Science and Medical Writers

Certification or Licensing

Certification, while not mandatory, is available from various organizations and institutions. For example, the Medical Writing Certification Commission and the American Medical Writers Association (AWMA) have collaborated to develop the medical writer certified credential. Candidates for the certification must have a bachelor's or advanced degree (in any field) and at least two years of paid work experience in medical communication. The AWMA says that the "professional focus of this experience must be medical writing, not writing as part of clinical, scientific, or other work." Applicants must also take and pass a 125-question, multiple-choice exam. Visit https://www.amwa.org for more information about this credential. No licensing is required for science and medical writers.