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Editorial assistant apprenticeships

Creative and media

Editorial assistant apprenticeships - where to start

You can get into this job through

  • a university course
  • an apprenticeship
  • working towards this role
  • specialist training courses with professional bodies


    • University

    You'll usually need a degree in English, journalism or media studies. If you want to specialise in a particular field of publishing, you may need a degree that's closely related to it, for example physics or maths for a scientific journal.


    You'll usually need 5 GCSEs at grades 9 to 4 (A* to C), or equivalent, including English and 2 to 3 A-Levels, or equivalent, for a degree. 

    Apprenticeship
    You can get into this role through a Level 3 apprenticeship as a publishing assistant. Employers will set their own entry requirements. 

    Work
    You could work in a publishing office or a company's communications department as a general assistant and work your way up through in-house training and promotion.

    Volunteering

    You'll find it useful when applying for jobs, to have done some paid or unpaid work experience in publishing. 

    Other Routes
    You could take a proofreading or editing course, like the ones offered by the The Publishing Training Centre or the Chartered Institute of Editing and Proofreading. 

    Professional and industry bodies
    You may find it useful to join organisations like the The Publishers Association and Professional Publishers Association for professional recognition, training opportunities and to make industry contacts.

    Editorial assistant apprenticeships - what it takes

    Skills and knowledge

    You'll need: 

    • knowledge of English language
    • knowledge of media production and communication 
    • the ability to read English 
    • excellent verbal communication skills 
    • to be thorough and pay attention to detail
    • excellent written communication skills 
    • the ability to work well with others 
    • to be flexible and open to change 
    • to be able to use a computer and the main software packages competently

    Editorial assistant apprenticeships - what you'll do

    Day-to-day tasks

    Your job may involve: 

    • being a point of contact for authors 
    • keeping databases, spreadsheets and other records up to date 
    • reading documents and making corrections 
    • dealing with rights and permissions 
    • acting as personal assistant to commissioning editors
    • working with images and page layout software 
    If you work online you could be: 

    • proofing and editing online text, including social media 
    • compiling and sending out newsletters using design and distribution software 
    • uploading text and images to a website using a content management system (CMS) 
    • editing text on apps
    Working environment
    You could work in an office or from home.

    Career path and progression - Editorial assistant apprenticeships

    With experience you could move into more senior editorial roles, or work on a freelance basis.

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    Considering an Apprenticeship?

    There are lots of benefits to apprenticeships, here are our top 5:

    • Paid Training
      Not only will your organisation (or the Government) pay for all of your training, but you’ll be paid to do it. That means you could actually get paid to get your degree and have no debt!
    • Range of career opportunities
      There are over 625 different apprenticeships to choose from, in a range of industries. Whether you’re interested in law, marketing, construction or engineering, you’ll find something up your street!
    • Earn & learn
      As an apprentice, the minimum you’ll earn is £6.20 an hour, but we’ve seen apprentices earn a starting salary of up to £30,000 a year! You could also get other employee benefits like gym memberships, paid holiday and sick pay.
    • Great career prospects
      Employers think apprentices are 15% more employable than those with other qualifications. In fact, many large employers train their graduates and apprentices together!
    • Learn on the job
      There’s only so much you can learn when you just do a qualification. As an apprentice, you’ll also get to learn on the job - whether that’s designing amazing graphics, chopping vegetables or building engines!

    Start searching for Apprenticeships Near You

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