Understanding Language Is an Asset

Since completing the Professional Sequence in Editing, Brian Taylor continues to utilize his new skills in his day-to-day work as a freelance copy editor for Medbridge, a company that creates continuing education resources for medical professionals.

“There is a high standard of accuracy and consistency required in these medical education courses, which makes an awareness of grammar rules and copyediting best practices very important,” Brian says. “An editing test was required as part of the application process for this position, and I wouldn't have performed nearly as well had I not completed the sequence in editing.

“The courses in the sequence require learners to copyedit material outside their professional experience, which is a very useful skill.”

Because Brian doesn't have a medical background, he says he often needs to quickly and efficiently verify spellings and concepts to successfully copyedit slide decks and webinar materials.

“The editing program taught me that being an expert in English grammar and usage is more important for effective copyediting than being a subject matter expert,” he adds.

 “The person who hired me had also completed the same professional sequence in editing. Knowing we shared that overlap in knowledge was very helpful as I got started.”

In addition to instilling a much more robust understanding of English grammar and usage, Brian says what he learned has made it so he can confidently navigate The Chicago Manual of Style, articulate thoughtful and professional queries, and create effective style sheets in his work.

“I use the skills I learned almost every day—listing them all would take forever!” Brian enthuses.

Upskilling for a Changing Career

Brian's journey to professional editing was built on years of language-focused experience. He volunteered in Iquique, Chile, with English Opens Doors and taught English as a foreign language with ILA Vietnam for three years, planning and delivering effective lesson plans.

Shifting to a content creation role was a natural pivot from his previous work as an international teacher, which had made it necessary to deeply understand English grammar. It was while developing content that Brian began regularly editing other writers’ work, and they would return the favor.  

“We provided queries for suggested edits and maintained a very collaborative working environment,” Brian recalls. “We developed our style guide by focusing on the editorial decisions that would come up most frequently when writing about language learning. This helped us achieve greater consistency across the website’s content while making the content creation process more efficient.”

Brian’s career next shifted to freelance online content writer and editor—a turning point for him to upskill.

“I was doing some editing, but I had never had formal training in editing,” he shares. “The freelance writing landscape seemed to be changing—and still is—with the advent of large language models. Pivoting to focus on editing was a way to move my career in a better direction.

“I saw that a handful of editing programs were consistently recommended by professional editors, and the program at UC Berkeley Extension was on that list.”

Because he was also living between Vietnam, the United States and Austria during this time, it was essential that any online course he took was asynchronous.

Jess Romaine, Brian’s instructor for Grammar, Mechanics and Usage for Editors—which became a course favorite—stood out.

“She did an excellent job of facilitating engaging discussions and was very knowledgeable,” he commends. “The fact that discussions were asynchronous and text-based was ideal. I could take the time to formulate questions exactly how I wanted to, which made the responses extremely useful to me.”

He also offers this surprising discovery that has made a difference in his career: “‘You don’t know what you don’t know’ is a refrain that appeared at least once in every course of the program. It sounds obvious, but it was truly eye-opening to learn how much I didn’t know. One of the most important skills I honed in the program was simply how to read more slowly and carefully while editing. It takes practice!”

And for those who are interested in their own editing “eye-opening” experience, Brian adds: “Some type of formal education is indispensable for anyone considering a profession in editing. Even as someone who had taught English language and worked as a writer for several years, there was so much I would never have known without specialized education. I was already able to improve other people’s writing before taking these courses, but now I can offer much more.”

A Lifelong Love of Language

A love of language has always been close to Brian’s heart. When he was 17, a study-abroad program in Spain cemented his interest in the Spanish language and other cultures. This led to earning a bachelor’s degree in Spanish language and literature from Western Washington University.

Reflecting back, Brian says his first early work exposure to a variety of editorial processes was an early indicator of things to come.

“Knowing what I know now, I might have used project-specific style sheets to streamline the process of checking for consistency, and I would have been able to provide more helpful suggestions for additions to the in-house style guide,” he reflects on his time working on language translations projects.

Brian’s career journey also shows that solid writing and editing skills are applicable to whatever field you might be in.

“My knowledge of American English grammar rules was certainly an asset in teaching English to speakers of other language,” this graduate of our Professional Sequence in Editing adds.

“Learning another language provided a strong foundation for a variety of skills that have been useful in teaching, writing and editing. The ability to think and talk about language analytically isn’t a skill everyone has, and it can be a real asset.”