How to gain experience as a new editor – and how to move into medical editing

Breaking into editing can feel frustrating at the start. Many new editors face the same problem: roles require experience, but gaining that experience requires someone to give you an opportunity first.

This is particularly true in specialist areas such as medical editing, where clients and organisations need confidence that their documents will be handled carefully and accurately.

Editorial experience is not gained in a single step. It often develops gradually through a combination of training, related roles, self-initiated projects and smaller opportunities that build credibility over time.

Start by building core editorial skills

Before specialising in medical editing, it is worth developing generalist editorial skills.

These include:

• recognising grammatical and punctuation errors

• identifying ambiguity and unclear phrasing

• improving clarity without altering meaning

• ensuring consistency in terminology and formatting

• understanding how structure affects readability

These skills apply across all subject areas. Specialist editing then builds on this foundation.

Professional training can be extremely helpful at this stage. Professional courses in proofreading and editing provide structured training in:

• editorial conventions

• proofreading symbols and digital workflows

• consistency and style

• editorial decision-making

Organisations such as the Chartered Institute of Editing and Proofreading and the Publishing Training Centre offer recognised training courses.

How to gain experience when no one will hire you yet

This is where many new editors feel stuck. The most important thing to understand is that experience can be built in multiple ways – not only through formal employment.

Consider generalist freelancing

You can begin developing experience by working with general materials.

These might include:

• local publications and newspapers

• training manuals or internal guidance documents

• website content

• newsletters for professional associations

• business proposals or tender documents

• information leaflets

• reports or white papers

• professional blog posts or thought-leadership pieces

• technical manuals or standard operating procedures

• book manuscripts

Early in my own career, I volunteered on a newsletter for a cancer support charity. That opportunity allowed me to work with live material, manage deadlines and make substantive editorial decisions in a real context.

This is not an argument for habitual unpaid work or undervaluing your skills. I believe very strongly that editors should be properly remunerated for professional services. However, at the very beginning, alternative routes can provide practical exposure when opportunities are limited. The aim is to build demonstrable competence and confidence, so that when the work you do want comes along, you are ready to undertake it to a professional standard.

Look for employed 'adjacent' roles

Many editors do not begin with the job title 'editor'. Related roles can often include editorial responsibilities, such as:

• editorial assistant

• publishing assistant

• assistant commissioning editor

• communications assistant

• technical writer

• bid writer

• marketing assistant

• corporate communications officer

• internal communications

• quality assurance reviewer

• content coordinator

• layout or design

These roles can often involve substantive editing, structural revision, document control or responsibility for textual accuracy – all of which build directly transferable editorial skills.

My own editorial career began in desktop publishing, where proofreading was initially only a small part of my role. The role focused primarily on layout, typesetting and preparing documents for print or digital distribution. However, working so closely with text meant I was constantly checking consistency, spotting typographical errors and ensuring that headings, images and formatting aligned correctly. That foundation in production work proved invaluable when I later moved into more text-focused editorial roles.

Common mistakes new editors make

Nearly all editors make mistakes early in their careers. Being aware of these can help you progress more efficiently.

Expecting to start with specialist or high-level work

Medical editing, academic editing and technical editing usually require prior editorial experience. It is normal to begin with more general work and specialise over time.

Focusing only on qualifications, rather than practice

Training is valuable, but editing is a practical skill. Reading about editing is not the same as doing it. Editorial judgement develops through exposure to real documents. Practice is essential.

Being overly hesitant to begin

Some new editors delay seeking work because they feel they are not yet experienced enough.

However, experience develops through doing the work. Starting with smaller, lower-risk projects is part of the learning process. Confidence builds over time.

Over-editing or making unnecessary changes

Early-career editors sometimes feel they must change as much as possible to demonstrate value. I certainly did!

In reality, good editing often involves restraint. Not every sentence needs to be altered. Editorial changes should serve clarity, consistency and accuracy. Learning when not to intervene is an important skill.

Underestimating the importance of consistency

New editors often focus primarily on grammar and spelling. However, consistency in terminology, formatting and structure is equally important. Documents must function as coherent wholes.

Becoming discouraged by slow progress

Editorial careers develop gradually. It is normal for progress to feel slow initially.

Just remember that every edit you do, no matter how small, builds experience and improves editorial judgement.

Moving into medical editing

Medical editing is a specialist field that builds on core editorial competence but requires additional subject knowledge and contextual awareness. Beyond clarity and consistency, medical editors must be comfortable working with technical terminology, evidence-based documents, regulatory sensitivity and audience-specific conventions.

Subject-specific education

For editors interested in medical editing, a background in science, healthcare, medicine or life sciences can be particularly valuable. Formal study in these areas provides familiarity with biological systems, clinical terminology, research methodology and statistical reasoning – all of which support informed editorial judgement.

That said, a medical education is not a prerequisite. What matters is the ability to understand scientific material and recognise when terminology is being used appropriately.

Develop familiarity with medical writing

If you have a medical or science education, you'll already be familiar with academic medical writing conventions. This can be built on by reading a wide range of medical material, such as:

• journal articles

• Clinical trial reports

• medical news reporting

• public health publications

• patient information materials

• medical education materials

• pharmaceutical communications

This helps you understand structure, terminology and tone for different audiences.

Look for opportunities in relevant environments

Experience may come from roles in:

• medical or scientific publishing

• healthcare organisations

• universities

• research institutions

• medical communications and education agencies

Even roles that are not explicitly titled 'medical editor' can provide valuable immersion in subject matter and document types. Regular exposure to clinical or scientific material develops fluency in terminology, awareness of professional standards and confidence in navigating complex content.

Over time, this combination of editorial skill and subject familiarity enables you to move from generalist editing into specialist medical work.

Build credibility as a medical editor

Clients working in medical or scientific fields expect editors to understand the importance of accuracy and clarity.

Credibility is built through:

• consistent, careful editorial work

• reliability and professionalism

• developing familiarity with medical terminology

• gaining experience with relevant document types

This process takes time and develops gradually.

Be patient – editorial careers develop over time

One of the most important things to understand is that editorial careers are built gradually.

Most experienced editors did not begin with specialist work, but developed their skills progressively through exposure to different types of material and increasing levels of responsibility.

Each document contributes to that development, helping to build confidence, editorial judgement and professional credibility over time.

Final thoughts

Breaking into editing can be challenging at the start, particularly when employers and clients are looking for experience. However, editorial skills can be developed through training, practice, related roles and incremental opportunities.

Medical editing is a natural progression for editors who develop an interest in technical and specialist material. With time, exposure and consistent practice, it becomes an achievable and rewarding area of work.

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A note on terminology: The terms medical copyeditor, medical proofreader and medical editor are often confused and used interchangeably. To add to the confusion, there are yet other terms used for different niches such as plain-English editor, medico-legal copyeditor and editorial assistant (the latter is commonly used in medical communications). I personally use medical editor to describe my role, and medical editing to describe both medical copyediting and medical proofreading, as this suggests a hybrid approach as per my own clients' preferences ... plus, it's simpler! See here for more detail on the traditional differences between proofreading and copyediting.