Online Technical Writing Courses

What Kind of Technical Writing Courses are Online?

Online technical writing courses cover a range of fields, techniques and approaches to best serve a variety of publications and their readers. While the focus may differ from course to course, they typically all aim to provide students with the knowledge and skills to produce publications that communicate technical or procedural content effectively. Listed below are five possible courses available online:

Fundamentals of Technical Writing

This course covers the types of publications that apply technical writing techniques to organize and present information. Manuals, reports, and technical journals are covered, along with discussions on document formatting and desktop publishing. You will learn about document design and production principles along with the software used to create publications.

Technical Editing

This course explains the editing process and editing tools used for technical documents. Along with adhering to conventional grammar rules, students will be expected to recognize specialized vocabulary in technical documents to ensure the publications are cohesive and consistent. Different style guides will be covered, as well as reference guides such as Chicago Manual of Style (CMS) and Microsoft Manual of Style (MMS).

Technical Communication

The purpose of this course is to help students effectively communicate technical information by identifying their audience and applying the appropriate format and style. This course will cover document formatting, writing organization, reviewing your work and other important topics like communication skills and teamwork. Different methods for effective communication such as rhetorical analysis may also be covered.

Writing for Digital Media

This course covers the fundamentals of technical writing for digital media such as web design and manipulation of multimedia. Students will learn strategies for communication on social media, as well as podcasting and other online platforms.

Technical Writing for Science

This is a typical specialized course for technical writing. Scientific writing has specific guidelines, vocabulary and communication styles which are covered in this course. Students will learn to verify and critique resources, and how to make scientific writing capture the interest of the reader while handling complex material.

What Do Online Technical Writing Courses Teach Me?

Through online technical writing courses, you'll learn specific techniques for creating, publishing and printing manuals, reports, and journals. The aim of these documents is to break down or explain scientific and technical instructions into understandable descriptions or directions for readers.

How Do Online Courses Work?

Like many online courses, lectures for technical writing classes can be offered through video or audio formats. Many of them also encourage interaction between students taking the classes, which can be achieved through online chats, discussion boards and emails. Assignments include various exercises, essays, class projects and homework. Some classes require that you complete each assignment by a certain date, while others simply require that you complete all of them by the end of the course.

What Levels of Degrees and Certificates are Available?

Online technical writing courses are available through undergraduate and certificate technical writing or technical communications programs. You may also be able to take non-credit online courses intended to supplement your existing skills.