If you enjoy mixing writing with technical expertise, you may want to consider a career in technical writing. Technical writers are employed in a wide variety of settings and they use their writing skills to produce a variety of marketing materials, training manuals, curricula and other publications that are used by corporations, organizations, government agencies and other institutions. Frequently, technical writers are employed in healthcare, legal, technology and scientific research settings. Here is a quick overview of what type of salaries technical writers make.
Average Salaries
According to the United States Department of Labor’s Bureau of Labor Statistics, the average salary for a technical writer in 2012 was a little bit over $65,000. The average hourly salary was around $31 an hour. Those aspiring to become technical writers will discover that the agency or organization that you intend on working for will play a major role in the type of salary you will receive. Salaries are typically higher when working in a private, corporate setting however, technical writers employed by the Federal Government can receive competitive compensation as well and can also receive a lot more fringe benefits such as extensive healthcare coverage and more paid holidays off compared to working for a corporation or a private company.
Salary and Location
The salary of technical writers will vary based on where they live. Typically technical writers will make the most money in large, metropolitan areas such as New York City, Los Angeles, Chicago, Los Angeles and Washington D.C. This is also because the cost of living is a lot higher in these cities.
Education
In order to get the highest salary as a technical writer, prospective individuals should first look into obtaining a bachelor’s degree. This could either be in English, mass communications, or an actual technical field such as engineering or computer science. Since most technical writing jobs require some sort of mathematics, engineering or science background, it is recommended to have some exposure to these fields through taking various courses. Getting a master’s degree is probably the best route and can be obtained either at a brick-and-mortar institution or online.
Additional Resource: Top 10 Best Online MIS Degree Programs
Outlook
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, technical writing jobs are expected to grow tremendously over the next decade. It is expected that technical writer jobs will grow by 15 percent over the next decade with most opportunities presenting themselves in science and engineering fields. The expansion of information technology services and the growth of the world wide web has also facilitated a tremendous amount of growth for technical writers.
In the end, if you are looking for a career that will pay a hefty salary while using your communication and writing skills, definitely consider becoming a technical writer. Find a reputable school or university that will prepare you for this field and make sure you complete some sort of internship to begin preparing for your career as a technical writer. The opportunities are out there. You just need to do your due diligence and make sure you are firmly aware of the organizations and corporations that typically hire technical writers.
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