Writing Skills for Digital Content: Freelance and Interviews

The UBC Micro-certificate in Writing Skills for Digital Content: Freelance and Interviews provides indispensable skills in interviewing and article writing along with strategies to get your work picked up and featured in today’s constantly evolving media landscape. Learn how to write articles that tell a compelling story and gain a step-by-step process for conducting effective interviews. Tap into industry expertise to get started on the path to becoming a freelance writer.

By the end of this program, you’ll be able to:

• produce high-quality articles for both traditional and digital newspapers and magazines
• pitch your ideas and articles to editors
• understand the marketing and business of freelance writing
• conduct research for interviews and formulate questions
• use techniques to get interview subjects to open up
• incorporate interviews into an article in a way that is accurate, natural and engaging

This program is designed for marketing and communications professionals, web designers, user experience (UX) professionals, digital entrepreneurs, and individuals in smaller companies or organizations who are responsible for a variety of digital writing tasks. Anyone who wants to position themselves for a new role or is considering freelance or contract writing will also benefit from the program.

All levels are welcome. Those with beginner to advanced writing skills can benefit from the program. The thorough, well-crafted courses in the program offer new concepts and approaches that can round out your writing skills.

Each course costs $725. The total cost of the program is $1,450.

All fees are in Canadian dollars and subject to change. Fees are subject to GST where applicable. Fees may be paid by Visa®, Visa® Debit, Mastercard®, American Express®, money order or certified cheque.

For details on UBC’s payment policies, please see Refunds, Cancellations and Transfers.

The program consists of two online courses of eight weeks each. Combined, the courses take approximately 65 hours to complete. You must complete all courses in a stream within 18 months to receive the micro-certificate.

Courses taken since January 1, 2022 may be retroactively applied to the program. Simply enrol in the remaining course(s) to compete the micro-certificate.

Required Courses

The UBC Micro-certificate in Writing Skills for Digital Content: Freelance and Interviews is a part-time 100% online program that is instructor supported.

You work through course modules on your own time, which are released weekly. Instructors provide feedback on your assignments and may offer virtual office hours, giving you an opportunity to ask questions. You also have access to a forum in which you can post and discuss questions with other students and the course instructors.

Expected effort

Each course requires approximately 24 to 32 hours of study. Expect to spend a minimum of three to four hours per week on each course including readings, exercises, homework, online discussions and instructor office hours (where applicable).

Technology requirements

To take this program, you need access to:

• an email account
• a computer, laptop or tablet, using Windows or macOS
• the latest version of a web browser (or previous major version release)
• a reliable internet connection
• a video camera and microphone (to access virtual office hours)

Textbooks and materials

There are no textbooks required for this program. Individual courses may include recommended textbooks.

Assessment

The courses in this program are marked complete/incomplete based on your participation and completion of core assignments. Your instructor provides personalized feedback on the assignments you hand in. To earn your micro-certificate, you must achieve 80% participation, which includes submitting assignments, attending any scheduled classes and contributing to discussions.

Obtaining your micro-certificate

If you have completed all of the courses, fill out this form to request your micro-credential.