ORNL has an opening for a scientific/ technical editor. Please see below for details and information on how to apply.
Scientific / Technical Editor
Purpose
The Creative Media group at Oak Ridge National Laboratory seeks an experienced scientific/technical editor to work with the Reactor and Nuclear Systems Division (RNSD) to ensure its technical communications products clearly and accurately present the
research and scientific developments of its staff and programs.
Responsible for editing, rewriting, and writing technical reports, scientific journal articles, promotional materials, funding proposals, manuals, presentations, and other materials to clearly and effectively communicate RNSD’s research findings, technical developments, programmatic thrusts, and other news and information to a range of internal and external audiences.
Major Duties/Responsibilities
- Revise and rewrite various types of reports, proposals, journal articles, book chapters, meeting papers, and visual materials for research staff to enhance clarity, coherence, and organization while ensuring compliance with established rules of grammar and syntax.
- Edit and revise—with special attention to idiom and syntax—the manuscripts of nonnative speakers. Enhance the accuracy and readability of these documents to ensure a high rate of acceptance in the open-literature arena.
- Mentor authors to improve their writing skills and enhance the products they produce.
- Prepare a significant number of division-level administrative documents and write critical award nominations for senior management.
- Organize technical information from various scientific and technical areas into a cohesive unit and produce written material in clear language without loss of technical content and with meticulous attention to logic, consistency, and accuracy.
- Provide project management and guidance to ensure publications meet ORNL or the outside publisher’s requirements and are
effectively managed through their completion or delivery to the publisher.
- Work with customer to generate ideas for publications that meet the needs and advance the research work of the organization.
- Work with members of RNSD to produce or update website content.
- Suggest visual materials in support of scientific and promotional information needs.
- Provide consultation to customers on appropriate formats, including print and electronic, and methods that will communicate most effectively to the intended audience.
- Establish, in consultation with customers, priorities and schedules for meeting deadlines. Schedule and coordinate complex projects. Monitor and stay within budget for these activities.
- Oversee and coordinate efforts of teams assigned on larger
projects, working with text processors, graphic artists, photographers, and printers to ensure professional quality and adherence to budgets and schedules.
- Understand and apply ORNL publications standards and styles or external (e.g., journal) guidelines. Adhere to DOE publishing requirements.
- Advise customers on usage, style, format, methods, and document preparation and production.
Qualifications Required
Minimum requirements are a bachelor’s degree (preferably in engineering, a science, or English) plus at least 8 years’ experience in technical editing and writing or an equivalent combination of education and experience.
Candidate must have an excellent command of standard American English style and usage, as demonstrated by writing
and editing samples, and be conversant with standard style guides (e.g., Chicago Manual of Style, ACS Style Guide).
Candidate must have a strong grasp of standard business computer software (e.g., Microsoft Office applications, especially Word; Adobe Acrobat).
This position will support one of ORNL’s major research divisions. The incumbent in this position will be required to develop a good understanding of the scientific area and the work performed by that organization. The candidate must be able to work independently and as part of a team, juggle multiple projects, meet deadlines, and stay within a budget. Strong interpersonal skills are essential to effectively work with a customer base that includes researchers and middle and senior management.
Qualifications preferred:
A master’s degree in English, technical writing, or a scientific field plus extensive experience editing the work of researchers in scientific and technical fields for style, tone, consistency, and grammatical correctness are preferred. Candidate should have strong communications skills, as demonstrated by previous experience, with the ability to easily grasp scientific and
technical concepts and clearly communicate them to a general science-interested audience as well as a more scientifically trained audience such as other researchers and sponsors. Candidate should also be able to work cooperatively with peers in Publications, Graphics, and Digital Imaging. Experience using LaTeX is also preferred.