Technical Writer
Technical Writer
Career Overview
Technical writers prepare instruction manuals, how-to guides, journal articles, and other supporting documents to communicate complex and technical information more easily.
Education
A four-year bachelor's degree in journalism, English, communications, or a related field is necessary to obtain this position. It is also possible to earn a four-year bachelor's degree in a technical field such as engineering or computer science. A higher degree (master's) in a related field, which may take an additional two-three years to earn, would be more valuable.
Future Outlook
Employment of technical writers is projected to grow 7 percent from 2019 to 2029, faster than the average for all occupations. The continuing expansion of scientific and technical products and growth in Web-based product support will drive employment demand for technical writers. Growth and change in the high-technology and electronics industries will result in a greater need for those who can write instruction manuals and communicate information clearly to users.
Work Environment
Most technical writers work full time. Although technical writers work in a variety of industries, they are concentrated in the computer and management, scientific, and technical industries.
Recommended High School Courses
- Journalism
- Psychology
- Math
- Computer Science
- Communication
- Technical Writing
- Science
- Active Learning - Understanding the implications of new information for both current and future problem-solving and decision-making.
- Active Listening - Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.
- Coordination - Adjusting actions in relation to others' actions.
- Critical Thinking - Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions or approaches to problems.
- Judgment and Decision Making - Considering the relative costs and benefits of potential actions to choose the most appropriate one.
- Monitoring - Monitoring/Assessing performance of yourself, other individuals, or organizations to make improvements or take corrective action.
- Reading Comprehension - Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work related documents.
- Speaking - Talking to others to convey information effectively.
- Time Management - Managing one's own time and the time of others.
- Writing - Communicating effectively in writing as appropriate for the needs of the audience.
- Administration and Management - Knowledge of business and management principles involved in strategic planning, resource allocation, human resources modeling, leadership technique, production methods, and coordination of people and resources.
- Clerical - Knowledge of administrative and clerical procedures and systems such as word processing, managing files and records, stenography and transcription, designing forms, and other office procedures and terminology.
- Communications and Media - Knowledge of media production, communication, and dissemination techniques and methods. This includes alternative ways to inform and entertain via written, oral, and visual media.
- Computers and Electronics - Knowledge of circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming.
- Customer and Personal Service - Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.
- Education and Training - Knowledge of principles and methods for curriculum and training design, teaching and instruction for individuals and groups, and the measurement of training effects.
- English Language - Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar.
- Production and Processing - Knowledge of raw materials, production processes, quality control, costs, and other techniques for maximizing the effective manufacture and distribution of goods.
- Public Safety and Security - Knowledge of relevant equipment, policies, procedures, and strategies to promote effective local, state, or national security operations for the protection of people, data, property, and institutions.
- Category Flexibility - The ability to generate or use different sets of rules for combining or grouping things in different ways.
- Deductive Reasoning - The ability to apply general rules to specific problems to produce answers that make sense.
- Fluency of Ideas - The ability to come up with a number of ideas about a topic (the number of ideas is important, not their quality, correctness, or creativity).
- Inductive Reasoning - The ability to combine pieces of information to form general rules or conclusions (includes finding a relationship among seemingly unrelated events).
- Information Ordering - The ability to arrange things or actions in a certain order or pattern according to a specific rule or set of rules (e.g., patterns of numbers, letters, words, pictures, mathematical operations).
- Near Vision - The ability to see details at close range (within a few feet of the observer).
- Oral Comprehension - The ability to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences.
- Oral Expression - The ability to communicate information and ideas in speaking so others will understand.
- Problem Sensitivity - The ability to tell when something is wrong or is likely to go wrong. It does not involve solving the problem, only recognizing there is a problem.
- Speech Clarity - The ability to speak clearly so others can understand you.
- Speech Recognition - The ability to identify and understand the speech of another person.
- Visualization - The ability to imagine how something will look after it is moved around or when its parts are moved or rearranged.
- Written Comprehension - The ability to read and understand information and ideas presented in writing.
- Written Expression - The ability to communicate information and ideas in writing so others will understand.
- Edit written materials.
- Compile technical information or documentation.
- Maintain records, documents, or other files.
- Determine presentation subjects or content.
- Research new technologies.
- Write informational material.
- Review details of technical drawings or specifications.
- Coordinate logistics for productions or events.
- Design layouts for print publications.
- Monitor current trends.
- Draw detailed or technical illustrations.
- Confer with clients to determine needs.
Schools
Schools
Alaska Christian College-...
Alfred University
Angelo State University
Antioch College
Appalachian State Univers...
Auburn University
Barry University
Baruch College (cuny)
Baylor University
Bemidji State University
Bethel University (indian...
Bluefield College
Boise State University
Bradley University
Brescia University
Dominican University
East Stroudsburg Universi...
Elon University
Fairmont State University
Ferris State University
Fontbonne University
Goucher College
Grand Canyon University
Indiana University-east C...
Missouri Southern State U...
National Louis University
New York University
North Central University
Ohio State University- Ma...
Pennsylvania State Univer...
Randolph-macon College
Saint Joseph's College -...
Saint Joseph's University
Suny Plattsburgh
University Of Arkansas- L...
University Of Houston- Do...
University Of North Alaba...
University Of Pittsburgh-...
University Of The Southwe...
Athabasca University
Burman University
Queen's University- Ki...
University Of Alberta-...
University Of British...
University Of British...
University Of Ottawa
University Of Waterloo
York University- Keele...
Approx Salary Expectation
Currency:
Low End:
$44,320.00 /yr
Avg/Med:
$72,850.00 /yr
High End:
$117,250.00 /yr
References
Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Department of Labor, Occupational Outlook Handbook, https://www.bls.gov/ooh/.
Trend Analysis - Explorer the Market, Labour Market Information, Government of Canada https://www.jobbank.gc.ca/trend-analysis.
O*NET OnLine, National Center for O*NET Development, https://www.onetonline.org/.
Trend Analysis - Explorer the Market, Labour Market Information, Government of Canada https://www.jobbank.gc.ca/trend-analysis.
O*NET OnLine, National Center for O*NET Development, https://www.onetonline.org/.