth taking classes to get them. But focus on getting the skills by whatever means is available, and then getting examples of work demonstrating them.
*I got freelance clients by advertising to researchers and grad students in my college town who needed a paper spruced up before they submitted it to journals. I offered to do a sample edit of a page or two (which also helped me estimate how long it would take to do the whole thing). Once they saw the sample edits, people generally decided I was good enough to spend money on. I used some of my freelance clients' before and after documents to get my first real job.
posted by nebulawindphone at 4:10 PM on January 16, 2022
(I got my experience freelancing in 2014* and got my first editing job in 2015. So I might be a bit out of date, but I'm not a total dinosaur.)
I extremely sympathize with the frustration over this whole situation. Freelancing was a shitty, precarious way to make money, and I switched from freelancing to a steady job as soon as I can. I really, really wish there was a certificate that could take its place. But I don't think this has any recognition.
I agree that if you don't have the basic skills, it would be worth taking classes to get them. But focus on getting the skills by whatever means is available, and then getting examples of work demonstrating them.
*I got freelance clients by advertising to researchers and grad students in my college town who needed a paper spruced up before they submitted it to journals. I offered to do a sample edit of a page or two (which also helped me estimate how long it would take to do the whole thing). Once they saw the sample edits, people generally decided I was good enough to spend money on. I used some of my freelance clients' before and after documents to get my first real job.
posted by nebulawindphone at 4:10 PM on January 16, 2022
I’m five years or so out of date on the current state of the field but at that point, no one was asking for or cared about certifications in academic copy editing, at least. I would not recommend certification as a way to open any doors, though by all means, if your friend wanted to take classes for the learning’s sake, sure!
If I were looking to break back into it now the first thing I would do is sign back up to the copyediting-l listserv and poke around the recent archives to get a sense for how people are finding clients these days. If there are any actually useful certifications around currently I’d expect to find them discussed there.
posted by Stacey at 4:32 PM on January 16, 2022
If I were looking to break back into it now the first thing I would do is sign back up to the copyediting-l listserv and poke around the recent archives to get a sense for how people are finding clients these days. If there are any actually useful certifications around currently I’d expect to find them discussed there.
posted by Stacey at 4:32 PM on January 16, 2022
(Oh, thinking about communities, the Write the Docs slack is specifically about tech writing/editing, but if your friend is interested in heading in that direction, I'd check them out. I remember a decent number of editors, and I got very friendly advice when I was on there a few years ago.)
posted by nebulawindphone at 4:52 PM on January 16, 2022
posted by nebulawindphone at 4:52 PM on January 16, 2022
As a complete outsider to publishing, I'd suggest it's possible the education provided by the UCSD program might be useful even if the certificate per se is not. For example if the candidate doesn't know about the style manuals and they are covered in class. Or if the candidate needs to be brought up to speed on doing markup in a computer.
posted by SemiSalt at 5:12 PM on January 16, 2022
posted by SemiSalt at 5:12 PM on January 16, 2022
I used to teach at one of the earliest certificate programs in editing. I don’t see a link and right now I can’t look up the place you mentioned here, but are you sure it’s certification you’re talking about and not simply earning a certificate (sort of basically like graduating a program with a certificate/diploma that you passed)? I think that’s what could be causing the confusion here; I’m constantly surprised by how easily even people who work with words confuse the two.
At the time I was teaching, the only true certification program that I knew of for editors was the BELS, which was for life sciences editors. A certification for that involved taking a test after a course of study. But certificate programs are basically like any school program, and involve learning the basics of copy editing and proofreading, possibly even actual work experience on a project applying recently learned skills.
The big problem with saying that people should get experience and that no program could match that is that these days there are very few places to learn the craft of copyediting. A lot of the people I knew who had come up in the field had learned their craft at newspapers and magazines and there just are not that many places to do that in these days. You can also get connected in a certificate program to other people who are working in the field and who instruct in the program. So I don’t know if they’ll get a leg up but if they put the work in, I have seen it help students get experience and connections.
If they’re any good, they might get value out of it. The pissiness here is somewhat typical unfortunately, and this field can be tough to get into, but they might find the work to earn a certificate valuable—only they’d know. Feel free to memail me—I might be able to offer some insights.
posted by kitten kaboodle at 7:55 PM on January 16, 2022
At the time I was teaching, the only true certification program that I knew of for editors was the BELS, which was for life sciences editors. A certification for that involved taking a test after a course of study. But certificate programs are basically like any school program, and involve learning the basics of copy editing and proofreading, possibly even actual work experience on a project applying recently learned skills.
The big problem with saying that people should get experience and that no program could match that is that these days there are very few places to learn the craft of copyediting. A lot of the people I knew who had come up in the field had learned their craft at newspapers and magazines and there just are not that many places to do that in these days. You can also get connected in a certificate program to other people who are working in the field and who instruct in the program. So I don’t know if they’ll get a leg up but if they put the work in, I have seen it help students get experience and connections.
If they’re any good, they might get value out of it. The pissiness here is somewhat typical unfortunately, and this field can be tough to get into, but they might find the work to earn a certificate valuable—only they’d know. Feel free to memail me—I might be able to offer some insights.
posted by kitten kaboodle at 7:55 PM on January 16, 2022
How do you get a job without experience? How do you get experience without a job? This is like all the job postings you see wanting someone entry-level but with five years experience.
You work in your college's writing center as a student.
You work as an editor on your college newspaper.
You volunteer or sell yourself to edit academic papers being submitted for a degree, or for publication.
You write for publication (not the same, but it gets you some credit)
You take on editing work as a side responsibility to your day job.
You get involved with a professional association, and take on writing/editing responsibilities.
posted by NotMyselfRightNow at 4:12 AM on January 17, 2022
You work in your college's writing center as a student.
You work as an editor on your college newspaper.
You volunteer or sell yourself to edit academic papers being submitted for a degree, or for publication.
You write for publication (not the same, but it gets you some credit)
You take on editing work as a side responsibility to your day job.
You get involved with a professional association, and take on writing/editing responsibilities.
posted by NotMyselfRightNow at 4:12 AM on January 17, 2022
At the time I was teaching, the only true certification program that I knew of for editors was the BELS, which was for life sciences editors. A certification for that involved taking a test after a course of study.
Just FYI, BELS certification requires working for two years as a manuscript editor before taking the exam.
If I were just starting and wanted to take coursework in copy editing, I would go with the University of Chicago Graham School, now online (but expensive). I've taken some of their medical editing classes, and they do send emails about job opportunities - not sure how well those work out.
posted by FencingGal at 6:41 AM on January 17, 2022
Just FYI, BELS certification requires working for two years as a manuscript editor before taking the exam.
If I were just starting and wanted to take coursework in copy editing, I would go with the University of Chicago Graham School, now online (but expensive). I've taken some of their medical editing classes, and they do send emails about job opportunities - not sure how well those work out.
posted by FencingGal at 6:41 AM on January 17, 2022
The big problem with saying that people should get experience and that no program could match that is that these days there are very few places to learn the craft of copyediting. A lot of the people I knew who had come up in the field had learned their craft at newspapers and magazines and there just are not that many places to do that in these days.I think there's some truth to this, though there are just as many student papers to copyedit as there ever were, and potentially more book manuscripts for freelancers to copyedit because publishers are increasingly shifting that burden and cost to authors.
I'm sorry to exit on a depressing note, but the loss of learning opportunities at newspapers and magazines more or less exactly matches a loss of copyediting jobs in those places. Demand for copyeditors has plummeted in the last 20+ years. I think the tighter market favors people who learn to hustle up work and experience. There are a lot of good ideas above about how to do that, but I'm not sure that spending a year taking online courses is one of them.
posted by Scarf Joint at 6:08 PM on January 17, 2022
I have a copy editing certificate (from NYU) and worked as an editor for about 5 years before going to grad school. I actually found the classes helpful, in terms of teaching me how to copy edit. But the way I got those jobs was that once I had the certificate, I started volunteering to edit things at the job I already had, a receptionist gig. Then once I had about 6 months of doing that, I went for a promotion to junior editor and got it, and then was able to move up from there. So the certificate itself was helpful only because I actually learned useful skills from the classes that I was then able to demonstrate when I had the opportunity, not because anyone cared about the certificate.
posted by decathecting at 7:26 PM on January 18, 2022
posted by decathecting at 7:26 PM on January 18, 2022
(Oh, and I've also made money on the side editing friends' grad school theses, a couple of book chapters for an old employer, and someone's vanity book project (I would never do that again, ever). None of those people cared about the certificate either; they cared that I knew how to do the thing, because it had been my job.)
posted by decathecting at 7:28 PM on January 18, 2022
posted by decathecting at 7:28 PM on January 18, 2022
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I have never heard of a certification, have never looked for someone with a certification, and likely wouldn't give a candidate any extra consideration for having a certification.
Experience - and references who will talk about the quality of your work - matter far, far more.
posted by NotMyselfRightNow at 2:30 PM on January 16, 2022