How To Become A Contract Writer: What It Is and Career Path

What is a contract writer and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

2 min read

Quoted expert

Dr. Terry Nugent

There is more than meets the eye when it comes to being a contract writer. For example, did you know that they make an average of $43.88 an hour? That's $91,260 a year! Between 2018 and 2028, the career is expected to grow 4% and produce 5,900 job opportunities across the U.S.

What general advice would you give to a contract writer?

Dr. Terry Nugent

Assoc prof of English, Website

Graduates with a BA in English have more opportunities than ever before in the job market. While most think only about the degree as a stepping stone into K12 teaching or graduate school, the degree can also be a stepping stone into the corporate world. Large corporations need people who have experience writing complex texts, applying critical thinking and analytic abilities, and audience awareness when communicating with stakeholders at all levels of their industry. Industries that hire English majors include nonprofit organizations, government agencies, medical institutions, journalism, publishing, and entertainment. Basically, I would encourage a senior or new graduate to think outside the box—hone in on the industry you think you would be most interested in, think about the kind of work environment you are best suited for, and then look for entry-level positions with companies in that industry.

ScoreContract WriterUS Average

Salary

7.1

Avg. Salary $91,260

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability level

6.2

Growth rate 4%

Growth rate 0.3%

Diversity

6.7

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 0.36%

Asian 4.99%

Black or African American 6.05%

Hispanic or Latino 7.78%

Unknown 5.61%

White 75.21%

Gender

female 61.52%

male 38.48%

Age - 41

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 3.00%

Asian 7.00%

Black or African American 14.00%

Hispanic or Latino 19.00%

White 57.00%

Gender

female 47.00%

male 53.00%

Age - 41

Stress level

6.2

Stress level is manageable

7.1 - high

Complexity level

8.5

Complexity level is advanced

7 - challenging

Work life balance

5.5

Work life balance is fair

6.4 - fair

Key steps to become a contract writer

Explore contract writer education requirements

Most common contract writer degrees

Bachelor's

68.5 %

Master's

16.0 %

Associate

7.9 %

Start to develop specific contract writer skills

Skills	Percentages
Web Content	15.04%
SEO	12.35%
Press Releases	12.19%
Blog Posts	11.64%
Website Copy	3.69%

Complete relevant contract writer training and internships

Accountants spend an average of Less than 1 month on post-employment, on-the-job training. New contract writers learn the skills and techniques required for their job and employer during this time. The chart below shows how long it takes to gain competency as a contract writer based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real contract writer resumes.

Research contract writer duties and responsibilities

Manage the proposal lifecycle, including RFP analysis, regular communications, proposal development and production consistent with branding strategies.
Manage the proposal lifecycle, including RFP analysis, regular communications, proposal development and production consistent with branding strategies.
Interview subject matter experts and process source data to write biographies and profiles.
Post social media and hospital promotional/patient testimonial YouTube videos.

Prepare your contract writer resume

When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your contract writer resume.

You can use Zippia's AI resume builder to make the resume writing process easier while also making sure that you include key information that hiring managers expect to see on a contract writer resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.

Choose from 10+ customizable contract writer resume templates

Build a professional contract writer resume in minutes. Browse through our resume examples to identify the best way to word your resume. Then choose from 10+ resume templates to create your contract writer resume.