Web Editing

Who is this course suitable for?

This course is ideal for competent, confident editors who want to extend their client base to include working on website content.

Course description

In this course, you will learn how you can apply your editorial and administrative skills in a new area. The course will give you the skills to help you to work efficiently and harmoniously with the website designers and will explain what they will expect of you.

Unit 1 discusses the opportunities for working on web content and building up your client base. We introduce the other experts who make up a web team.

Unit 2 contains tools for communicating changes and managing content. We show you how to build a safe ‘play area’ where you can practise uploading and changing content in a live web environment.

Unit 3 explains the abstract nouns you will meet, for example functionality, usability, accessibility and readability. We discuss your role in them.

Unit 4 puts you firmly in your readers’ shoes. You ask the questions they ask and make sure every word on a website helps readers find what they seek.

Unit 5 shows you how to handle web content at different stages of gestation, from starting with a blank screen to last-minute ‘proofreading’ (which might not be proofreading as you know it!).

Throughout the course we have devised exercises to show you how to use your new knowledge in practice. There are templates you can download and tailor to organise your own work. We have also linked to books, websites and blogs we have found helpful.

What you should know after the course

By the end of the course you will…

  • understand the opportunities for working on web content and building up your client base
  • understand and be able to use tools for communicating changes and managing content
  • understand the qualities such as functionality, usability, accessibility and readability and your role in them
  • understand the website readers’ needs
  • understand how to handle web content at different stages of gestation, from starting with a blank screen to last-minute ‘proofreading’.
     
Curriculum snapshot

Availability, prices and upgrade points

  E-learning
Price (members)  
Price (non-members)  
CIEP upgrade points 4
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Other price discounts are available. See the fees page.

E-learning courses take between 10 and 45 hours to complete, depending on the course, but you have access to the course materials for 6 months.

Prices are exclusive of tax, which will be added automatically at your local rate at checkout.

E-learning course structure

Time allowed for access: 6 months CIEP upgrade points: 4
Approximate study time needed to complete the course: 40–45 hours

This is a self-assessed course. You will be assigned a tutor who will be available for up to 1 hour of support (usually by email), but the tutor does not mark any of your work. When you have finished the course you can download and print a certificate that states that you have 'Completed' the course.

Syllabus

Each of the five units (except Unit 3) is divided into sections:

  1. Getting the work
    1.1 Where the work comes from
    1.2 The people you will work with
  2. The tools of your trade
    2.1 Tools for communicating changes
    2.2 Content management systems
    2.3 Tools for organising content
    2.4 Tools for editing in plain English
  3. The qualities of a website
  1. Editing for your reader
    4.1 Find out about your reader
    4.2 Find out what your reader wants to do
    4.3 Provide clear signposts
    4.4 Move words out of the way
    4.5 Engage your reader
  2. Working at different stages
    5.1 Last-minute proofreading
    5.2 Other web editing tasks
    5.3 Starting from scratch
 

Each section includes study notes and a commentary on the exercises, with examples and model answers where appropriate. There are 18 exercises throughout the course, giving you plenty of practice at honing your skills.

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