Media, Print and Publishing - Proofreader
Media, Print and Publishing - Proofreader
Amber
Proofreaders check text before it's printed or published to make sure it's correct and complete.
You'll check the text to see that it follows the agreed style. You may find and correct:
- spelling mistakes
- inconsistencies in spellings where more than one way to spell the same word is possible
- punctuation errors like full stops, commas and capital letters
- bad word breaks to make sure the text reads easily
- text that is not in the right order (including page numbers)
- errors in chapter titles or headers, for example, those that do not match the list of contents
- confusing words
As a Proofreader, you could work in an office or from home.
Proofreaders tend to work between 38 to 40 hours a week. You could work self-employed, so you would manage your own working hours.
Starting £20,000
Experienced: £30,000
You can get into this job through a university course, working towards this role or specialist courses run by professional bodies and private training organisations.
Experience working in publishing or journalism could help you to find jobs. There's a lot of competition for work and many publishing companies do not advertise vacancies. Jobs are filled through word of mouth or recommendation.
You could develop a portfolio of paid or unpaid work you've done to show your skills to employers. You could start as an editorial assistant then move into proofreading.
Volunteering will help you get a better understanding of the job and is a good way to make contacts in the publishing industry. You could volunteer to:
- proofread documents for family or people you work or study with
- write or proofread for student magazines or publications
- proofread for small businesses
- work on charity publications, websites or social media
Although a degree is not essential, if you have a degree or expertise in a particular subject, you could use it to develop a proofreading specialism. For example, if you have a technical or scientific degree you could proofread scientific textbooks or journals.