Penguin Random House Production Editorial Mentorship Program for Prospective Copy Editors and Proofreaders
If interested, students should register for ENGL 382: Editing and Proofreading in Book Publishing and Beyond (formerly ENGL 378O). During this class, students will gain valuable knowledge that will prepare them for a Production Editorial mentorship, and they will learn about the application process. This course is open to all students; you are not required to apply to the mentorship if you take this class.
Those who do choose to apply to the mentorship may be selected for a remote training program where they will be paired with Penguin Random House production editors (PE). The PE mentor will provide (1) insight into the world of trade book publishing, (2) paid freelance projects (an hourly rate, around $21/hour but subject to change, with a cap on the total number of hours worked during mentorship), (3) assessment and guidance regarding the freelance projects. The mentee will learn about the production editorial process and advance their copyediting and proofreading skills. The program also includes a schedule of optional remote trainings, panels, and information sessions about the industry and production editorial work. These sessions will be recorded.
To earn academic credit for the mentorship, selected students will register for the 3-credit ENGL 388G-Penguin Random House Mentorship for the fall semester only. However, since this internship runs from November to April, the course will continue into the spring semester, lasting for the duration of the mentorship. Due to the timing of the mentorship program, students will be issued an Incomplete in the fall semester but will receive a grade at the end of the immediately following spring semester upon completion of the mentorship program.
APPLICATION PROCESS
REQUIREMENTS
REQUIREMENTS
- Completion of ENGL 382: Editing and Proofreading in Book Publishing and Beyond (formerly ENGL 378O) or with special permission (rphilli6@umd.edu)
- Access to The Chicago Manual of Style (online version free through McKeldin library catalog)
- For copyediting, a PC or Mac with Microsoft Word (2016 or later), downloaded locally
- For proofreading, Adobe Acrobat Reader (or Pro), downloaded locally (available for free and the subscription version is available for free through TerpWare)
- U.S. citizen or fully authorized to work in the U.S.
- Must be an undergraduate or graduate student at the start of the mentorship program.
- A social security number or individual taxpayer identification number and authorization to work in the United States (Please note: PRH will not complete paperwork related to eligibility to work in the United States, nor paperwork for for-credit internships.)
- A bank account that can accept direct deposit is preferred; checks can also be sent via mail.
APPLICATION PROCESS
The application process occurs in two rounds. For Round 1, applicants will complete the PRH Production Editorial Mentorship Program form (with short-answer questions), as well as a two-page copyediting test in Word using Track Changes (worked on locally, not on the cloud). Those who do well on Round 1 will be invited to participate in Round 2 which will consist of a copyediting test in Word using Track Changes and Comments for queries and a proofreading test in Adobe Acrobat using the markup editing tools. All tests and instructions will be supplied by Penguin Random House.
APPLICATION DEADLINES
The Round 1 application will be made available on the day of a virtual on-campus info session by PRH, usually early September, and will close in mid-September, one week after it opens. Applicants who do well on Round 1 will be notified in early October and will be invited to participate in a lengthier copyediting test and a proofreading test for Round 2. Mentees will be selected from the Round 2 applicant pool and will be notified of their selection on or around October 31. The English Undergraduate Studies Office will then work with accepted students to late-add ENGL 388G to their fall schedules.
TIMEFRAME OF MENTORSHIP
Six months between approximately early November through April (followed by the possibility of further training and/or freelance work, to be determined on a case-by-case basis and by skill level). While PRH cannot guarantee future work, they hope to train those in the program to take on full-length projects independently following the program. During the mentorship, there will be a cap of hours maximum for each project assigned with a goal of at least four projects during the six months. Work done on these manuscripts will be paid (around $21/hour but rate to be finalized before each year's mentorship program application process).