Career
Proofreaders and copy markers
Catch the errors before anything is printed.
$51,120
Median pay
-0.9%
Job growth, 2025–35
1,100
Openings a year
Bachelor's degree
Typical education
4 years
Typical time after high school
Here's what you actually need to know.
The work
What people in this job do
- Mark copy to indicate and correct errors in type, arrangement, grammar, punctuation, or spelling, using standard printers' marks.
- Read corrected copies or proofs to ensure that all corrections have been made.
- Correct or record omissions, errors, or inconsistencies found.
- Compare information or figures on one record against same data on other records, or with original copy, to detect errors.
- Route proofs with marked corrections to authors, editors, typists, or typesetters for correction or reprinting.
The outlook
How the forecast changed this year
The deeper question
What kind of person does this path ask you to become?
What this work centers on
O*NET interest profile, scored 1–7.
The work
Do you want most of your days spent on information & systems, then creation & expression?
Responsibility
Are you willing to be the one responsible for this?
“Mark copy to indicate and correct errors in type, arrangement, grammar, punctuation, or spelling, using standard printers' marks.”
Development
What would you need to build over the next 5–10 years?
Reading Comprehension, Writing, Speaking, Active Listening.
Trade-offs
What does it ask of you in exchange?
4 years of education after high school (bachelor's degree), for a median of $51,120 a year and 1,100 openings nationally each year.
Paths in
Degrees that lead here
- EnglishSee the degree →
- JournalismSee the degree →
- Writing and RhetoricSee the degree →
- JournalismCIP 09.0401
- English Language and Literature, GeneralCIP 23.0101
- Writing, GeneralCIP 23.1301
Paths across
Careers that use similar skills
- Editors$77,920 · -1.1%
- Desktop Publishers$55,290 · -14.5%
- Technical Writers$90,390 · +0.8%
- Word Processors and Typists$49,280 · -34.4%
- File Clerks$43,600 · -15.8%
Ask anything about this career.
“Would this make sense if I don't want to sit at a desk all day?” Answers will come from the sources on this page, with citations. Coming soon.
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Sources
- BLS Employment Projections, 2025–35, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Retrieved 2026-10-01.
- BLS Employment Projections, 2024–34 (archived), U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Retrieved 2026-10-01.
- O*NET 31.0 Database (August 2026), National Center for O*NET Development / U.S. Department of Labor. Retrieved 2026-10-01.
- CIP 2020 to SOC 2018 Crosswalk, NCES and BLS. Retrieved 2026-10-01.