Editor (Publishing)
Impact: Intellectual, Cultural
Editors plan, coordinate, and revise material for publication. They review proposals and drafts, suggest revisions, and oversee the production process to ensure accuracy, clarity, and consistency.
What the day looks like
- People interaction
- Moderate
- Team vs solo
- Team-oriented with significant solo work
- Client facing
- Sometimes
- Impact visibility
- High
- Travel
- Rarely
- Schedule flexibility
- Flexible
- Remote work
- Hybrid
- Typical work hours
- 40 hours/week
- Stress level
- Moderate
At a glance
- Median salary
- $65,000
- Entry-level
- $45,000
- Senior
- $90,000
- Growth by 2033
- 2%
- Demand
- Stable
- Freelance potential
- High
- Salary growth potential
- Moderate
- Typical student debt
- $30,000 - $60,000
Skills you'll use
Hard skills
- Copyediting
- Proofreading
- Content Management
Soft skills
- Attention to Detail
- Communication
- Critical Thinking
Technical complexity: Moderate
How to get there
- Minimum education
- Bachelor's Degree
- Licensing
- No
- Years to mid-career
- 5-8 years
- Years to senior
- 10-15 years
- Career switching
- Moderate
Where this career leads
How people arrive here
Where you can go from here
Typical progression
- Assistant Editor
- Editor
- Senior Editor
- Managing Editor
- Editorial Director
Future outlook
- Automation probability
- Low
- AI disruption risk
- Moderate
- Demand trend
- Stable
How people feel about it
- Overall satisfaction
- 4/10
- Meaning
- 4/10
- Work-life balance
- 3.5/10
- Prestige
- 5/10
- Social perception
- High