Proofreading service for students and academic researchers

Academic writing must be your own work. It can, however, be beneficial to have another pair of eyes look over your text to check for (and correct) minor errors in spelling, punctuation and grammar.

My proofreading service will help you get your documents ready for submission.

Tell me more about your editing services (PDF)

What type of editing/proofreading is appropriate?

For an explanation of the type of editing/proofreading that is appropriate for examined texts, please see the code of practice table in my agreement for proofreading academic work.

Academic agreement and code of practice (PDF)

Proofreading service

I will return your document with:

typos, misspellings and grammatical errors corrected
changes or suggestions to help you improve clarity, consistency and flow*

*This is not always included for students submitting work for assessment because no actual rewriting can be done by a proofreader on examined texts. However, I may raise specific queries for you to address.

I use the Track Changes tool in Word so that you can review each of my edits and decide if you wish to accept or reject them. I can also use the Adobe commenting tools on PDF if you prefer.

Please remember to allow enough time after I have returned your completed text (at least a few days) to think about and incorporate the proofreading corrections and suggestions before you submit your work for marking.

Sample evaluations and sample proofreads

Every project is unique and it’s difficult to give an accurate idea of cost without seeing a representative sample of the text. I will provide an estimated quote once I have evaluated the sample. The price will depend on the level and extent of the service required.

Alternatively, if you would like to see an example of my proofreading technique, please request a sample proofread. By proofreading a short sample of your work, I can figure out exactly how long it will take me to proofread your entire text (and therefore the fee) and you can assess my service with a real example (and decide if we are a good fit). I'll provide a quote when I return the proofread sample. The price will depend on the level and extent of the service required.

I charge a nominal fee for sample proofreads, which would be deducted from the final invoice if you were to proceed with the full edit.

Contact me

How it works

The first step is to send me (tori@seymourproofreading.co.uk) the following:

the title, subject and exact word count of your text
your submission deadline and budget
when your full text will be ready for proofreading
the format of your file (Word or PDF)
a representative 500–1,000 word sample of your text (preferably from a results or discussion chapter)

I can then let you know if the work can be fitted into my schedule.

If you would prefer not to send a sample until I can confirm availability, then please send details of your work, word count, deadline and budget.

My experience

I have experience proofreading PhD (and EdD) theses and research papers (architectural, education, drama and business). With twelve years’ experience in the architectural design industry, I specialise in architecture and design-related disciplines, but I’m also comfortable with humanities and social sciences. I have proofread and edited in UK and US English, and I’ve worked with dyslexic people and people whose first language is not English.

For a list of my training and CPD, please visit my qualifications page.

An important and invaluable source of guidance ...

“Victoria has helped me by proofreading my PhD thesis. She has been immensely helpful beyond the proofreading with advice on every aspect of presentation and graphics. Professional throughout, she has been an important and invaluable source of guidance.”

—Michael Cassidy, PhD student