atw: Re: Fields of Tech Communication
- From: "Christine Birtley-Kent" <cbirtleykent@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- To: <austechwriter@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Wed, 15 Dec 2004 17:16:45 +1000
Me too. About sums up what I was going to write.
In addition, government policy development work seems to be quite well paid.
If you can get a foot in the door doing this kind of role, it may not be too
hard to move into the policy development area. If you like government work,
I think it could be quite a good bet.
My experience with IT is that you never actually get to re-use your
technical knowledge unless you get into a very tight specialist niche, so
its not that much of an issue. There are two options, jack of all trades or
specialist - it's up to you which lifestyle you prefer.
Christine
-----Original Message-----
From: austechwriter-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
[mailto:austechwriter-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx]On Behalf Of MHT
Sent: Wednesday, 15 December 2004 5:06 PM
To: austechwriter@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject: atw: Re: Fields of Tech Communication
Technical writing is not just about Information Technology (IT). Generally
speaking, a broader base of experience is more valuable than a narrow base
and gives you both more to offer and more choices.
Salary here in the Usofa seems to be more influenced by the size of the
company, location, and whatever the market will bear, than by the product.
However, anything in academia tends to pay poorly. It may or may not be
the same downunder.
My own experience has been to cross back and forth between
manufacturing/engineering and Information Technology (IT), with a little
marketing collateral mixed in (small companies tend to want you to wear may
hats). I've also branched out into product liability and Tort Law. Since I
am not pigeonholed to one particular specialty, it gives me a wider range
in which to job hunt. That only becomes a liability if a company demands
"X" amount of years in a specific area.
If you want to try something else besides IT, then go for it. Getting you
feet wet in another area may open doors you never knew were there. If you
like it, then all the better.
MN Mary
At 06:24 PM 12/14/2004, you wrote:
>Hi All,
>
>I am considering taking a tech comm job that has very little to do with =
>Information Technology (IT). I have only ever worked in the IT =
>industry, so am a little nervous about moving outside this realm. Sure =
>I'll be using computers to do the job, but it will not be the same as =
>writing about them (I imagine).
>
>Is anyone prepared to share stories about similar choices, what you =
>decided and why?
>
>The sort of things I am worried about are:
>- If I leave IT it will not take long for my IT skills/knowledge to =
>become obsolete. Will I have trouble getting back in if I want to?
>- If I love working outside IT is there enough of this sort of work =
>around to sustain a career?
>- Is there a noticeable difference between salaries for IT and non-IT =
>jobs?
>
>No - I am not looking for you all to decide for me, just looking for =
>advice from the more experienced and wise!
>
**************************************************
To post a message to austechwriter, send the message to
austechwriter@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx
To subscribe to austechwriter, send a message to
austechwriter-request@xxxxxxxxxxxxx with "subscribe" in the Subject field.
To unsubscribe, send a message to austechwriter-request@xxxxxxxxxxxxx with
"unsubscribe" in the Subject field.
To search the austechwriter archives, go to
www.freelists.org/archives/austechwriter
To contact the list administrator, send a message to
austechwriter-admins@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
**************************************************
**************************************************
To post a message to austechwriter, send the message to
austechwriter@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx
To subscribe to austechwriter, send a message to
austechwriter-request@xxxxxxxxxxxxx with "subscribe" in the Subject field.
To unsubscribe, send a message to austechwriter-request@xxxxxxxxxxxxx with
"unsubscribe" in the Subject field.
To search the austechwriter archives, go to
www.freelists.org/archives/austechwriter
To contact the list administrator, send a message to
austechwriter-admins@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
**************************************************
Other related posts:
