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Whether you call it certification (or whatever) I think it would be
beneficial to the profession and potential employers if there was some
sort of minimum benchmark that TWers had to meet that indicated basic
skills/knowledge. Looking at John's suggestions reminded me of Andrew
Plato's proposed TW curriculum:
Perhaps it's a bit different in the UK - smaller market and not the same
plethora of TW courses - but writers that HAVE TW qualifications are
well regarded. Perhaps simply because it shows a commitment to learning,
improvement etc.
The ISTC is also becoming well regarded with some companies now
'preferring' writers who are members.
The City & Guilds Institute 'award' a Licentiateship based on references
from work and, essentially, you portfolio. You pay for this but it's not
excessively expensive.
None of these I'd class as certification as such but they do build up a
picture of a 'professional' in the business. Not perfect but a good
start.
None of these will get me a job but, everything else being equal, they
may tip things in my favour - has done in the past. So to me,
Certification is fine in principle but hard to implement without becomes
excessively expensive and bureaucratic.
Damien Braniff | Technical Writer
damienb -at- asg -dot- com
Technical Communications
ASG | asg.com
Waterfront Plaza
8, Lagan Bank Road,
Belfast, N. Ireland BT1 3LR
Tel: +44 (0) 28.9072.3124
Fax: +44 (0) 28.9072.3324
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