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Junior technical writer vs assistant editor

The differences between junior technical writers and assistant editors can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 1-2 years to become a junior technical writer, becoming an assistant editor takes usually requires 2-4 years. Additionally, a junior technical writer has an average salary of $71,199, which is higher than the $52,284 average annual salary of an assistant editor.

The top three skills for a junior technical writer include sharepoint, subject matter experts and technical specifications. The most important skills for an assistant editor are editorial content, video footage, and web content.

Junior technical writer vs assistant editor overview

Junior Technical WriterAssistant Editor
Yearly salary$71,199$52,284
Hourly rate$34.23$25.14
Growth rate6%-5%
Number of jobs90,2608,716
Job satisfaction--
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 75%Bachelor's Degree, 81%
Average age4644
Years of experience24

What does a junior technical writer do?

A junior technical writer is responsible for writing high-quality and comprehensive content for the target audience according to business requirements and guide specifications. Junior technical writers must be knowledgeable of the organization's functions to understand the services and create clear documentation and user interface of products and applications. They work closely with senior technical writers to shadow their best practices and learn techniques that would make the content more informative and engaging at the same time.

What does an assistant editor do?

An assistant editor is an individual responsible for assisting an editor-in-chief or editor-at-large of a newspaper, magazine, radio program, or website. Assistant editors hold meetings with staff and freelance writers to discuss new, fresh and original content for projects on a daily, weekly, or monthly basis. They review assignments handed in by writers or reporters for sense, accuracy, readability, and content. Assistant editors must also utilize new media applications such as Twitter and Facebook to draw attention to an article or cause.

Junior technical writer vs assistant editor salary

Junior technical writers and assistant editors have different pay scales, as shown below.

Junior Technical WriterAssistant Editor
Average salary$71,199$52,284
Salary rangeBetween $54,000 And $92,000Between $34,000 And $78,000
Highest paying City-Huntington, NY
Highest paying state-New York
Best paying company-Apple
Best paying industry-Media

Differences between junior technical writer and assistant editor education

There are a few differences between a junior technical writer and an assistant editor in terms of educational background:

Junior Technical WriterAssistant Editor
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 75%Bachelor's Degree, 81%
Most common majorEnglishEnglish
Most common collegeNorthwestern UniversityNorthwestern University

Junior technical writer vs assistant editor demographics

Here are the differences between junior technical writers' and assistant editors' demographics:

Junior Technical WriterAssistant Editor
Average age4644
Gender ratioMale, 40.8% Female, 59.2%Male, 45.9% Female, 54.1%
Race ratioBlack or African American, 6.4% Unknown, 4.9% Hispanic or Latino, 7.6% Asian, 8.6% White, 72.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4%Black or African American, 3.5% Unknown, 4.6% Hispanic or Latino, 7.9% Asian, 7.0% White, 76.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3%
LGBT Percentage11%12%

Differences between junior technical writer and assistant editor duties and responsibilities

Junior technical writer example responsibilities.

  • Lead the effort in transitioning documentation from PDF delivery to HTML delivery system (using WebWorks) with advance search capabilities.
  • Manage SharePoint files, improve accessibility/centrality, and define user roles.
  • Help company achieve ISO registration by determining best practices, writing ISO compliant manufacturing instructions and teaching best manufacturing processes.
  • Handle all customer RFI and RFP requests.
  • Used a number of help authoring tools including RoboHelp and RoboHTML.
  • Create CDs for customer delivery containing convert and link pdf files.
  • Show more

Assistant editor example responsibilities.

  • Lead bureau newsgathering in high-pressure, breaking news situations.
  • Manage the budget for all of VOA s primary newsgathering.
  • Produce e-newsletters, manage website content, write headlines and captions, utilize SEO and analyze digital traffic.
  • Communicate with transportation managers, administrators, equipment operators and others for fulfillment of copy to achieve editorial goals.
  • Ensure compliance with PRC and FDA guidelines.
  • Increase social media presence and traffic through Facebook and Instagram.
  • Show more

Junior technical writer vs assistant editor skills

Common junior technical writer skills
  • SharePoint, 13%
  • Subject Matter Experts, 12%
  • Technical Specifications, 6%
  • Technical Publications, 6%
  • Security Clearance, 5%
  • Proofreading, 5%
Common assistant editor skills
  • Editorial Content, 9%
  • Video Footage, 8%
  • Web Content, 5%
  • Media Management, 4%
  • Production Process, 4%
  • Twitter, 3%

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