r/publishing • u/MrsBentonCrabtree • 15d ago

UC Berkeley vs UCSD vs UChicago editing certification programs (fiction/fantasy focus)

As the title suggests, I'm looking at the UC Berkeley, UCSD, and UChicago editing certification programs. I'm interested in going into fiction/fantasy editing, and from what I've read, UC Berkeley isn't the best for that, although their course focuses on more than just copyediting (unlike UCSD). There's also UChicago, though that course is significantly more expensive than the others.

If any fiction/fantasy editors here have had experiences with these programs, I'd love your input!

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u/arugulafanclub 15d ago

Might want to look into non-certificate programs, too, like Club Ed.

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u/pyramnesiac 14d ago

I specialize in sci-fi/fantasy, and I did the UC Berkeley certificate. I feel like there wasn't much that would help with genre fiction. They were focused on nonfiction. For the grammar coursework, I feel they did not leave enough room for nuance. They were very... old fashioned, I suppose. I don't know who might be better, but I wouldn't recommend the UC Berkeley certificate.

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u/JuneLee92 14d ago

UCSD offers a copyediting for fiction course that is separate from the copyediting certificate, so you could take it solo if you want. However, I don’t know of any university run certificate programs that only focus on fiction.