RE: Technical Writing Certifications

["Lauren" <lt34 -at- csus -dot- edu>]

The junior colleges, universities, and university extensions in my area all
have technical writing certification programs.  Perhaps the tech schools do
too, I don't know all of the places to get a certificate but there are a lot
around here.  There are also a lot of online programs that are easy to find
with a web search.  It seems that getting an education certificate in
technical writing is relatively straight-forward these days.  Certification
as a technical writing professional is not exactly forthcoming, yet.

An education can help somebody get started with the know-how of technical
writing.  "Winging it in a crunch" can give a person know-how in technical
writing but with an application to the real world.  Although, I don't think
that there's really any substitute for years of qualified experience.  I
can't see a shortcut from wanting to be a technical writer to being
respected as a technical writer other than years of experience.

But to summarize my opinion on the matter, a well-designed technical writer
certificate could help a person prove their qualifications of education,
experience, and know-how and possibly place themselves at the top of a heap
of equally-qualified technical writers in a nearly saturated market.

Lauren
 

> -----Original Message-----
> From: techwr-l-bounces+lt34=csus -dot- edu -at- lists -dot- techwr-l -dot- com 
> [mailto:techwr-l-bounces+lt34=csus -dot- edu -at- lists -dot- techwr-l -dot- com] On 
> Behalf Of Pro TechWriter
> Sent: Thursday, September 27, 2007 9:17 PM
> To: Bill Swallow
> Cc: techwr-l -at- lists -dot- techwr-l -dot- com
> Subject: Re: Technical Writing Certifications
> 
> Sorry to be unclear. I was talking about "Technical Writing 
> Certificate
> program." Like you, I don't know of any certification for 
> technical writers.
> That doesn't mean there isn't one, somewhere.
> 
> PT

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