Whether you are a writer seeking to improve your writing skills or an individual looking for a new career path, learning how to proofread and copyedit can prove to be extremely useful. Acquiring these specialized skills will help improve your overall writing ability and may provide an interesting career path that is both lucrative and in very high demand.
Nowadays, proofreaders are in high demand, sough after not just in the corporate environment and Internet-related ventures, but also by start-up companies, small businesses and entrepreneurs. Freelance proofreading is always an option, and numerous companies offer work-from-home opportunities and an extra benefit.
If all this sounds appealing, the next step toward becoming a skilled proofreader or copyeditor is to take a professional proofreading course.
Proofreading Courses Cover:
- what proofreading and copyediting entail
- the tools you need to be an efficient proofreder or copyeditor
- step-by-step instruction on how to proofread or copyedit
- basic skills you need to learn
- how to apply the newly learned skills
- tips to become a professional proofreader or copyeditor with just a little practice
- how to proofread and copyedit different types of writing (fiction, blogs, articles)
- how to proofread and copyedit your own work
- how to secure employment in the proofreading/copyediting industry
- how to start your own proofreading or copyediting business after completing the courses
- current salary information
- practice exercises to implement newly acquired skills
By successfully completing the proofreading courses, you will be able to:
- determine the use of style sheets and style guides in proofreading and copyediting
- demonstrate matching the proper style guides for various project types
- demonstrate how to create and sue style sheets
- describe proofreaders’ markings and how they are used to proofread and copyedit
- demonstrate basic proofreading skills
- demonstrate basic copyediting skills
- summarize copyediting and proofreading career opportunities
- demonstrate mastery of lesson content
Basically, proofreading is the process of checking books, magazines and journals for errors before they are published. It is a crucial role which carries a great level of responsibility, and proper training through recognized proofreading courses is essential.
Which are the best proofreading courses?
There are several proofreading courses available, most of them offering training for all levels, whether you are just starting out, you need more advanced training or you just want to brush up your skills. So here are some options that may cover your needs when it comes to proofreading courses:
Basic Proofreading – Recommended by the Society for Editors and Proofreaders
Basic Proofreading is run by the industry training provider for book and journal publishing. It was written by founder members of the Society for Editors and Proofreaders (SfEP) and has recently been revised to ensure it is fully up to date. Moreover, the SfEP also recommends these proofreading courses to those who intend to take the SfEP accreditation test.
The course begins by taking you through the proofreader’s place in publishing and teaches you the differences between proofreading and editing. The coursework includes British Standard Institution symbols, as well as how and when they should be used. Proofreading is not just about spotting mistakes, and an important aspect of the course is understanding the implications of the changes you make.
In addition, you will cover different types of proofreading (for instance ‘blind’ proofreading) and learn how to deal with common problems. These proofreading courses are structured into five units, each containing four self-check exercises and a marked assignment. As the course goes on, the exercises will get harder, ensuring that you are always challenged and constantly improving.
Moreover, the course includes many examples from several different areas of publishing, which will give you the confidence to deal with anything from children’s books to academic texts.
Basic Proofreading courses were designed to give you the skill, judgement and understanding of the publishing process needed to succeed as a proofreader.
Once you’ve successfully completed the course, you will receive a certificate, showing the level of pass you have achieved – pass, merit or distinction. In addition, if you are a member of the SfEP, the course is worth between 10 and 20 points towards upgrading your membership, and you will also be able to enter your details on the Publishing Training Centre’s Freelance Directory.
Proofreading Courses for Freelancers – the professional choice
Freelancers.co.uk offers a new course in editing and proofreading, with professional content and an additional US (American English) version with tips and guidelines for the American freelance market. However, if you live in the UK, Canada, Australia, or New Zealand you will need the UK version of the course.
Freelance.co.uk offers the complete guide to freelancing for publishers as freelance proofreaders or copyeditors, with the courses divided into four parts:
- The first part – MS1 – is the information section, comprising about 25,000 words. In this section concepts of editing and proofreading are explained in precise detail, with lots of examples of styles preferred by publishers, layout, spelling, common mistakes and so on. Basically, this first section contains all the crucial information you need to know.
- The second part – MS2 – is a manuscript or, after having been copyedited, a typescript. It is entitled “Santorini – A Greek Island”.
- The third part – PS1 – consists of a set of proofs for MS2 which you can work on, after you learn all you need to know in the first part of the course.
- Finally, the last part – PS2 – consists of the corrected proofs, showing you all the errors/corrections you should have noticed, and also offering comprehensive notes. In addition, PS2 contains a self-assessment Scorecard to measure your skills.
These are just two of the most sought after proofreading course available on the market, but the truth is there are many other choices out there. The key is to decide what you want to do with that course, and which level of training you need. Based on these criteria, proofreading courses fall into three main categories:
Introduction to Proofreading
Introductory proofreading courses are designed for novices, and consist of introductory notions about the principles and exercise of proofreading for publishing. Among others, such courses cover practical exercises, relevant typesetting, publishing terms and design.
Proofreading for Accreditation
Proofreading courses for accreditation are designed to familiarize candidates with the SfEP exam, the qualification test in proofreading. This segment covers essential aspects of the accreditation syllabus, illustrations and captions, headlines, headings and footnotes, inserting page numbers and paragraphs etc.
Brush up your proofreading course
This particular type of proofreading courses start at the beginning, with exercises using BMI symbols to correct text, then gradually moves on to page proofs and issues of page make-up, helping you check your knowledge in the field, brush it up and update it.
All these proofreading classes can be extremely helpful if you want to do proofreading on a professional basis. Proofreading is not an inherited skill, but a learned one, obtained through tutorial material and projects. It takes a lot more than just a good command of the language to become a professional proofreader, but on the upside, the courses are challenging and entertaining, structured in chapters, require no previous background in proofreading, copyediting or publishing and will teach you everything you need to know about the job. So consider your options, determine what you need and choose your preferred course to make the first step towards a profitable career as a proofreader.