Post Academic

This isn’t really a recap of the past week’s pieces on editing tests, but, since Caroline has been all over the topic, I thought I’d give a brief shout out to the wonderful, comprehensive website EditTeach.org, which is very helpful in a self-explanatory way.  It’s pretty much a one-stop resource for anyone who wants to find out what goes into being an editor, whether you’ve edited before but need to brush up on skills that have gone rusty or if you’re a complete novice looking for some of the tricks of the trade.  The site is chock full of useful links to what you’ll need to at least think about if you wanna be an editor, including some primers for various formatting styles, from AP to Chicago to MLA.  EditTeach.org also covers important professional issues such as diversity in the workplace, First Amendment protections, and journalistic ethics.  Of particular interest to post academics who might be interested in changing professions are some lists of average salaries for copyeditors, graphic artists, and photographers.

But for my money–though EditTeach.org is free!–the editing and basic current events tests are the best, most entertaining aspects of the site.  There’s a test of the 100 most common usage errors, deciphering, you know, the correct occasion to use there/their/they’re and that sort of thing.  There are some other tests, like ones for proper AP style and various sorts of subject tests.  It’s geeky fun, and you can tell yourself that you’re helping yourself professionally by doing them!  Which you actually might be.