A production editor oversees all the production processes that lead to the release of a publication. They are responsible for proofreading, editing, and formatting manuscripts and recommending improvements to ensure quality and accurate production. They also use their managerial skills to manage publication staff, enforce quality standards, and set deadlines for projects.
A production editor works closely with writers, vendors, editors, designers, production staff, and their clients to ensure they deliver quality work within the stipulated timelines. They usually work for newspapers, magazines, web publications, broadcasting stations, and publishing companies. A successful production editor should have an in-depth knowledge of publication matters, creativity, writing skills, attention to detail, communication skills, organization skills, and time management skills.
Production editors work in an office setting. They spend prolonged amounts of time on a computer conducting reviews, editing, and communicating with stakeholders. They usually work long hours and barely have a regular work schedule.
Editor & Producer Overview
Editor & Producer Careers
There is more than meets the eye when it comes to being an editor & producer. For example, did you know that they make an average of $26.26 an hour? That's $54,612 a year!
Between 2018 and 2028, the career is expected to grow 5% and produce 7,200 job opportunities across the U.S.
What Does an Editor & Producer Do
There are certain skills that many editor & producers have in order to accomplish their responsibilities. By taking a look through resumes, we were able to narrow down the most common skills for a person in this position. We discovered that a lot of resumes listed leadership skills, time-management skills and communication skills.
When it comes to the most important skills required to be an editor & producer, we found that a lot of resumes listed 19.7% of editor & producers included video production, while 6.4% of resumes included company website, and 5.5% of resumes included graphic design. Hard skills like these are helpful to have when it comes to performing essential job responsibilities.
When it comes to searching for a job, many search for a key term or phrase. Instead, it might be more helpful to search by industry, as you might be missing jobs that you never thought about in industries that you didn't even think offered positions related to the editor & producer job title. But what industry to start with? Most editor & producers actually find jobs in the media and hospitality industries.
How To Become an Editor & Producer
If you're interested in becoming an editor & producer, one of the first things to consider is how much education you need. We've determined that 68.9% of editor & producers have a bachelor's degree. In terms of higher education levels, we found that 14.7% of editor & producers have master's degrees. Even though most editor & producers have a college degree, it's possible to become one with only a high school degree or GED.
Choosing the right major is always an important step when researching how to become an editor & producer. When we researched the most common majors for an editor & producer, we found that they most commonly earn bachelor's degree degrees or master's degree degrees. Other degrees that we often see on editor & producer resumes include associate degree degrees or high school diploma degrees.
You may find that experience in other jobs will help you become an editor & producer. In fact, many editor & producer jobs require experience in a role such as editor. Meanwhile, many editor & producers also have previous career experience in roles such as production assistant or internship.
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Editor & Producer Career Paths
As you move along in your career, you may start taking on more responsibilities or notice that you've taken on a leadership role. Using our career map, an editor & producer can determine their career goals through the career progression. For example, they could start out with a role such as video editor, progress to a title such as owner and then eventually end up with the title senior director of marketing.
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Average Salary for an Editor & Producer
Best Paying Cities
Recently Added Salaries
Job TitleCompany  | Company | Start Date | Salary |
|---|---|---|---|
Focus On The Family Editor/Producer, Church Channel Editor/Producer, Church Channel | Focus On The Family Focus On The Family | 11/20/2020 11/20/2020 | $52,20011/20/2020 $52,200 |
Robert Half Editor & Producer Editor & Producer | Robert Half Robert Half | 01/24/2020 01/24/2020 | $75,00001/24/2020 $75,000 |
Dotdash Editor & Producer Editor & Producer | Dotdash Dotdash | 11/19/2019 11/19/2019 | $31,30511/19/2019 $31,305 |
Iowa Department of Administrative Services Editor & Producer Editor & Producer | Iowa Department of Administrative Services Iowa Department of Administrative Services | 09/27/2019 09/27/2019 | $48,88009/27/2019 $48,880 |
University of Virginia Editor & Producer Editor & Producer | University of Virginia University of Virginia | 08/22/2019 08/22/2019 | $40,00008/22/2019 $40,000 |
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Editor & Producer Resumes
Designing and figuring out what to include on your resume can be tough, not to mention time-consuming. That's why we put together a guide that is designed to help you craft the perfect resume for becoming an Editor & Producer. If you're needing extra inspiration, take a look through our selection of templates that are specific to your job.
Learn How To Write an Editor & Producer Resume
At Zippia, we went through countless Editor & Producer resumes and compiled some information about how best to optimize them. Here are some suggestions based on what we found, divided by the individual sections of the resume itself.
View Detailed InformationTop Colleges for Editor & Producers
1. Harvard University
Cambridge, MA • Private
2. Columbia University in the City of New York
New York, NY • Private
3. Northwestern University
Evanston, IL • Private
4. University of California, Berkeley
Berkeley, CA • Public
5. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Chapel Hill, NC • Public
6. University of Southern California
Los Angeles, CA • Private
7. Emory University
Atlanta, GA • Private
8. University of Texas at Austin
Austin, TX • Public
9. Northeastern University
Boston, MA • Private
10. California State University - Long Beach
Long Beach, CA • Public
Top Skills For an Editor & Producer
The skills section on your resume can be almost as important as the experience section, so you want it to be an accurate portrayal of what you can do. Luckily, we've found all of the skills you'll need so even if you don't have these skills yet, you know what you need to work on. Out of all the resumes we looked through, 19.7% of editor & producers listed video production on their resume, but soft skills such as leadership skills and time-management skills are important as well.
- Video Production, 19.7%
- Company Website, 6.4%
- Graphic Design, 5.5%
- Facebook, 5.1%
- Instagram, 4.7%
- Other Skills, 58.6% See All Editor & Producer Skills
Best States For an Editor & Producer
Some places are better than others when it comes to starting a career as an editor & producer. The best states for people in this position are Oklahoma, Mississippi, Delaware, and New York. Editor & producers make the most in Oklahoma with an average salary of $72,008. Whereas in Mississippi and Delaware, they would average $64,670 and $62,839, respectively. While editor & producers would only make an average of $61,713 in New York, you would still make more there than in the rest of the country. We determined these as the best states based on job availability and pay. By finding the median salary, cost of living, and using the Bureau of Labor Statistics' Location Quotient, we narrowed down our list of states to these four.
1. District of Columbia
$76,347
Avg. Salary
2. New York
$61,713
Avg. Salary
3. North Carolina
$59,297
Avg. Salary
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