Back to Main Menu

Current Trends in Professional/Technical Writing:
The Challenges of Getting a Job Straight Out of Academia
By Tammy McInturff

Technical and professional writing is a growing field, but landing a job straight out of academia may not be as easy as one might imagine, especially for the traditional English major.  The problem is that few academic environments seem to prepare an individual for work in technical and professional writing.  Sure good students have mastered some writing concepts and learned to communicate well, but being a technical writer involves more than just good writing skills.  Examining several technical writer positions posted on www.monster.com there are many common elements for which employers are searching.  These qualifications include: good problem solving skills; excellent research skills; the ability to solve routine problems and understand technical/engineering concepts; proficiency with a variety of computer programs and a bachelors degree.  Most good students will possess many of these but there are challenges that most English majors will face.

  The three biggest challenges for an individual seeking a technical writing job straight out of academia are competition, lack of knowledge of technical writing computer software programs and inexperience in the business world.

            Competition is especially challenging for a prospective technical writer because technical writers come for a variety of majors.  This is not just a field for English majors.  Journalism majors, Computer Science majors, Engineers, Construction Managers and Software programmers are among those in the technical writing field.  Although some individuals in these fields may not write as well as an English major their knowledge of technical subjects qualifies them for the job. 

            The lack of knowledge of technical writing and computer software programs is another obstacle that students must overcome.  Examining a variety of technical writer job listings posted on www.monster.com, www.computerjobs.com, and www.headhunter.com, there appears to be at least seven computer programs that are commonly used by technical writers.  They are Microsoft Word, FrameMaker, RoboHelp, Visio, Paintshop Pro, QuarkXPress, and Photoshop.  Although most students should be proficient in Microsoft Word, the other programs with the exception of Photoshop, are not usually available in academia.  It also is not practical for a student to buy these programs and learn them on his or her own, because most of these programs are expensive.  RoboHelp costs $899.00 for an individual; QuarkXPress lists at $869.00; Adobe FrameMaker is $799.00; and Visio (standard) is $199.00 with the professional and technical editions listing at $399.00.  Word and Paintshop are slightly more affordable but it is inconceivable that most students would be able to afford all these programs.

            Experience is another huge factor that hinders and individual straight out of academia from getting a job.  Most employers are looking for an individual with at least three to five years experience.  Finding an entry-level position can be challenging, with an even more discouraging salary.  So what can an individual do to meet the requirements of employers?  How can a graduate with an English degree get a job straight out of academia?  Well, there are many options and a wealth of information available about the numerous alternatives for individuals wanting to make it in this field.  There is academic and non-academic training available in technical writing.

            Carnegie Mellon University (CMU) in Pittsburgh, PA is one of the best sources of academic training.  CMU has the oldest undergraduate technical writing program in the country.  Students can earn a Bachelor of Science in technical writing.  This is a highly structured program, which includes many math and science classes as well as two courses in visual design.  This program seems to prepare students well for work in technical writing and if a student maintains a B average he or she can take an internship during his or her senior year.  This internship provides 100 hours of professional experience as well as exposure to the work and computer software programs of technical writers.  CMU also ranks 23rd among national universities according to U.S. News & World Report.  However, CMU’s tuition and fees may not be within the budget of some prospective students (http://english.cmu.edu/programs/bs/tw/).

            The University of Delaware (UD) offers a Bachelor of Arts degree in English with a concentration in business/technical writing.  Although UD ranks well below Carnegie Mellon on the U.S. News and World Report survey, UD is in the top 100.  This program requires 24 hours of course work in literature and 15 hours of professional/technical writing classes.  Most students concentrating in technical writing at UD also take a core of courses in Computer Science, Chemistry, Business Administration, and Accounting.  This program also offers an internship, which counts for 3 hours of the 15 in professional/technical writing courses.  Tuition and fees are significantly lower for this university, with in-state costing around $5,000 and out of state around $13,700 (www.udel.edu).

            For individuals who are looking for a quicker program there are options for academic training that does not require core classes.  Coastal Carolina University (CCU) in Conway, SC offers a Certificate in Technical Writing.  This is a relatively new program in its third year of operation, which teaching students how to take complex information and simplify it for users.  It was actually designed for those individuals who lack sufficient experience in the field and who want to enhance existing careers in technical writing.  The basic technical writing certificate is awarded upon successful completion of 3 core courses—Introduction to Technical Writing for Industry, Intermediate Technical and Report Writing and Advanced Technical Documentation Writing.  These can be completed in about 15 weeks of continuous study (www.techwriter-certification.com).   Of course there are many more options for academic training, too many to discuss here.  The best advice for someone just entering academia is to research each universities program well and try to find a program that offers an internship.  Many times interns get hired after they graduate because they already have experience with the company.  And in any case, an individual with experience, even as an intern, has a greater chance of getting a job then someone without experience.

            There is also non-academic training available in technical writing.  However, most of this training seems to be designed for companies who want to help their engineers or computer software designers become better writers.  Most of the non-academic training available are seminars designed for businesses that employ technical writers.  Although it might be possible for an individual to attend one of these seminars, these are also expensive.

            Alexander Communications is one company that offers seminars in business and technical writing.  They deliver on-site, customized business writing seminars designed especially for the business they are serving.  Their seminars do not seem to be intended for English majors.  For example, one of their most popular seminars is on grammar.  Their technical writing seminar is “designed for engineers, construction managers, software programmers and others who write technical reports” (www.alexcommunications.com).  This seminar helps participants learn to eliminate superfluous information and writer more clearly, so as not to be misunderstood.  Alexander Communications also offers a seminar on proposal and report writing, but again this seems to be information that would not be helpful to an individual with a BA in English.  It just is not a practical option for a student out of academia.  Although they do not offer public seminars, Alexander Communications does offer individual coaching in person and online.  However, this too is expensive.  Alexander Communications charges by the hour not by the number of participants.  Most of their seminars last for about 6 hours and usually have at least 15 participants (www.alexcommunications.com).

            The New England Writers Group (NEWG) also offers technical writing seminars, but these too are designed for businesses that want to help improve their employees’ skills.  The NEWG offers an 8 hour Fundamentals of Technical Writing Course that is customized to the company they are serving.  Before the course the NEWG takes writing samples from the participants, which are used in the course work.  Their goal is “to improve each individual’s writing skills in one day to a level that will improve the individual’s writing performance immediately at work” (New England Writers Group).  Looking at the outline for their course one can see that this is not a practical or useful option for an individual with a BA in English.

The basic outline for this course is:

            Another option for non-academic training is the Webster Institute of Technical Writing.  Webster offers a 12-week technical writing training program as well as a 2-day class.  The 2-day class hits the high points of the 12-week program, which includes learning to plan and design truly helpful user guides, online help and web content.  Dorothy Webster, former Technical Writer, Publisher, Manager and founder of the first vocational school for technical writing and president of www.techwriters.com teaches the 2-day course.  Therefore, it seems that this might prove to be a useful training opportunity.  However, this too is expensive.  The 2-day class costs $795 per person, so most students and recent graduates could not afford to attend (www.techwriters.com).

            Vincler Communications also offers 2-day business and technical writing workshops, as well as courses in persuasive writing and effective editing.  At Vincler workshop participants have hands on exercises, personal critiques, and individual attention.  The workshop teaches crucial skills that help the individual “avoid or correct the most common writing problems and how to organize any writing job within 15 minutes” (Lenihan 1 ).  It also teaches one how to cut wordiness, build easy to read sentences, design strategic paragraphs and organize each message to achieve one’s purpose.  Vincler’s seminars are usually only one day, but just like most other non-academic writing training their seminar does not seem to be aimed at English majors.

            So what is an English major straight out of academia to do when he or she is left unprepared or inexperienced and facing the business world?  One technical writer even admits that, “employers are less and less willing, these days to hire inexperienced college graduates” (http.//www.guild.net/~puff/articles/becomingatechnicalwriter.html).  Another problem for English majors may be that “English (Literature and Composition) is closer to art, [while] technical writing is closer to science” (Becoming a Technical Writer 1).  However both are about writing and English majors do have to take science courses to earn a BA.

            Perhaps much of this seems discouraging to the college graduate with an English degree. However, there is not only a wealth of information out there about academic and non-academic training—much more than one can discuss here—there is also a wealth of advice available.  One technical writer who was continually asked advice on how to get in the field, discusses four key points on how to get experience in the technical writing field.  These points are write, learn about project planning and management, learn about computers and software, and learn about the tools of the trade.  Of course each point is well elaborated on.

            Writing may seem an obvious thing for a prospective technical writer to do.  However, it is still an important point.  The more an individual writes, especially in the field he or she is hoping to get into, the better his or her chances are of getting a job.  So doing a great deal of the kind of writing one wants to get into is not bad advice.  Also, finding a professor who is working in this field can help a student learn more about what is needed and perhaps the student can even volunteer to help the professor with projects to gain experience in the field.

            Learning about project planning and management is also important; because a big part of a technical writer’s job is managing his or her own writing projects and “understanding how they fit into the management of the software (or other ware) development project” (Becoming a Technical Writer 2). 

            Learning about computers and software is extremely important for those wanting to get into technical writing.  This is because, “over half the jobs in technical writing are in the computer industry” (Becoming a Technical Writer 2).  Joining the technical writers mailing list (http://www.raycomm.com/techwhril/) can help one get introduced to the topics that technical writers are dealing with and writing about.  Also, one should try to get a basic understanding of the theory and operation of computer software.  Learning about programming is not a bad idea either.  One can take a class or check out some books on programming.  One technical writer suggests Kelley & Pohl’s C by Dissection to learn about C programming (Becoming a Technical Writer 3).  One could also, “read through back issues of the CACM (Communications of the Association of Computing Machinery) and IEEE Software Engineering magazines…” (Becoming a Technical Writer 3).  These should be included in any university’s collection.

            Finally, learning about the tools of the trade is also important to gaining experience in technical writing.  It is almost impossible to get a job in technical writing with out the knowledge of at least a couple of software programs that technical writers use.  Here is where all the computer programs that were mentioned earlier come in.  One technical writer says:

Find and work with the major desktop publishing packages.  FrameMaker and Interleaf are the two big ones in the industry for technical publishing, but you should also work with PageMaker and Quark Express (quite popular with the magazine industry…), Microsoft Publisher, Ami Pro, anything you can get your hands on (Becoming a Technical Writer 3).

Even if one cannot afford the programs, simply examining books on these programs can help one to familiarize him or herself with the basic applications of the software. 

            There are also several books that could prove useful to the want to be technical writer.  Among these are Technical Writing by Mills and Waters and Technical Editing by Judith Tarutz, which can help one with editing one’s own work as well as that of peers.  Also, Managing Your Documentation Projects by JoAnn T. Hackos goes into detail about the process of technical writing and how to organize this process.  Hackos’ is a technical writer; so much of the process is based on her experience.  Usability Engineering by Jakob Nielson is said to be one of the popular works in the field, which should give an individual grounding in usability engineering.

            Probably every technical writer would give an individual wanting to get into the field different advice and maybe the best advice is to seek all the advice one can get.  Knowing someone in the field can help a great deal.  Mark Kittel, a technical writer for Again Technologies offers the following advice:

The first thing I would suggest is to get a good book on designing and laying out documents, if you don’t have much experience in this area, because you will need to know not only how to write but also how to make a finished document look like a professional, official piece of work. I would suggest The Non-Designer’s Design Book by Robin Williams. It is an excellent little book on what works and what doesn’t when creating the look and feel of a publication, and very easy to understand with tons of examples. It is the book I used in my first tech-writing class and is what I refer to when I’m unsure of how to get started on a new layout.

            Having writing samples available is a must.  But a perspective technical writer needs to remember the audience for which he or she is applying.  Employers do not want to see the great narrative one wrote about Aunt Fanny’s Farm or the essay examining the theme of death in Katherine Anne Porter’s Old Mortality.  Employers want to know how well an individual can write about a technical subject.  So if one does not have such samples available he or she could make one up.  Mark Kittel says:

In my tech writing class, we heard the story of an engineer who wanted to change fields and go into tech writing, but he had no writing samples to offer.  So he made one up, and managed to have some fun with it.  He wrote a detailed description of how to make a light saber, including required materials, assembly instructions, etc.  Naturally, he got the first job he applied for.

            Mark also adds that:

The most important characteristic of a technical writer is the ability to learn new subjects, especially technical subjects, in a small timeframe. The ability to communicate effectively is a close second. I place it second because if a writer cannot learn how a new program works or what a new piece of hardware does, there is no way that writer can clearly communicate with a reader.

Although much of the information given here may be a bit discouraging, it is realistic.  Many academic environments do not prepare graduates for the business world but any one who has successfully earned a degree should have the fortitude to acquire the skills needed to land the job he or she wants.  With determination it is possible to make it in any field one chooses.  Many English majors will undoubtedly struggle in the beginning and of course depending on the specific job one is writing for there will be information that the individual will have to learn on the job.  

Tammy received her Bachelor of Arts degree in 1998 from East Tennessee State University and will complete her Master of Arts degree in May 2001.  Her hobbies include playing golf, mountain biking and tennis.

Works Cited

“Becoming a Technical Writer.” 2 April 2001. <http://www.guild.net/~puff/articles/becomingatechnicalwriter.html>.

Carnegie Mellon University. 2 April 2001. <http:www.cmu.edu>.

Kittel, Mark. “Re: Tech Writing Advice.” E-mail to Tammy McInturff. 28 March 2001.

Lenihan, Phil. Vincler Communications, Inc. 2 April 2001. <http://www.vincler.com>.

Mouser, Sherry. Alexander Communications. 4 April 2001. <http:www.alexcommunications.com>.

New England Writers Group. 2 April 2001. <http://www.newg.com>.

Webster Institute of Technical Writing. 2 April 2001. <http://www.techwriters.com>.