How to become
You can get into this job through:
- a university course
- an apprenticeship
- working towards this role
- specialist training courses with professional bodies
University
You can take a degree course to become a copy editor. Most subjects are accepted.
You might improve your chances of finding work if you have a degree in a related subject, like:
- publishing
- communication and media
- English
- creative writing
- journalism
You can find journalism courses through the National Council for the Training of Journalists.
You may need subject matter expertise or a specific degree to work in specialist publications, like scientific, medical or technical journals.
Work experience at university
You'll find it useful to get work experience during your studies. Some publishers offer work shadowing, work placements or internship opportunities.
Your university careers service can help you explore your options.
Entry requirements
You'll usually need:
- 5 GCSEs at grades 9 to 4 (A* to C), or equivalent, including English
- 2 to 3 A levels, or equivalent, for a degree
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Apprenticeship
You can apply to do a Publishing Professional Level 4 Higher Apprenticeship to get into this role.
This typically takes around 2 years to complete and is a mix of workplace training and off-the-job study.
Entry requirements
Employers will set their own entry requirements.
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Work
You could start as an editorial assistant with a publishing company to get experience of editing and proofreading.
This type of role would also allow you to create a portfolio of your work which you can show to potential employers.
Volunteering
Having some work experience can be helpful when applying for jobs in publishing. To build up your experience, you can:
- produce articles for a student magazine or local free newspaper
- work for a charity on its printed and online publications
- write content for a blog or audio recording
- submit articles to regional newspapers or websites
Volunteering is a good way to get to know people who work in the industry. This can help as many job vacancies are not advertised.
You can also search for volunteering opportunities through The National Council for Voluntary Organisations and Do IT.
Other Routes
You could take a proofreading or editing course with a professional body, like those offered by:
- The Publishing Training Centre
- the Chartered Institute of Editing and Proofreading (CIEP)
- the National Council for the Training of Journalists
Some publishing houses run graduate training schemes and internships.
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Career tips
If you want to work as a copy editor or sub-editor in journalism, the National Council for the Training of Journalists (NCTJ) has advice on bursaries and funding to encourage greater diversity in the industry.
Further information
You can get more details about working in editing and publishing from the Publishers Association and the Professional Publishers Association.
You can also find out more about working in other creative careers from Discover Creative Careers.