Copy Editor job description template
If you are hiring for this role, start here. This free template is our detailed definition of the position, with everything you need to find and hire the right person. Copy it, add your own requirements, and post it.
What is a Copy Editor?
Copy Editors, or Proofreaders, are responsible for ensuring the quality of written content.
They typically work in publishing and marketing industries, magazines, newspapers, and advertising companies.
Their job is to modify, review, and proofread articles, stories, blog posts, and other materials and documents published or posted online.
They focus on grammar, vocabulary, punctuation, and clarity of written materials to make sure they are readable and correspond with the brand or company image and the target audience.
The top Copy Editor skills.
Five things separate a strong hire from a résumé that reads well. Use these as your scorecard criteria.
The job description, ready to post.
Copy it as written, or edit it until it sounds like your company. Both work.
We are hiring a detail-oriented Copy Editor to join our company and help us create engaging and professional written content. As a Copy Editor, you will be responsible for reviewing and proofreading articles, promotional materials, and other written content to ensure factual accuracy, quality, and consistency. Furthermore, you will identify and correct spelling, grammar, and punctuation errors, and check content for plagiarism and resource accuracy.
Your main goal as a Copy Editor will be to create engaging, creative, and informative content that will reach our targeted audience. The content that you will be responsible for should align with the company’s ideas, language style, and tone. In addition, it should be engaging, creative, and informative.
In general, our ideal candidate for this position should have exceptional attention to detail, as well as terrific writing, communication, collaboration, organization, and editing skills.
Duties and responsibilities
- Review, modify, and proofread written content to ensure factual accuracy, quality, and consistency
- Fix any grammar, spelling, or punctuation errors
- Review and modify paragraphs and sections to improve the flow of the written content
- Ensure the language style, syntax, tone, and word choice is appropriate and understandable to the intended audience
- Check content for plagiarism and resource accuracy
- Communicate with writers to collect additional information about the topics and ideas
- Communicate and collaborate with clients, writers, editors, creative directors, and other employees
- Conduct in-depth research to gain a better understanding of the content
- Reach the targeted audience with engaging, informative, and creative content and materials
- Arrange content layouts and ensure content is published or posted within a deadline
- Meet new writers and editors and train them on the company’s content creation process
Requirements
- Bachelor’s degree in English, journalism, or communications
- Prior working experience as a Copy Editor
- Outstanding grammar, punctuation, and spelling knowledge
- Extensive computer processing skills
- Excellent communication, writing, and collaboration skills
- Organization and project management skills
- Strong attention to detail
- Ability to maintain accuracy and consistency
- Research skills
Take the template with you
Copy it straight into your job board or ATS, or have it emailed to you with the interview questions for this role.
What education this role needs.
Copy Editors typically earn a Bachelor’s degree in English, Communications, Journalism, or a similar field.
Some employers would prefer to hire a Copy Editor with a Master’s degree in these disciplines.
These degrees offer an excellent foundation for candidates in terms of grammar and general language rules, as well as clear writing and communication.
Even though it is not essential, certification in copy editing or other writing courses can distinguish candidates and provide additional and valuable knowledge about this field.
Sample interview questions for a Copy Editor.
Once you have gathered the applications, work through these in order. Twelve questions across four areas, enough to tell your shortlist apart.
- Could you tell us more about yourself?
- What are your three favorite books?
- When did you become interested in writing and editing?
- Could you briefly tell us about your previous working experience?
- How would you describe the position of a Copy Editor?
- Why do you believe you are the best candidate for this position?
- What does your typical daily routine as a Copy Editor look like?
- How do you respond to negative feedback or constructive criticism when it comes to your work?
- How do you manage to handle several deadlines at the same time?
- Do you have any experience with SEO?
- Which editing programs are you most familiar with?
- What would you do if you noticed an issue in a piece of writing you already approved?
How much to pay when hiring.
Annual pay by percentile. Where you land depends on the size of the cycle they will own, and the 25th percentile is usually where a first analyst hire sits.
Hourly equivalents run from $14 at the 10th percentile to $45 at the 90th.
Candidates may apply under a different name.
Post the title your industry uses and keep the rest of the description. These three roles overlap enough that the same posting usually reaches all of them.
Three titles, one description.
Search behavior varies by industry, so the same job is advertised under several names. If you are unsure which one your candidates search for, run two titles and see which fills.
Copywriter
A Copywriter is a professional writer who creates persuasive, engaging, and brand-aligned text, or "copy," for marketing and advertising purposes.
$76,412 medianHead of Copy
Frequently asked questions.
Where do Copy Editors work?
Copy Editors can work in a variety of settings, such as:
- Newspapers and magazines
- Marketing and advertising companies
- Public relations firms
- Book publishing houses, etc.
What do Copy Editors do?
Copy Editors are responsible for ensuring the quality, accuracy, and consistency of written content for marketing and other purposes.
They identify and correct grammar, spelling, and punctuation errors, review and modify sections and paragraphs, check resource and fact accuracy, and ensure the materials are published or posted within given deadlines.
Who do Copy Editors work with?
Copy Editors typically work with copywriters, other copy editors, creative editors, and other professionals involved in the content creation process.
What skills who a Copy Editor have?
To ensure successful performance, Copy Editors should have exceptional communication, collaboration, organization, research, editing, and writing skills.
Also, they should have an amazing attention to detail and the ability to maintain accuracy, quality, and consistency in their work.
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