Description
The two-day fully-online Technical Writing for Professionals course will provide students with hands-on tools to create technical writing, which is more engaging, compelling and persuasive.
Program Outcomes
By the end of this course, course participants will have the tools and strategies to:
- Write in an engaging manner
- Ensure internal logic and consistency
- Select relevant material for inclusion and exclude the irrelevant
- Select appropriate words to truly and accurately convey their intentions/meaning
- Edit their own and other’s work
- Appreciate the critical importance of edit/review/redraft.
Prerequisites
There are no formal prerequisites. A standard college or university English course or previous experience writing reports is recommended.
Each NRTG course includes free, lifetime admission. Enrol once – come back anytime.
Who attends?
This course is intended for a very wide array of students including professionals, university students, government, indigenous partners, and anyone that writes (or reviews) technical material as part of their duties.
How do I attend?
This course is available via our website schedule, or on contract to companies, community groups or organizations. Interested groups or organizations can also arrange for an ‘in-house’ or contract delivery of this program. For further information, please contact us.
What should I bring or supply?
Own computer and a stable internet connection, writing supplies for taking notes are also recommended.
Course Format
This two-day, 16-hour course is a highly interactive, classroom-based review of technical writing and reporting. Course participants will complete a number of in-class assignments, exercises, group discussions and group teachings. This course equips students with hands-on tools to create technical writing, which is more engaging, compelling and persuasive. The course draws on tools of other writing genres to inspire, motivate and empower better writers.
Instructor Profile
Sean Mitchell, PhD, RP Bio
NRTG Program Manager and Writer
Sean has worked in and studied the field of biology and impact assessment since 1987 and in that time has gained experience in four Canadian provinces (British Columbia, Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Newfoundland) working on a broad array of fish and wildlife, from periphyton to mammals. Sean’s experience has ranged widely from basic fieldwork to experimental biomechanics of crustaceans; from environmental impact analyses and fisheries issues through biogeography, philosophy, and sophisticated data analyses and modelling; from forests to the ocean. Sean has been, and strives to remain, a generalist in a world of hyper specialization and fascination with technology.
Sean’s chosen career has required continual writing during his professional life, including more than fifty contract reports, two academic theses, and twenty-three professional, peer reviewed papers. However, in addition to a requirement for his work, writing is a passion for Sean. He has written articles and short pieces for non-technical audiences and is currently working on three book projects (two non-fiction; one novel). Sean brings tools and strategies from other forms of writing to technical writing. He strongly believes, and propounds, that studying the processes which fiction and creative writers use can greatly help our technical writing abilities and efficiencies.
To teach a writing course requires some experience in teaching as well as writing. Sean has taught six biology courses at universities in Nova Scotia and British Columbia, ranging from first to third year, and from introductory biology to field school. He now brings the tools and strategies learned from these experiences to this writing course to create a valuable learning experience to the student.
Frequently Asked Questions
NRTG offers this course online approximately monthly in an online format year-round. It can also be requested to be delivered in-person within a community or company. Please refer to our Schedule page for course timing and locations.
Technical Writing for Professionals is intended to assist students improve their writing across a wide range of applications. It is, therefore, high level, and focussed on tools that are generalized across all technical writing. In contrast, NRTG’s remaining technical writing courses are focussed and specific to application. It is recommended that students take Technical Writing for Professionals, and then apply these skills and techniques to the other more focussed courses of their interest.
Course fees will vary by course delivery location. For further information, please refer to our Course Schedule.
Testimonials
I really enjoyed the technical writing class that you delivered to our team this July. It had been over 10 years since I was in an English class, and your course provided a great refresher in the basics of grammar, sentence structure, and paragraph flow. In addition to dusting off these skills, it inspired me to view my every day writing as an opportunity to communicate more effectively. I now see my daily emails, reports, and memos as practice for crafting something that is enjoyable to read. The course was hands-on and involved, I liked how we wrote and edited throughout. I found the timing and pace of the course to be appropriate and efficient. I recommend taking this course if you are interested in enhancing your writing skills in a technical workplace.
Really enjoyed, appreciated and benefited from a lot of what this course offered. Strongly recommend this instructor and course.
Valued the number of group and individual Technical Writing exercises, and the discussion on how to approach a new writing assignment.
Sean is a skilled presenter. One Technical Writing course exercise was terribly frustrating to start, but was a valuable experience in perseverance and value.
Really appreciated the emphasis on important principles and new updates and approaches to writing, as well as tips, tricks to better writing.
What I liked about this course was Sean’s ability to bring technical writing back to the basics – to remind us of the intent or purpose of writing, and to remind us on a basic level how to construct a sentence, a paragraph, and a narrative. Beyond the basics, he provided us with strategies for improving our writing through every stage of the writing process. My biggest takeaway from the course is a reminder that even technical, scientific writing can (and should!) be compelling, interesting, creative and persuasive.
Great course, more hands-on that I was expecting and surprisingly, it was not dry material. Sean had lots of stories, quotes, exercises and tips and by the end of the two days, I had confidence that I wasn’t the horrible writer I had made myself out to be. Writing just takes work and practice like everything else. I’d love to take this course annually to re-inspire and refresh my writing skills.
Strongly recommend this course and instructor!
I learned a great deal in the Technical Writing course. Writing is a lot of work, and this course gave me a good base to keep growing from.
My writing has improved tenfold since taking the course, as well as my confidence. My supervisor and I have both noticed it – whether it is an email, summary letter, or full report, the flow is better and everything reads easier.
