Does My Editor Need to Have Subject Matter Expertise?
This month, I’ve edited dissertations for students earning their PhD in systems engineering and their doctorate of nursing practice. Every year, I work with students from a wide range of fields, including nursing, business, engineering, and more.
I’m an editor by educational background and trade, with a bachelor’s degree in journalism, graduate certificate in professional writing, and 15 years of experience as a writer and editor. So, while I don’t have subject matter expertise in any of the above fields, I can effectively edit these documents.
So, simply put, no––your editor generally doesn’t need to have subject matter expertise.
Here’s why: My role as an editor is to review your document from an outsider’s perspective. If your systems engineering dissertation––a topic that I admittedly know nothing about––makes sense to me, then it’s going to make sense to your reader. As an editor, my roles include:
Evaluating document structure and flow
Assessing overall readability for your audience
Addressing awkward sentence structures to improve clarity and cohesion
None of these editing tasks require intimate knowledge of your subject matter. They require a keen eye and strong editing skills. As a result, you want an editor with experience in editing, not necessarily one who has studied the same subject as you.
When do you need a subject matter expert?
Some circumstances warrant subject matter expertise. Perhaps you have questions about your research and its findings, and you need an insider’s input on the efficacy of your research. In this case, you might want to work with an editor or a dissertation coach who specializes in your field to gain that insider opinion.
But, the majority of clients benefit from editorial services provided by a strong editor like myself, someone with a background in writing and editing, not a background in their field.