Yay me! This week I have a second feather in my graduation cap. Although I completed the Copy Editing certification program from Simon Fraser University’s Downtown Vancouver campus in August, the graduation ceremony was held last night at the SFU Harbour Centre.
This self-paced continuing studies program has taken me four years to complete via evening and weekend courses.
I would have liked to have finished quicker, but the cost of some of these courses can get steep (case in point: Advanced Study in Writing for Business and the Professions, a whopping $850!). Nevertheless, I am very proud to have finally finished the program, one that involves 130 hours of core courses and 20 hours of electives.
Going through the courses, I learned everything from editing basics, substantive editing, and advanced grammar to writing and editing for the web.
Though many of the courses are offered online, I felt it was important to be part of a classroom environment in order to learn from fellow classmates and to have face-to-face time with the instructors (the exception is the Final Project, an exam only offered online).
That final project kept me busy for much of the summer, and I was thrilled when my final grade came through (a B!), signaling the end of the program — and a lovely parchment certificate at last night’s graduation ceremony.
Since finishing the editing program, I’ve been able to take on copy editing clients, as well as practice what I’ve learned on a daily basis via content creation on Vancouverscape.
If you’re ever in the need (or know of someone) who might be interested in copy editing or proofreading services, you now know where to look!
