So You Want to be a Technical Writer!

Learn what it takes to be a successful technical writer in just 6 weeks!

Most of us are curious about new age careers and wonder whether we could make a success of them. This is precisely what this Course does – give you an understanding of what technical writers do, where they work, the skills they need and the tools they use. You also learn about the job trends and salaries in this industry. You will be given the opportunity to interact with technical communicators who will be happy to answer your questions about the profession.

As part of the course, you will create a series of short projects that will help you to assess:
Whether you are well-suited to life as a technical writer and whether direct employment, freelancing, or contract technical writing are good options for you. Your current attributes and skills and which ones you need to develop to be marketable. The jobs and salaries are available in your area or in a region you wish to work.

As a final project, you will create a marketing plan to market themselves as a technical writers.

You will be given selections for readings and individual assignments, besides being encouraged to interact with fellow students and the instructor through discussion message boards and optional online chats. You will also receive a weekly mailing containing resources on the web where you can explore information on technical writing careers or related issues.

Each student will focus on the areas most applicable to their level of experience, chosen field, and future plans for a technical writing career. Assignments consist of several projects that will involve research, analysis and discussion. Each project will culminate in a short, written report to the instructor. Throughout the course students will receive in-depth feedback from the instructor on assignments and may discuss any issues related to technical writing with the instructor and with other students using the discussion boards.

Outcomes:

1. The student demonstrates his or her understanding of technical writing as a career field.

2. The student demonstrates understanding of trends and requirements within the technical writing field and feels confident of his/her ability to meet the challenges of this dynamic field.

3. The student demonstrates understanding of the tools and skills required by technical writers in the particular type of job for which he or she will be applying.

3. The student demonstrates the ability to create and carry out a plan to successfully market himself/herself to employers of technical writers.

Assessment

Assessment will be based on the instructor's evaluation of a series of well written documents that...

A. Identify the student's needs, values, and goals and explain how technical writing as a career fits in with the lives he or she wants to create for themselves.

B. Clearly define the type of technical writing position the student will be seeking and its requirements.

C. Identify their strengths and weaknesses as a candidate for technical writing positions and describe a plan for developing new competencies and maintaining current competencies.

D. Demonstrate an understanding of how to research the job market.

D. Demonstrate that the student can competently market himself or herself using a combination of resume, internet research, networking, and portfolio.

Week 1 :

Students will complete exercises that will help them analyze their own lives, values and plans for the future and consider the ways in which a career in technical writing might help them meet their needs and goals. Students will write a "Personal Mission Statement," which they can use to focus their efforts during the rest of the course.

Week 2 :

Students will complete a series of research exercises that will help them gain a clear picture of the what technical writers do, where they work, the skills required and the tools they use. They will also learn about job trends and salaries in the region in which they plan to work. Besides this, they will have the opportunity to interact with a panel of working technical communicators who will answer their queries on the profession. They will have to complete a memo report, in technical writing style, in which they define the ideal technical writing job for them. Ms. Roosa will provide feedback during the writing process and will evaluate the final document.

Week 3 :

Continuation of Week 2.

Week 4 :

Students will complete a series of exercises that will help them target specific companies that hire technical writers in the students' chosen field/region, identify those they might like to apply to, and then determine the skills and knowledge required by these companies. Next, they will analyze their current competencies and determine which skills they need to hone or acquire to be competitive in their chosen technical writing field.

Week 5 :

Students will create a personal marketing plan for themselves as technical writers. Additional topics will include resume writing, portfolio building, interviewing and follow-up, traditional and Internet job seeking, and networking.

Week 6 :

Continuation of Week 5

Look for this course: KSA 255

Tech Writing, Certification, RoboHelp, XML

KSA233 Introduction to Technical Writing for Industry $ 299 Enroll Explore the rewarding career of a technical communicator in the high-tech industry. KSA233-C Technical Communication, an Introduction for Current Technical Writers, Editors, & Designers $ 325 Enroll Get an overview of the whole field of technical communication. Expand your perspective. For current tech writers, editors, and designers. KSA234 Intermediate Technical Writing $ 299 Enroll Covers instructions, recommendation reports, headings, lists, notices, highlighting, and tables. KSA235 Advanced Technical Writing $ 299 Enroll Plan, write, and design one of the most common business/technical documents--a proposal. KSA250 SD Writers At Work: A Review for Professionals - Part I $ 145 Enroll Covers the most basic aspects of good writing on the job. KSA251 SD Writers At Work: A Review for Professionals - Part II: Punctuation $ 145 Enroll This, the second of four review courses, focuses on punctuation. KSA252 SD Writers At Work: A Review for Professionals - Part III: Achieving Clear, Concise Writing $ 145 Enroll Review helps you develop a clear, concise, and dynamic writing style. KSA254 SD Writers At Work: A Review for Professionals - Part IV: Achieving A Professional Style $ 145 Enroll Develop a readable style and design visually appealing documents. KSA254-E -P* Writers at Work Bundle $ 520 Enroll Enroll in all four of our best selling Writer's at Work Series and earn a Certificate. KSA255 So You Want to be a Technical Writer! $ 210 Enroll A 6-week course will introduce you to technical writing as a career. KSA280 Graphics for Technical Writers $ 265 Enroll Learn how to make "minor" changes in document illustrations or create illustrations for documents. KSA281 Using CorelDRAW - Part 1 $ 265 Enroll Learn CorelDRAW (Part1), the most widely used illustration package on the Windows operating platform. KSA281-B Introduction to CorelDRAW - Part II $ 265 Enroll Continuation of Part I with emphasis on use of the effect functions, page set up, advanced text handling, and technical illustration tools. KSA284-B Introduction to SnagIt [Without Software] $ 65 Enroll This online course teaches you the various tips on the latest version of the SnagIt screen capture program. For Beginners. KSA284-D A Technical Approach on How to Create Desktop Video Captures Using Camtasia® 3.0.1 $ 38 Enroll For Beginners and those who already own Camtasia--Learn to record windows screen movement, voice, sound with Camtasia® - Video capture the easy way! KSA285 Writing User Guides $ 285 Enroll Designed for people who want to focus on writing effective user (how-to) guides. KSA286 SD Mastering RoboHelp Office (Latest Release) $ 16 Enroll Why pay hundreds of dollars for basic/intermediate RoboHelp training? Learn the basics of WinHelp, WebHelp and HTML Help development--plus real world tricks and tips--with this 200-page tutorial manual. KSA287 A Workshop Approach to Mastering RoboHelp Office (Latest Release) $ 325 Enroll Learn from an expert and save hundreds of training dollars. (Optional purchase, full version RoboHelp for only $499, Reg.$999 See Details) KSA288 Systems Requirements Analysis and Design Writing $ 285 Enroll Learn how to effectively write business requirements for systems analysis and design. KSA289 Document Design and Usability $ 299 Enroll Learn how to make your technical documentation usable, user friendly, and to user-specifications. KSA290 So You Want To Be A Medical Writer $ 285 Enroll Skills and knowledge you will need to effectively write medically related materials. KSA293 Ready, Set, XML for Non Programmers $ 295 Enroll XML for writers, editors, managers, and other non-programmers. Learn to read and write documents in XML, the key to new Web content and e-commerce. KSA294 Intermediate XML: Creating a DTD $ 299 Enroll Read and write a Document Type Definition, modeling the structure for all your XML documents. KSA297 Creating Outstanding Online Help: A Self-Directed Study (Software Industry) $ 110 Enroll This course is for you if you have some experience as a Technical Writer (but not much creating online help)and are looking to enhance your skill set. This course demonstrates - through self-directed study - the initial process of creating effective online help by starting with a solid outline. KSA298 Creating Outstanding Online Help: Principles and Practice (Software Industry) $ 145 Enroll If you have little or no experience in creating online help this course is for you. It includes instruction about basic principals and practices and allows the student to create an online help system outline with the assistance of a “side-by-side” editor. NOTE: If you have experience as a Technical Writer - but not much creating online help - and are looking to enhance your skill set, another course offering - Creating Outstanding Online Help: A Self Directed Study - may be more relevant to your needs. KSA299-A FrameMaker I: Getting Your Feet Wet $ 299 Enroll Create simple documents using Adobe FrameMaker. Learn how to apply formats to FrameMaker documents, apply templates, create tables, and work with graphics and anchored frames. You can download the trial version of this software from the Adobe FrameMaker product site. KSA299-B FrameMaker II: Diving In $ 299 Enroll Create books with multiple files; generate and format tables of contents and indexes; use cross-references, footnotes, variables, and conditional text; and convert documents to other formats, such as Adobe PDF and HTML. You can download the trial version of this software from the Adobe FrameMaker product site. KSA900 -P* Certificate in Technical Writing900 $ 799 Enroll Career Advancement--Earn Technical Writing Certification from the premier provider of online training in Technical Communication. KSA901 -P* Certificate in Technical Writing For Current Technical Writers $ 824 Enroll A Certificate Program for current tech writers, editors, and designers. KSA920-A Master’s Specialist Workshop: Technical Writing in the Workplace (Modules 1-3) $ 399 Enroll Study of technical descriptions, processes, instructions, and formal recommendation reports, including revision and editing strategies. KSA920-B Master's Specialist Workshop: Information and Document Design (Modules 4-6) $ 399 Enroll Course work will consider visual rhetoric, including the principles of visual perception and how these principles apply to document design. KSA920-C Master's Specialist Workshop: Technical Documentation Quality Management (Modules 7-9) $ 399 Enroll Study of all phases of documentation project management, focusing on plans and models of publications management.

For a complete listing of Other Technical Writing Courses Click Here