Editorial Assistant
Job Description:Editorial assistants provide support at all stages of the publication process for books, journals, magazines and online content.
Job Category:What you will do:
In this role you could:
- be a point of contact for authors
- keep databases, spreadsheets and other records up to date
- read documents and make corrections
- deal with rights and permissions
- act as personal assistant to commissioning editors
- work with images and page layout software
- proof and edit online text, including social media content
- compile and send out newsletters using design and distribution software
- edit text and images using a content management system (CMS)
- edit text on apps
Skills:
You’ll need:
- knowledge of English language
- knowledge of media production and communication
- the ability to read English
- to be able to use a computer and the main software packages competently
As well as:
- excellent verbal communication skills
- to be thorough and pay attention to detail (organisational skills)
- excellent written communication skills
- the ability to work well with others (teamwork skills)
- to be flexible and open to change (adaptability skills)
Entry Requirements:
You can get into this job through:
- a university course
- an apprenticeship
- working towards this role
- specialist training courses with professional bodies
University
Subjects like English, journalism or media studies are often preferred.
If you want to specialise in a particular field of publishing, you may need a degree that’s closely related to it, for example physics or maths for a scientific journal.
Apprenticeship
You can get into this role through an advanced apprenticeship as a publishing assistant.
This typically takes 18 months to complete as a mix of workplace learning and off-the-job study. Employers will set their own entry requirements.
Work
You could work in a publishing office or a company’s communications department as a general assistant and work your way up through in-house training and promotion.
Volunteering
You’ll find it useful when applying for jobs, to have done some paid or unpaid work experience in publishing.
Other Routes
You could take a proofreading or editing course.
Working Hours and Environment:
A typical week consists of 37-39 hours of work. You could be required to work evenings occasionally.
You could work in an office or from home.
Career Path & Progression:
With experience you could move into more senior editorial roles, or work on a freelance basis.