Technical Communication
Program details
Credential: 1-Year Ontario College Graduate CertificateThis one-year graduate certificate program builds on prior education to prepare graduates with the specialized knowledge and skills to produce and manage technical documents on multiple platforms.
Students have strong backgrounds in user-centred communication and are able to create useful technical documentation that informs, instructs, and persuades. They are proficient document designers and editors, and are skilled users of software such as Microsoft Office, DITA/XML, and Adobe FrameMaker, and are also adept online communicators with experience developing technical content for digital environments.
This program emphasizes professional collaboration, research, and principles of project management.
Graduates are well-prepared for careers as writers, editors, researchers, and information designers in a variety of fields including manufacturing, engineering, software/IT, and health care.
Student availability & wage data
Conestoga College facilitates recruitment on an ongoing basis - there are no hard deadlines. Typical time frames for work terms are listed below.
Postings are accepted beginning four months before the start of a term until all students have secured employment provided the minimum 12 consecutive weeks of full-time work is met.
Work/Study Sequence
| Year | Fall (Sept - Dec) | Winter (Jan - Apr) | Spring (May - Aug) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Year 1 | Classes | Classes | Work Term*: $20-25 |
Conestoga College collects data on hourly wages of co-operative education students and offers suggested ranges as a service to employers for the purpose of establishing fair and competitive compensation.
Our experience has been that employers increase wages as skills increase, particularly when employing students for more advanced work terms. The Co-operative Education Office can provide assistance to employers in establishing appropriate wage rates.
Work term capabilities
- Create professional technical documents such as proposals, reports, instructions, procedures, manuals, descriptions, and help guides
- Compose messages that are clear, concise, and error-free
- Produce print and electronic documentation that applies industry-led principles of style, design, layout, and format
- Apply key principles of user experience to ensure that all documentation meets audience needs
- Perform appropriate research for technical communication projects and integrate research into documents using a style guide
- Edit technical content across a variety of media formats to ensure concision, clarity, and usability
- Provide a range of complementary documents in a project cycle
- Apply key functions of leadership and team-orientation to ethically manage the life-cycle of writing projects
- Combine end-user needs with sound environmental and cost-efficient principles in documentation and publication design
- Identify and respond to new opportunities across the technical communication field
Sample job titles
- Communication Specialist
- Content Manager
- Documentation Specialist
- Information Designer
- Technical Content Developer
- Technical Editor
- Technical Writer
- Web Writer
Program courses
To see a typical course list for this program, see the current program course information.
Post a co-op job now
Setup an account or login to Conestoga's MyCareer to post a job.
Contact information
Do you need help developing a recruitment plan or job posting, accessing wage information, or connecting with a talented co-op student? Contact:
Bailey Binns-Franchetto
Employer Relations Consultant
bbinnsfranchetto@conestogac.on.ca