Re: Suggestions: Internal and External Certifications for Tech Writers in product based company!!

[punit shrivastava <punitshrivastava -at- gmail -dot- com>]

Thanks a lot Fred and Dan for your input.

Appears, our industry still has to go a long way in terms of certifications.
Probably, besides English if one is involved for a domain-specific project,
getting that technical certification might enhance the value, if one wants
to be an expert in that domain. May be that is one way of enhancing
knowledge and being certified as a domain expert, as even in tech writing
field there are requirements for domain specific experts, at times.

regards
Punit

On Thu, Sep 23, 2010 at 10:58 PM, Fred Ridder <docudoc -at- hotmail -dot- com> wrote:

> Don't include the word "external" when you do your search. Certification is
> always assumed to be administered by some outside authority so nobody ever
> refers to that specific characteristic. Just search the Techwr-l domain for
> "certification" and you should get hundreds of messages in dozens of
> threads.
>
> And also note that "certificate" and "certification" refer to *very*
> different things.
> A certificate is similar to a diploma that is awarded when someone
> completes a course of study. A few dozen colleges and universities in the US
> offer cetitficate programs in technical writing (usually a one or two year
> curriculum) and a handful of commercial entities offer certificates in
> specific writing-related disciplines, such as Information Mapping®. A
> certificate indicates that a person has invested some time and/or money to
> take some classes, but says nothing about that person's competency; it is
> possible for a totally incompetent person to earn a certificate just by
> showing up for the class.
> Certification, on the other hand, refers to a process in which some
> objective organization evaluates whether an individual has proficiency in
> some particualr set of skills or competencies. A competent
> person can receive a certification regardless of whether they have formal
> training. But the big problems with any kind of certification are how
> to determine exactly what set of skills are essential and how to objectively
> measure a person's degree of competency in those specific skills. Technical
> writing is a *very* diverse field and organizations like the Society for
> Technical Communication have been working for decades to try to define a set
> of core competencies that are applicable to a broad range of companies and
> requirements.
>
> > Date: Thu, 23 Sep 2010 21:55:38 +0530
> > Subject: Re: Suggestions: Internal and External Certifications for Tech
> Writers in product based company!!
> > From: punitshrivastava -at- gmail -dot- com
> > To: wade -dot- courtney -at- gmail -dot- com; neilson -at- windstream -dot- net;
> richard -dot- combs -at- polycom -dot- com; techwr-l -at- lists -dot- techwr-l -dot- com
>
> >
> > Hi Guys,
> > Thanks for the guidance. Appears I touched the wrong chords for few.
> > Anyways, thanks for responding.
> >
> > Using Key Words like certification, external certification and
> certification
> > for technical writers at techwr-l.com site, using site search feature I
> > received the following results
> > http://www.techwr-l.com/search/node/external%20certification.
> >
> > This result has one link which is Avoiding Repetitive-stress Injuries: A
> > Guide for Technical Communicators <http://www.techwr-l.com/rsi>.
>
> >
> > So guys, probably I do not know to search the site. People like you all
> > should teach now how to search the site to get threads related to my
> > question.
> >
> > Anyways, Google search has been done earlier and has given me results.
> But,
> > the question was placed here to get it from the Horse's mouth if someone
> has
> > done such courses and what type of courses or certifications have they
> done,
> > specially if they are in product based company.
> >
> > Appears either I misled or else using hammer is easier for some. Anyways
> > thanks. No offence meant.
> >
> > Punit
> >
> > On Thu, Sep 23, 2010 at 9:14 PM, Wade Courtney <wade -dot- courtney -at- gmail -dot- com
> >wrote:
> >
> > > This thread, before it gets started...
> > >
> > > On Thu, Sep 23, 2010 at 8:30 AM, Peter Neilson <neilson -at- windstream -dot- net
> >
> > > wrote:
> > > > Richard Combs correctly wrote:
> > > >
> > > >> Please check the archives; this comes up often...
> > > >
> > > > Without bothering to check the archives I can suggest that
> understanding
> > > > the problem and finding a solution is generally better than finding a
> > > > solution (certification) and trying to match it to a problem.
> > > >
> > > > I have a hammer. What shall I hit with it?
> > > >
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-- 
Punit S.
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

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