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The differences between medical editors and copy editors can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 2-4 years to become both a medical editor and a copy editor. Additionally, a copy editor has an average salary of $62,599, which is higher than the $59,482 average annual salary of a medical editor.
The top three skills for a medical editor include proofreading, style guides and FDA. The most important skills for a copy editor are proofreading, house style, and digital publishing.
| Medical Editor | Copy Editor | |
| Yearly salary | $59,482 | $62,599 |
| Hourly rate | $28.60 | $30.10 |
| Growth rate | -5% | -5% |
| Number of jobs | 55,508 | 4,866 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 58% | Bachelor's Degree, 83% |
| Average age | 44 | 44 |
| Years of experience | 4 | 4 |
Medical editors are professionals who are responsible for assisting medical writers by editing their scientific writings to make them clear and precise for their audience. These editors are required to review and edit articles and medical education materials to ensure that they observe quality writing style and proper grammar. They must provide copyediting and substantive editing for many scholarly medical articles. Medical editors must also edit the safety documentation on all drugs and clinical trials so that they can provide information to patients about treatment options.
The primary job of copy editors is to check for misspellings, incorrect punctuation, and consistency in typography, words, and style. They also act as fact-checkers, proofreaders, and project managers, overseeing the workflow and communicating with other departments. A copy editor's other duties and responsibilities include checking content for readability and compliance with editorial policies, rewriting text to improve readability and clarity, and arranging page layouts of articles, photos, and advertisements. Formal training is not required for this role, but copy editors generally have a firm grasp and love for the English language's proper usage.
Medical editors and copy editors have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Medical Editor | Copy Editor | |
| Average salary | $59,482 | $62,599 |
| Salary range | Between $35,000 And $98,000 | Between $39,000 And $98,000 |
| Highest paying City | - | Washington, DC |
| Highest paying state | - | New Jersey |
| Best paying company | - | PayPal |
| Best paying industry | - | Finance |
There are a few differences between a medical editor and a copy editor in terms of educational background:
| Medical Editor | Copy Editor | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 58% | Bachelor's Degree, 83% |
| Most common major | English | English |
| Most common college | New York University | Northwestern University |
Here are the differences between medical editors' and copy editors' demographics:
| Medical Editor | Copy Editor | |
| Average age | 44 | 44 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 21.8% Female, 78.2% | Male, 39.2% Female, 60.8% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 3.5% Unknown, 4.5% Hispanic or Latino, 7.8% Asian, 7.0% White, 76.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3% | Black or African American, 3.6% Unknown, 4.6% Hispanic or Latino, 8.2% Asian, 7.3% White, 76.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3% |
| LGBT Percentage | 12% | 12% |