Re: technical writer degree programs

["Chuck Martin" <cm -at- writeforyou -dot- com>]

As the only clue to your location is your company, and if I assume that
you're in HP's HQ area (the Bay Area), I know that SFSU has a TW degree. I
cannot, however, vouch for its quality.

If you were in the Seattle area, I'd point you to one of the best programs
in the country, at the University of Washington, where there's not only a
four-year TC degree, but Masters degrees in both TC and Technical Japanese
and a PH.D. program (I'm not sure if this is here yet or coming soon).
Unlike many schools, which offer a TC-type degree as part of their
Communications (or similar) school, at the UW, TC is not only a full-fledged
department, but it is part of the Engineering school (where the discipline
belongs).

Not that I'm the least bit biased or anything.  :)

An English degree? I guess it might teach you more about writing and
literature. I can't imagine it teaching you how to design information to
best meet user needs (not to mention how to discover those user needs).

Chuck Martin



"Janice Henning" <j -dot- henning -at- comcast -dot- net> wrote in message
news:211488 -at- techwr-l -dot-  -dot-  -dot- 
>
> Hi, I currently write technical documentation for Hewlett Packard's server
division and
> have been doing so for several years. I also do phone support and
troubleshoot
> hardware/software issues on servers.

>
> HP will pay for my degree, but I'm having a hard time finding a 4-year
college in my area
> that offers a degree in technical writing. The closest I've come to it is
a bachelor
> degree in Technical Journalism, which I would only have to take two
"reporting" type
> classes than the rest I could gear towards technical writing, or so I've
been told. I
> haven't checked out the classes or curriculum yet, but I will very soon.
>
> Would I be better off in my field if I were to get a bachelor's degree in
English?
>