School of Advanced Technology

Our Program

This one-year Ontario College Graduate Certificate program prepares students from a wide variety of diploma and degree programs for careers in the field of technical communication.

While a proven ability in writing is a prerequisite for admission to the program, successful candidates are trained to communicate clear and accurate information to online, print and real-time audiences. The spread of technology-based communications has created a high demand for qualified writers beyond the area of high technology in every field of industry and in the public sector.

In addition to possessing advanced writing skills, technical communicators need well-developed abilities in research, analysis and organization. An essential part of a technical writer's work is to provide efficient communication that an organization can use to function effectively. Successful candidates are trained to gather relevant product data and to produce technical documentation that meets the needs of businesses and their clients. Students participate in small group projects and collaborative activities within the program and across technology programs at the College. In addition to honing research, analysis and organizational skills, these activities also refine the development of team skills prized in the workplace.

The program concludes with a paid full-time work term with an employer off campus. The College provides assistance in finding a placement.



SUCCESS FACTORS

This program is well-suited for students who:

• Possess advanced written and oral communication abilities.
• Enjoy designing, developing, writing and refining online and print material.
• Possess interpersonal skills for collaboration with colleagues.
• Enjoy researching, collecting, analyzing and organizing technical information.
• Function in a self-directed manner in a team environment.
• Organize their work and pay attention to detail..
• Enjoy using software tools to create documents and websites.

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Your Career

Graduates from the Technical Writer program may be successful in finding work as writers, editors and documentation specialists. Canadian and international demand is high for qualified technical communicators in both the private and public sectors. While most graduates from the program may work as employees in large organizations, some choose self-employment in the field.

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Courses

Programs at Algonquin College are delivered using a variety of instruction modes. Courses may be offered in the classroom or lab, entirely online, or in a hybrid mode which combines classroom sessions with online learning activities. Upon registration, each full-time student is provided an Algonquin email account which is used to communicate important information about program or course events.

Level: 01		Hours
TWR2000	Technical Writing I This course teaches students how to communicate written technical information to an intended audience. Students evaluate the needs of readers before writing technical documents, such as instructions, proposals and tutorials. In addition to communicating technical information in written form, students are also required to communicate in oral form through presentations. The classes are organized as writing workshops so that students can develop their abilities to work individually and as members of a group. Co-requisites: TWR2015	60.0
TWR2002	Desktop Publishing This course provides students with a foundation in the features of Adobe Framemaker, the preferred publishing software for technical writers. Some of the features covered in the course include adding, editing, and formatting text; drawing and working with graphics; using variables and conditional text; working with tables; laying out pages; generating books; creating PDFs; and publishing to XML. This course is organized as a lab-based workshop to allow students to receive guided practical training on the application.	45.0
TWR2009	Selected Topics I This course introduces students to activities, emerging technologies, developments, options and careers in the field of technical communication. The course is taught through a combination of class lectures, field trips, workshops, guest speakers, student-led presentations and seminars and self-directed learning.	30.0
TWR2010	Designing Technical Documentation This course introduces students to the principles of designing effective technical documentation. To maximize the impact of their documentation, technical communicators must ensure that their deliverables are not only well written, but well designed. By learning the design principles underlying professional typography, page layout, graphics, and web design, students are able to produce more usable print and online documents in which the visual elements reinforce the written content.	30.0
TWR2014	Document Planning and Management This course examines the document process and the skills required for planning, designing, managing, and controlling online and print documents. All aspects of the production process are examined, with attention given to content specifications, estimation of time and budgets, content management, single sourcing, and document scheduling and tracking. Emphasis is placed on the relationship of writers to other corporate team members in document development.	45.0
TWR2015	Editing I This course helps students to develop and improve their abilities to edit written work in a variety of media. Through the use of assigned readings, exercises, and online discussions, students develop an understanding of the levels and tools of editing, and the roles and responsibilities of an editor. Emphasis is placed on reviewing and applying the basic rules of grammar, mechanics, spelling, punctuation, and usage to passages and documents for improvement in correctness, accuracy and readability. Co-requisites: TWR2000	30.0

Level: 02		Hours
TWR2003	Online Documentation This course provides students with a foundation in the features of Adobe RoboHelp, the preferred online help software for technical writers. Some of the features covered in the course include importing files, creating a table of contents, formatting text and using style sheets. Emphasis is placed on improving the quality, visual appeal and presentation and the functionality of help systems. Other topics in this course include advanced help coding skills and other forms of online documentation, such as PDFs and HTML help. This course is organized as a lab-based workshop to allow students to receive guided practical training on the application. Prerequisites: TWR2000 and TWR2010	45.0
TWR2004	Technical Writing II This course continues the focus of communicating written technical information to an intended audience. More emphasis is placed on reasoning, organizing, researching, accessing information from subject matter experts and understanding technical material to produce a variety of task-oriented technical documentation products. The classes are organized as writing workshops so that students can develop their abilities to work individually and as members of a group. Prerequisites: TWR2000 and TWR2010 Co-requisites: TWR2016	60.0
TWR2011	Usability in Product Design In this human factors course, students learn to make difficult-to-use things into easy-to-use things. Students study the user, the thing used and the relationship between them. They study documents, software applications and websites that people find difficult to use. They conduct tests that accurately measure usability, and they identify and list the characteristics that make each thing difficult to use. Based on the tests, they calculate the costs of unusability and they justify the design work necessary to make things usable. Students are to create user profiles, perform task analysis, write task procedures, and design and test user Interface prototypes guaranteed to be highly usable.	30.0
TWR2012	Web-Based Documentation This course teaches the latest tools and technologies used in industry to create web-based documents. Through the use of assigned readings, projects, and computer-based instruction, students build and manage websites, create screencasts and design PDF communication used for online review. This course is organized as a lab-based workshop to allow students to receive guided practical training on various software applications. Prerequisites: TWR2000 and TWR2010	45.0
TWR2016	Editing II This course helps students to further develop their abilities to edit written work in a variety of media. Through the use of assigned readings, projects, exercises, and online discussions, students act in the role of comprehensive editors, copyeditors and proofreaders while focussing on information architecture. Additional emphasis is placed on reviewing and applying advanced rules of grammar, mechanics, spelling, punctuation, style, and usage to documents for improvements in correctness, accuracy and readability. Prerequisites: TWR2000 and TWR2015 Co-requisites: TWR2004	30.0
TWR2201	Selected Topics II This course further introduces students to activities, emerging technologies, developments, options and careers in the field of technical communication, with a particular focus on work placement. The course is taught through a combination of class lectures, field trips, workshops, guest speakers, student-led presentations, and seminars and self-directed learning. Prerequisites: TWR2009	30.0
WKT2100	Cooperative Education Work Term Preparation Prior to their first co-op work term, students study cooperative education and work term objectives, policies and procedures, strategies for employability and on-the-job protocols. Students participating in co-op must complete the co-op preparation modules which are offered in an online delivery mode. The course is marked as pass/fail. Two face-to face one hour sessions are held with co-op staff to prepare students to compete for jobs, to discuss co-op evaluations, work report guidelines and to practise interview skills. Prerequisites: TWR2000 and TWR2015 Co-requisites: TWR2004	12.0

Co-op: 01		Hours
WKT2200	Work Term I Students complete a paid full-time work term with an employer off campus. The placement is monitored by the College and assignments, including a final report must be completed. The College provides assistance in finding a placement. Prerequisites: TWR2000 and TWR2002 and TWR2003 and TWR2004 and TWR2009 and TWR2010 and TWR2011 and TWR2012 and TWR2014 and TWR2015 and TWR2016 and TWR2100 and TWR2201	0.0

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Fees & Expenses

Books and supplies cost approximately $525 per term and can be purchased in the campus bookstore.

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Admission Requirements  2012/20132011/2012

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Application Information

Applications to full-time day programs must be submitted with official transcripts showing completion of the academic admission requirements through:

ontariocolleges.ca
60 Corporate Court
Guelph, Ontario
N1G 5J3
1-888-892-2228

Applications are available online at ontariocolleges.ca. A $95 fee applies.

Applications for Fall Term, Winter Term and Spring Term admission received by February 1 will be given equal consideration. Applications received after February 1 will be processed on a first-come, first-served basis as long as places are available.

International applicants applying from out-of-country can obtain the
International Student Application Form at
https://xweb.algonquincollege.com/FormIE/index.aspx or by contacting the Registrar's Office.

For further information on the admissions process, contact:

Registrar's Office
Algonquin College
1385 Woodroffe Ave, Room C150
Ottawa, ON K2G 1V8
Telephone: 613-727-0002
Toll-free: 1-800-565-4723
TTY: 613-727-7766
Fax: 613-727-7632
Email: askalgonquin@algonquincollege.com

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Additional Information

For more information about the Technical Writer program, visit our website at www.algonquincollege.com/sat/technicalwriter.

For more information about the field of technical communication, visit our international professional association, the Society for Technical
Communication (STC) at www.stc.org.

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