RE: STC certification: what's in it for tech writers?

Subject: RE: STC certification: what's in it for tech writers?
From: "McLauchlan, Kevin" <Kevin -dot- McLauchlan -at- safenet-inc -dot- com>
To: Gene Kim-Eng <techwr -at- genek -dot- com>, "Porrello, Leonard" <lporrello -at- illumina -dot- com>
Date: Fri, 28 Oct 2011 11:33:18 -0400



> -----Original Message-----
> From: Gene Kim-Eng


>
> I'm not talking about degrees here. It's a given for me that the
> person
> contemplating submitting his/her application for certification already
> has a
> degree and has moved past the initial gating point to enter the
> profession,
> since the cert process doesn't even have a "writer in training"
> category for
> students or new grads. I'm talking about spending the time, effort and
> money on some post-grad continuing education related to the working
> domain
> and which "certificate," STC or training completion, would provide the
> biggest bang for the buck on a resume. IOW, Tech Comm bachelors + STC
> certification, or Tech Comm bachelors + cert in C++ Programming or
> Industrial Safety?

?? It's a given that the candidate has a degree, and then the only
examples you mention are Tech Comm bachelor plus...?

Bachelor degrees in Technical Communication didn't even exist when
I was starting - ok, they existed in one or two American colleges,
far, far from me, but were about as plentiful as hen's teeth, and
of generally no consequence to anybody in the real world. And I'm
talking about the 1980s, not the '50s...

I've been asked if I had a degree in electrical engineering or
computer science, and even then it didn't turn out to be a
barrier to getting the job. (My ticket was in digital electronics,
when I was interviewing for [and getting] a job with a power
microwave systems company - i.e., very little connection between
my education and the company's work which was entirely analog in
those days.) In my next gig, the education section of my resumé
was never mentioned, and in the interviews for my current gig,
it came up very casually in the context of "why did I gravitate
toward electronics? answer: I operated comms equipment in the
military ['70s] and was always intrigued by the gnomes who came around
and fixed the stuff, so I decided to become one...:-) )

Perhaps I've been overlooked for a phone call because my
resumé didn't contain a techwriting degree, but it'd be
news to me.

Maybe it's just the region (middle Canada) and the industries
that I've worked (computers, satellite comms, cellular
comms, data security systems), but techcomm degrees have been a
complete non-issue throughout my own history.

Granted, that might have changed if I have to find yet another
gig before I retire... but so far... not so much.

- k
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Follow-Ups:

References:
RE: STC certification: what's in it for tech writers?: From: Steven Jong
RE: STC certification: what's in it for tech writers?: From: Porrello, Leonard
Re: STC certification: what's in it for tech writers?: From: Gene Kim-Eng

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