5 Professions that Make Great UX Writers

Up until last year, I taught a UX writing course at a local university. It was the only English-language course in Israel and one of the few UX writing courses in the world.

Teaching UX writing in a university setting was a pretty crazy experience considering that when I was in college, it wasn’t something you could learn or even a career path you could consider. Heck, I didn’t even encounter the term “UX writing” until five or so years after graduating, after I had finished my MBA.

What I’m trying to say here is: Every one of us “experienced” UX writers or content designers started somewhere else. I think that’s a good thing—it means that we bring diverse perspectives to the craft and that there’s room to break into it from lots of different backgrounds.

Here are five professions that may be especially well-suited to UX writing and content design:

• Teachers

As I’ve written before, the essence of UX writing is taking information and distilling it so others can understand it. That’s what teachers do, isn’t it? Teachers are used to breaking things down into steps and finding ways to communicate them concisely and consistently. On top of that, good teachers are attuned to their students’ needs, concerns, and frustrations. That’s not so different from UX writers, who need to pay attention to what their users are trying to do, what their needs and concerns are, and any challenges they may encounter when using a product.

• Designers

Designers, especially UX or UI designers, are already familiar with user journeys, flows, and interfaces. That can make it easier for them to take the leap into UX writing. At the same time, it can make their work as designers even more precise—for example, instead of simply designing a form like they always have, they may choose to organize the information differently, taking into consideration not just best practices in design but also in UX writing.

• Therapists and coaches

Sure, speaking to people through a digital interface is a pretty big departure from having a person sit in front of you and reveal the depths of their soul. Nevertheless, therapists and coaches have lots of important insights about what motivates people, what repels them, what causes them to worry, and so on. That deep thinking about users (as people, first and foremost) is the very foundation of good, user-centered design and user experiences.

• Journalists

The medium and deliverables may be different, but the journalistic process—interviews, research, fact-checking, writing—is really not all that different from the UX writing process. And like good UX writers, journalists seek to deliver truth and accuracy in their writing. Journalists often have that critical eye and, of course, way with words that is exactly what UX writing calls for. (And on the bright side, as a UX writer, you’re less likely to find yourself doing your work from the middle of a blizzard or a war zone.)

• Researchers

To be a successful UX writer, you need to know how to ask questions and occasionally do some digging. While every discipline has its own research preferences and methodologies—qualitative versus quantitative, and so on—that inquisitive mindset gives researchers of all types a leg up in UX writing, especially when it comes to user testing and working with a product team. Those research and writing skills are also likely to come in handy for documenting findings and decisions and, of course, creating clear, on-point UX copy.

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