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> David wrote <A degree in tech comm, perhaps with a minor in a scientific or
> technical discipline, and some first-rate portfolio samples and you
> should be a fairly hot ticket anywhere.>
>
> That would be nice, but seems a bit out of synch with reality. Are you by any
> chance a TW instructor?
It worked for me... back in 1996...
> The TW field has serious problems; according to WinWriters, one-third of their
> members have been downsized, outsourced, or flat out canned in the last year or
> two.
WinWriters? Do you mean WritersUA or are you looking at old data? Can
you point us to this data?
> That tends to create a VERY low demand career field, and that demand shows
> little indication of increasing in the near future. Yes, jobs are available.
> Yes, new entries can find work if they are willing to start for peanuts "to gain
> experience and fill out their resumes."
Um, that's how it generally works. What do you want for nothing? Rubber biscuit?
> The length of their "careers" is often
> the time from date of hire to first request for a raise--at which time they will
> be replaced by another dewy-eyed innocent willing to work 60-70 hours a week to
> "prove their dedication."
Um, data please. I don't see this as a trend at all. Yes, it does
happen, but it happens in just about every profession in varying
degrees.
> TW is a great field. My point was that expecting a degree to provide leverage is
> silly; most of the skills needed have to be acquired in addition to, not inside
> of, a degree program.
For entry level?
> There are a LOT of people out their with degrees in tech
> comm, and there are more every semester. To be employable, a bit more is
> necessary than a tech comm degree and a stunning portfolio; we all have those.
No, we don't all have those. The number of writers out there with a
techcomm degree are still in the minority (at least in polls that this
list and others like it have conducted), and stunning portfolios are
quite rare.
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