by John Melendez

Created on: July 22, 2009   Last Updated: July 23, 2009

Watch for "Diploma Mills"

A Warning on Certifications As A Tech Writer

A reader recently wrote me asking about the possibly of acquiring certifications as a way to jump-start her career as a technical writer.

While there's certainly much to be said about your efforts along this route, please remember many certifications require a relatively short time to earn. Depending on whom they are issued by, certification could easily be had for almost anyone willing to dish out the money. With the bad rap that "diploma mills" have gotten in recent years, a well-seasoned hiring manager's outlook on mere certification may be sullied, circumspect at best.

On the good side, more conservative employers may view your long-term efforts more favorably if they saw you studied tech writing for one or more years in a formal educational environment.

Formal Study as a Technical Writer

We cannot look upon the diploma mill phenomenon as entirely bad, for it begat something good. It has in part prompted some "legitimate" learning institutions to restore the image that certification lost.

Up until several years ago, the best qualifications hiring managers could identify for a technical writer was a degree in Journalism or English. While having one of these two degrees is a good move, Journalism or English is not an exact match for the requirements demanded of a tech writer. To answer this, it seems that more formalized education in technical writing has sprung up finally.

As recently as five years ago, mention of a "degree in technical writing" was unheard of. Fortunately now there are offerings for Bachelor degrees in Technical Writing or "Technical Communication". Some are sponsored by recognized names in education, and may come as an extension of their existing English or Journalism departments. Among these are curricula offered by Carnegie Mellon University - Bachelor of Science in Technical Writing and Communication.

Aside from formalized education be sure not to forget...

Your Past Experience Is Certainly Relevant

There is also much to be said about the diverse - and seemingly irrelevant - backgrounds from which technical writers have sprung.

A tech writers' practical experience in other careers may later end up being very valuable. In my case it certainly did. Because of my past experience in foreign languages, I now travel internationally as a technical writer.

How did I get here?

I started with a degree in Oriental Studies at my university, specializing

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