Home Page / Employer Centre / Technical editor

Technical Editor

Want to improve the communication of scientific and engineering concepts? Our editors can transform rough draft material into a polished and publishable document.

What can a technical editor do for me?

Technical editing is really a quality control job. It involves a thorough review of a technical manuscript to ensure that the message is communicated clearly and concisely. The editor is not the person responsible for ensuring the technical accuracy of the material; however a technical editor would question any item they suspect may be incorrect, and ensure that the responsible person verifies its accuracy.

Generally technical editors have a general familiarity with the subject being presented, and ideally are familiar with the technical terminology used. The technical editor need not know too much about the subject beforehand, but should be able to learn about it from what the writer has written (just as the intended reader should).

Technical editing covers far more than just printed materials. Editors deal with:

Printed materials (for example, books, pamphlets, quick reference cards, reports)
Electronic materials (for example, online documentation, online help, web pages)
Video scripts
Computer-based training materials

Technical editors work in a variety of fields, including IT, Engineering, Medicine, Sciences, Legal, Banking and brokerage services and website development for any business or activity.

A technical editor can:

Review, edit and rewrite all technical copy as necessary, in cooperation with authors providing whatever levels of edit are required or requested
Assist with translations, usually in the idiomatic expression in English of technical concepts
Organise reviews of material for technical accuracy
Set and enforce standards for the company
Make recommendations on the development of material, particularly its logical order and structure
Advise writers on the appropriate use of graphics, wording of headings, figure and table captions, page breaks, index and glossary entries

What should I look for?

An experienced technical editor will

Have at least 5 years experience
Excellent MS Word skills
Some form of formal accreditation e.g. a Diploma of Editing or be a registered IPED

How much will it cost me?

Junior editor costs start from $50 ph.

Experienced editor costs start from $70 ph.

What else should I consider?

The task of editing a piece of writing can be divided into several tasks, which can be performed by different people. These range from simple proofreading prior to publication through copy editing (checking spelling grammar etc) to substantive editing that considers the total structure of the document. You need to decide what level of editing is required for each document.

A technical editor is best used to consider the document's technical content and how well it is presented to the intended audience. Other levels of editing can be achieved more cheaply using editors with more general skills.

An organisation that doesn't want or need a full-time editor could consider these options:

using a contract editor for a specific project or task e.g. tender response
having writers edit each other's work.