atw: Accreditation (another longish contribution)

MessageMy oft stated thoughts on accreditation
I have always had problems with who is going to 'judge' if there is a guild 
system. How do we know if the people who put their hands up are good technical 
writers - they may think they are.......... I have known and know many tech 
writers that are not good writers but have been at one company, or working 
within the profession for a long time. How do I know - well - how do I know?

How do I know, or believe, that the person judging whether or not I am good 
enough at my job to be accredited is actually good at theirs??
Hate to be the devil's advocate but those that shout loudest are not always the 
best. 
This is probably the 3rd or 4th time a group has tackled accreditation and I 
doubt they will get any further than the other groups, but will have fun trying.

There are poor doctors and good doctors, but they have all served time - I 
believe there must be an element of 'time in job' in any accreditation 
scheme.'There are poor t writers and good t writers, but they have also all 
served time.

When we are accredited - if we want to be, what happens? Not all employers will 
care and so what if a society of 200+_ people believe you are good, can they 
also judge how you will work with other people, what your deadline ability is? 
These are equally important in today's work climate.

I think my cynicism comes with old age, but take a look at the AMWA model - it 
does include training that is not expensive and runs within the annual 
conference structure. There is also a work time factor. However I believe that 
it is not mandatory to become accredited to get a medical writing job (from an 
employer perspective). Therein of course lies another problem.

Jill
Jill Nicholson
N&H Communications
2 Park Ave
ROSEVILLE,  NSW 2069
61+2+94174302
jpnicho@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx
www.nhcommunications.com.au

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