Knowadays Reviews 537

I found the course material very interesting, well presented, and good value. The support was also very good, and the online presentations very well pitched and a good introduction to the world of proofreading. I was lucky enough to pass with a good score, which allowed me to sign up with the sister company Proofed, and I am now dipping my toes into freelancing as a proofreader. All good fun!

As a newbie, I found the Knowadays (formerly Proofreading Academy) Becoming a Proofreader course immensely informative and helpful. Even if I hadn't secured work upon completion it would have been worth doing. This course covers everything from basic rules of grammar and punctuation to various differences in several major dialects. It has video tutorials for Word and Mac, it demonstrates how to edit PDFs, and it also provides great resources and training for multiple referencing systems. You can work at your own pace, which is wonderful for working around a busy schedule. If you get stuck, their tutors are extremely knowledgeable, honest and personable.

I was delighted to pass their final test with distinction and, as promised, I was immediately connected with Proofed and offered a trial. For those interested, because I have seen mixed feedback regarding Proofed's trial period, I have found it great so far. I honestly like that the documents begin smaller - I like that I can gradually build my confidence and not feel overwhelmed or out of my depth. The feedback that I have been given has been helpful and informative, and I can see my progress as I get more and more feedback saying no changes were needed. I have also found there to be enough work for me, as a SAHM (although I will say it's definitely not enough if you are wanting to jump in full time. You will probably have to hang in there until the larger documents become available). There is a strong demand for academic proofreading, although I have had a few small business documents too. I also like that there are bonuses for fast turnover, and that you can take on urgent work for more money if you are available. It annoys me when people say that the hook of guarenteed work is "false advertising" or "scammy", because I feel like it is a genuinely good opportunity that they do uphold. I can't think of any other proofreading course that offers a kick-starter in this way.

If you are considering starting a career in proofreading, I cannot recommend this course enough. I will use my new skills every day of my life. I can't wait until their level two course becomes available!

I loved this course. I’ve learned so much and am really pleased to have passed my assignment with the grade required to work for Proofed. I’ve just started that this week and am really enjoying it. It did take me two attempts to pass, but the feedback and support I had after the first attempt definitely helped me on the second go! Well worth the money.

This is honestly a scam. You pay a lot of money to take their course with a promise of FREELANCE employment with their proofreading company if you reach a distinction grade of 80% on their final assessment. BUT you have to jump through so many hoops to get the distinction grade of 80%.

The course content itself emphasizes the fluidity of a proofreader's role, stating that you might do some editing work too, thus convoluting their own definition of proofreading. They then turn around and only give you vague instructions about how they want their final assessment completed (It's clear for the formatting test that you're not to proofread but it's unclear in the proofreading tests whether you're to format). There are even two versions of assessment instructions available on their site. If you use the wrong one, you're marked down. I was told not to format the proofreading assessments at all on one attempt and then on the other attempt I was marked down for not formatting the references. The changes they want you to make based on dialect are also pedantic and honestly outdated. For example, they wanted the word 'program' changed to 'programme' in the assessment written in UK English. I had caught this technicality originally, but they list Google Ngram Viewer as a resource to check dialect usage, and upon looking at this resource, that they recommend using, it shows that 'program' and 'programme' are used equally now in the UK. Furthermore, they don't teach you how to change the comments dialect and mark you down when your comments are in the incorrect dialect. This made me realize how useless a model of proofreading like this really is. The outdated idea of dialect and a 'proper' word choice isn't really helpful in a globalized world where dialects of English are bluring together. The types of 'mistakes' they want you to 'correct' are no longer mistakes and it just perpetuates a privileged idea of stylistic voice based on white, particularly male, objectivity as well as linguistic traditions that discriminate against ESL writers and those who do not conform to standards of 'proper English'. It also leaves no room for creativity or personal style. The types of corrections they want you to make are so miniscule that they wouldn't bother anyone except people who really think language is decaying.

Their commenting style also means that they don't explain a lot of the changes they make. I wouldn't use this as an essay review resource. If I struggled with English it wouldn't teach me anything and honestly the way they change word choice instead of just flagging it seems suspicious. I was told to just replace the old one with a new word because it will "undoubtedly be better than their original choice" (direct quote from feedback).

I could go on about the issues I found with this company. I'm an English scholar myself and love writing as well as editing and proofreading, but part of being in a literary based field is acknowledging the way that language changes, and the way it's historically been used to exclude particular groups of people from higher education and intellectual status. Upon taking this course, I found it to represent everything that's wrong with traditionalist ideology surrounding language. I have a couple of friends who had the same experience and really I wouldn't be surprised if the positive reviews are just ambassadors for the company. Altogether I found that this wasn't worth the money considering how many technical hoops they make you jump through to get a 'distinction' grade. If you pay to take the course, don't expect to make the money back anytime soon.

Comprehensive, interesting and excellent value for money!

This course surpassed all of my expectations in terms of content and layout, and the course facilitators were extremely helpful throughout.

Thank you Proofreading Academy.

Proofreading Academy exceeded my expectations. The knowledge that they provide is extensive and thorough. After finishing the course, I felt prepared to take on proofreading projects with confidence that I would do a good job. Also, the opportunity to trial with Proofed as a freelancer after passing the exam was a game changer.

A very well thought-out course. Logical and user-friendly, with strong support and advice available throughout. Suitable for beginners and for more experienced proofreaders and editors wishing to brush up on or evaluate their knowledge and skills. Highly recommended.

I highly recommend Proofreading Academy! The training materials were thorough and easy to use. I was especially impressed with the tutors. When I reached out with questions or concerns, they were always friendly, knowledgeable, and prompt. I also appreciated the free and convenient tutorials Proofreading Academy offered in addition to my course. Thank you, Proofreading Academy!

The course was fantastic and I highly recommend it to anybody interested in editing and proofreading. All of the content, exercises, and tutor feedback was incredibly helpful. I thought it was definitely worth the price.

I cannot rate the service provided by Proofreading Academy highly enough. I was completely new to proofreading, but with a good level of English language and grammar skills. I found the course material to be pitched at a perfect level - extremely comprehensive and in depth but presented in an easy to digest, easy to understand and almost enjoyable way. It was well structured and easy to complete a section at a time which was satisfying and motivating. It went into the right level of detail - referencing further resources where necessary. The support provided was excellent. I passed the assignment first time but did not receive the grade needed to work for proofed and I had an extremely helpful online tutorial with a member of their team who was friendly, professional, extremely understanding and helpful. Following passing with over 80% I had another tutorial with an equally helpful member of their team. Overall the service offered was above and beyond my expectations.

Every "i" dotted, and every "t" crossed.

The Proofreading Academy provided a thorough course that more than adequately prepared me for the world of proofreading. They cover so many aspects of proofreading one might encounter, and, more importantly, offer many resources for future use. The quizzes offered during the course are very helpful. They also offer webinars to help prepare you for the final assignments. My online meetings with the tutors were helpful and inspiring. My only critique would be to offer more "practice tests" that resemble the final assignment to give students a bit more confidence. However, when I asked my tutor for some other practice options, he was happy to provide me with tests to prepare me for my second round. Chatting with the tutors also provides insight to what the job with Proofed may be like. All the tutors and support staff were friendly and helpful.

This was a great course and I am actually sad to see it end. I learned so much. I found that proofreading entails so much more than catching grammar and punctuation mistakes. A professional proofreader needs to know the ins and outs of Track Changes, Regional Grammar and Spelling, Abbreviations, APA citations, and Advanced Functions and Formatting in Microsoft Word—to name just a few skill areas this course offers. I have come out at the end of the course feeling confident that I can do professional-level proofreading. The price is well worth it.

An excellent team offering a superb course in proofreading. Highly recommended!

Excellent training. Caring and professional feedback from the tutors. I would recommend Proofreading Academy to anyone serious about becoming a proofreader, either for the guaranteed work with Proofed Inc or for setting up as a freelance. You will get a strong foundation for your further development.

I stumbled across Proofreading Academy when searching for reviews for another course. I am one of those people who critically analyzes and asks a lot of questions before making a decision based on a sales message, especially if it seems too "good" to be true. So to start, I sent a chat to the customer service team. I wanted to know specifics on their claim of "guaranteed work" with their partner, Proofed. When reading the positive reviews on their website, I could not help but notice how similar they sounded and how few of them spoke directly about what it was actually like to work for Proofed, income, and long-term results. Most of the reviews appear to be from very shortly after passing the course and do not include details about what I really want to know, which is not whether the course is easy or hard or whether the instructors are nice. I want to know who is making a living with a REAL proofreading career as a result of taking this class.

The website says, quote, "we include a freelance work guarantee with our proofreading partner, Proofed, for all students who reach a distinction grade on the final assessment. Start your flexible new career working from anywhere as a freelance proofreader!"

On the front end, the website appears to promise a fast-track to a "new career" as a proofreader. But that is simply not possible, especially when the payment is only $9 per 1,000 words (while Proofed charges the client $25 per 1,000 words). I imagine lots of beginners who are waiting like the seagulls in Finding Nemo, competing with one another for the same few documents in the trial period.

After I signed up for the free trial on November 22, I began receiving marketing emails. I have received a total of 13 emails so far.

There are references to a "career" in almost all of them.

"You could be enjoying your new career in no time!"

"buy the full Becoming A Proofreader course, and you could be starting work in just a few steps!"

(I thought it was no time?)

"buy the full Becoming A Proofreader course and you could be starting a new career as soon as you complete the course!"

(I thought it was a few steps?)

"Uniquely, we don’t just teach you the skills you need to proofread – we also give you the work. This means you don’t have to spend weeks searching for your first client. Instead, you can start earning in your new career almost as soon as you pass the final assignment."

(I thought it was as soon as I complete the course?)

The "guaranteed work" is not a real guarantee. It is a marketing strategy. If you take the course and pass the test with "distinction" (which is only 80% -- when I was in high school, 80% was average), then you will be "given the opportunity to work on at least five documents within the first month of the trial start date. After you have completed at least 10 proofreading documents, the Proofed team will decide whether you have achieved an acceptable standard of proofreading and working practices, and thus, whether to continue their engagement as a contractor. If Proofed invites you to continue working on their freelance proofreading team, your word count will slowly increase over time, at the discretion of Proofed. The more your word count increases, the more documents you will find in your online queue. Until your word count increases quite a bit, though, you must be patient. Shorter documents are tougher to come by."

And that is the catch. You pay nearly $400 for the training with the promise of guaranteed work and a fast track to a new career, but 10 documents limited to 750 words each paid at $9 per 1,000 words comes out to $67.50. I asked if I would learn how to find my own clients. The answer: "Our final module provides a bit of guidance for people who are interested in setting up their own proofreading business or marketing themselves as a freelance proofreader."

A bit?

The "work guarantee" is built into what you pay for the course, and if you don't finish, there is only a partial refund within 30 days based on the content you accessed. If you don't pass after three tries, there is no refund or obligation by Proofed to give you work. If you do pass, there is no obligation by Proofed to KEEP giving you work. Maybe there should be a test given to people to test basic word skills. A misleading "work guarantee" can persuade people who are really financially hurting to pay for something that is not truly a good choice for them because they believe "guaranteed work" means their success is guaranteed.

To make a promise like "guaranteed work" without clearly disclosing, up front and in detail, the specific process involved -- is something I am positive the Federal Trade Commission would not approve of.

The course is very easy to navigate. There are also many additional resources provided.

The lessons are informative and the tutors are great!

The course content is well presented and easy to follow. I found all tutors helpful and quick to reply to my queries. All the online presenters were friendly and professional. Feedback on my assignments was excellent. I got the golden 80% after my third attempt. When I started the course I thought it would be good to have three attempts because I'd learn more that way! Thank you Proofreading Academy for a valuable experience.

Excellent course, with good resources too for further reference. The staff are also really friendly and approachable and happy to help in any way.