What Does An Editorial Assistant Do (including Their Typical Day at Work)

Alyssa OmandacCareer, Overview

Salary, Job Description, How To Become One, and Quiz

Editorial Assistants

An Editorial Assistant will assist the senior and executive editors in a publishing house. They carry out a number of different responsibilities, including answering phones, taking messages, running errands, verifying facts, and more. They need to have a solid foundation in writing and journalism so that they can check the grammar and punctuation in documents.

Salary
$44800
Education
Bachelor's degree
Personality


An Editorial Assistant gives support to senior and executive editors. They are usually hired to work for publishers, magazines, newspapers, and other organizations that publish written material. They offer administrative assistance, verify facts, check grammar and punctuation, select content, and more. Their daily responsibilities can vary depending on where they work, but they need to have a sharp eye for grammar, spelling, and more.

What they do

An Editorial Assistant will assist the senior and executive editors in a publishing house. They carry out a number of different responsibilities, including answering phones, taking messages, running errands, verifying facts, and more. They need to have a solid foundation in writing and journalism so that they can check the grammar and punctuation in documents.

Offer Administrative Assistance to Editors

Editorial Assistants offer administrative assistance to editors. They perform a lot of important tasks around the office, including answering phones, taking messages, and more. They might run errands or perform any tasks the editors require They go with editors on business trips and to conferences to assist them.

Verify Facts and Check Grammar and Punctuation

Another responsibility of Editorial Assistants is to verify facts for editors. They use the Internet to make sure that there is a source for any claims in written works, and they will notify the editor if there is any issue with the information or if there is any form of plagiarism. In addition, they will go through the written work and make sure that there are no typos, punctuation, or grammatical mistakes.

Help Select Written Content

Editorial Assistants also help Editors select written content. They do not have the final word, but they are often expected to read through material and select pieces that are appropriate. This helps the Editors because it saves them the time of reading a lot of different materials. If you enjoy reading new works, this can be an exciting career because there will be plenty to read.

Contact Different Writers

Often there are a lot of different writers producing content for a publishing house. They have assignments, and they produce a lot of content for the organization. From time to time, the Editor might have questions or messages for the writers, and the Editorial Assistant will contact them to get this information. They can also act as a middle person between the writer and the editors.

What is the job like

Pros

You get to work with writers

If you want to work in writing, this is a great way to get started. You can gain a lot of experience working in this field and move up one day to become a senior or executive editor.

You can be a part of a creative team

When you work as an Editorial Assistant, you will be at the center of a creative team. You get to add your input while you gain experience in the field.

You have an opportunity to advance

This is an entry-level job, but you have room to advance. If you do your job well, you can get hired more easily if a job opening comes up.

You often have the option of working from home

If you work in this field, you can often work from home. This can suit people who have small children at home or who want to work part time.

Cons

You work in a high pressure environment

When you work as an Editorial Assistant, you are working in a high pressure environment with tight deadlines.

You might have to relocate

If you want to work for a publisher, you might need to relocate for the job.

Where they work

Publishing house
Media companies
Work from home

Editorial Assistants work in publisher’s houses, magazines, newspapers, and they can freelance from home. Some of them have one full-time job, where they gain experience so that they can become a writer later. Others work as a freelancer, and they might take on a number of clients. They can work in an office or in their own home. There are a lot of different options for this career.

How to become one

Step 1: Work on Your School Paper

You can start off by working on your school paper while you are in high school. This will give you valuable experience when you graduate and go to college. It will allow you to become familiar with article writing and how a publisher works.

In addition, make sure that you focus on your English classes. You will have the opportunity to write papers in many different classes, and you shouldn’t waste any time learning how to write well. Be sure to save your best work so that you can show it to people when you are applying for a job.

Step 2: Earn Your Bachelor’s Degree

Next, you can go to college and earn a Bachelor’s degree. You will want to major in English or journalism. This will help you further your understanding of grammar and punctuation rules. You want to have an excellent command of the English language, and you should learn as much as you can about how to write. You can gain a lot of experience while you are in college so that you can get a better job.

Step 3: Apply for Jobs as an Editorial Assistant

Once you graduate from college, you can apply for a job as an Editorial Assistant. This is an entry level position, and you will need to show your college transcripts. You should have collected examples of your writing in college so that you can show prospective employers that you have the skills necessary to do the job.

Before you go for your job interview, look the company up. Try to be familiar with their work before you go and review rules of style and grammar. You may be asked to edit a sample piece, so you should be prepared to do a great job. If you have worked hard in high school and college, you will be prepared for your interview, so you should not be nervous about it.

Should you become one

Best personality type for this career

The Artist

People with this personality likes to work with designs and patterns. They prefer activities that require self-expression and prefer work that can be done without following a clear set of rules.

You can read more about these career personality types here.

An Editorial Assistant needs to have excellent communication skills. It is important to pay attention to details, and you need to be a perfectionist. Most companies will not hire someone who makes any mistakes when editing. You will need to be friendly and outgoing because you might answer the phones or take messages, and you are the voice of the writers and the company you work for. You should enjoy writing and reading, and you will have a great command of the English language.

Take this quiz to see if this is the right career for you.

FAQ


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