Section Editor Job Description Template

We are looking for a Section Editor with experience in [section niche] to edit and supervise niche content production in our digital publications.

As our Section Editor, you’ll be managing your section’s content production from identifying and assigning content ideas up to the publication stage. After articles and blogs are submitted, you will maintain communication with our writers and contributors, peer reviewers, and the editorial team to provide feedback and ensure content quality.

You must stay up-to-date with current events and trends in your assigned niche and use your subject-matter expertise to analyze data from reader surveys, polls, and comments to identify and develop fresh and relevant content ideas.

You will also monitor our closest competitors to ensure we remain competitive. Your responsibilities will also include looking for and reaching out to high-quality niche contributors to grow our publication’s reputation and the quality of our content.

Responsibilities

• Edit submitted content for grammar, spelling, punctuation, style, and structure mistakes, and provide feedback to writers/contributors
• Analyze audience feedback to identify new content ideas to grow and maintain a commercially viable readership
• Work with the design and production teams to select compelling visuals for the content and decide publication layout
• Scout and reach out to established and reputable niche writers about to lend their voice to our publication
• Develop a content calendar according to our publication schedule and assign work to contributors with comprehensive content guidelines
• Collaborate with the SEO team to optimize all content pieces for search engines and user engagement

Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree or higher in English, Communications, or Journalism
• At least 2 years of prior experience in an editorial role
• A portfolio of previous written/edited content pieces in this niche 
• Advanced subject-matter knowledge about the niche
• Cross-functional collaboration skills and ability to manage a remote team
• Strong writing and editing skills
• Experience with data analysis and competition research
• Experience with content management systems and writing tools, like Google Docs and WordPress
• Fundamental understanding of web/graphic/UX design

Salary Ranges for Section Editors

How much a Section Editor makes is determined by their skill set, the success and reputation of their employer publication, and their location of employment. According to Glassdoor, average compensation for Section Editors varies significantly across major U.S. cities:

Target Only the Best Section Editors With Your Job Ad

When writing your job description for Section Editors, you need to be as specific as possible to attract only the best candidates and ones that have experience in the subject matters you’re looking to write about.

Focus on the responsibilities of the role, as well as the requirements candidates must meet for you to consider them, and this will reduce the number of unwanted candidates significantly.

If you’re vague about the role, you may end up attracting people who would confuse your Section Editor need for similar roles, such as:

• Associate Editor—Reports to and assists a Senior Editor in running the editorial team. They have strong research, editing, and management skills and help to handle some of the Senior Editor’s less important tasks as well as stand in for them in their absence. Associate Editors are publishing professionals whose scope of work typically covers the entire publication, unlike Section Editors who are only concerned with their section
• Assistant Editor—Shadows the Senior or Managing Editor and helps them handle some of their lower-priority editorial duties. They also help the Senior Editor ensure an optimized and effective content production pipeline
• Specialist Editor—This is a senior editor role but for specialized publications. Specialist Editors usually work in organizations that require solid industry-specific knowledge. They oversee the entire publication process and create guidelines for content production

Similar Roles to Section Editor

If a Section Editor doesn’t sound like the best fit for your organization’s needs or you need to fill another role in your editorial team, you can use our template for a similar role, such as:

• Online Editor
• Production Editor
• Planning Editor
• Specialist Editor
• Contributing Editor
• Assistant Managing Editor
• Lead Editor
• Content Editor
• Associate Editor
• Assistant Editor
• Developmental Editor
• Magazine Editor

Use our job description template database for any role within your content team.

Get More Section Editor Job Descriptions Inspiration

If your job ad doesn’t stand out, you’ll likely lose top candidates to other companies. To write a great job ad, you can use the latest job description examples from the most popular online job boards and jump-start your inspiration:

• Glassdoor
• Indeed
• LinkedIn
• SimplyHired

Hiring Better, More Affordable Section Editors

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