LadyAberlin Posted February 8, 2009 Share Posted February 8, 2009 I 'm trying to find a job. I have a B.S. double major in History and Business with lots of extra hrs in math and education. It looks like I could probably get a job as a Technical writer or Paralegal. Is anyone here in one of those professions or have been in one of those professions? What was it like. I need a full time job while dh goes to college and stays at home with the children. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jean in Newcastle Posted February 8, 2009 Share Posted February 8, 2009 I did technical writing for an engineering firm. It was through their marketing department. Engineering firms have to write bids for jobs that are list all the technical details of similar jobs they've done. I went through their records to find similar jobs and then wrote up blurbs about them. I often interviewed some of the engineers involved because I don't have an engineering degree myself. The writing itself wasn't hard but because we were working hard to get bids in before deadlines it could be rather stressful. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mcconnellboys Posted February 8, 2009 Share Posted February 8, 2009 Well, I got certified as a paralegal in the state where I used to live and worked related to that for a number of years. Different states have different requirements for paralegal certification. Many, maybe most, don't actually require that you have certification, but it might help. When I worked as a paralegal, which has now been 10+ years ago, they did a lot of answering of discovery on cases, summarization of medical records and depositions, scheduling of depositions, and things like that. You would need very good typing skills (fast). This time of year, you might find work with a tax attorney if you have a lot of solid math skills..... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chai Posted February 8, 2009 Share Posted February 8, 2009 I've had technical writers who worked for me in a marketing department. I looked for people who had excellent written communication skills (obviously), especially those who could make complex ideas seem simple for the consumer. You need to be prepared with samples of your writing. It may be easiest to work your way into a company by doing contract work first. Much of the contract work is full-time. The writers spent a lot of time with the development or engineering team to understand the product, then took that information to write user documents. It can be a job with pretty steady hours and low pressure except to meet deadlines. (Not all companies or jobs are the same of course.) Some of the writers branched out into writing brochures, etc. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LadyAberlin Posted February 9, 2009 Author Share Posted February 9, 2009 Thanks for the info! I had a lot of math in college and I've taught Algebra for the last 10 yrs part time. So my math is strong. I need to work on typing!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sparkle Posted February 9, 2009 Share Posted February 9, 2009 I 'm trying to find a job. I have a B.S. double major in History and Business with lots of extra hrs in math and education. It looks like I could probably get a job as a Technical writer or Paralegal. Is anyone here in one of those professions or have been in one of those professions? What was it like. I need a full time job while dh goes to college and stays at home with the children. I don't know whether this would be in your line of interest, but this company hires people to do legal deposition summaries at home: http://www.specialcounsel.com:80/Concise/digesters/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Melinda in VT Posted February 9, 2009 Share Posted February 9, 2009 I'm a technical writer. I've always worked for software companies. I have to say that your education background doesn't scream technical writer.;) You might want to consider taking a Technical Writing class before you start job searching. Definitely be prepared with good writing samples. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HRAAB Posted February 9, 2009 Share Posted February 9, 2009 My dh does tech writing. He was laid off due to outsourcing to India and had a difficult time finding contract work in technical writing where we live. He finally ended up with the outsourcer working with the writers in India. This is in the computer/printer field. Janet Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LadyAberlin Posted February 9, 2009 Author Share Posted February 9, 2009 I took lots of upper level math in college and science so I thought that might help with the Technical writing. History majors have to do a lot of writing as well. I just saw a online class that the local jr college offers in tech writing so I might take that. I'll go check out that link. Thanks:) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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