Genealogy: How to Turn a Hobby into a Potential Carreer

If you have been working on genealogy for some time and enjoy it, have you ever thought of becoming a Professional Genealogist? Do you have the necessary skills, experience, and expertise to turn genealogy into a business? If this question has popped in your head a time or two, then, here is some information for you to consider in order too take that step to be a pro.

The first thing you should consider is how much experience do you have. Are you familiar with all the various types of genealogical records that are available, do you know how to locate, and access them? Then, can you analyze and interpret exactly what the records are saying?

If you are not sure about your expertise, then you can always contact a professional genealogist and have the person critique your work. This person can also offer you guidance on what you need to improve on.

The second thing you should consider is your education in the field of genealogy. Have you taken any genealogy classes, attended any seminars and workshops. Do you subscribe to any genealogy magazines, read books on the subject? Genealogy changes everyday. It's not just one thing you learn, it's on going.

The third thing you should consider is joining a genealogical society. This way you are working side-by-side with genealogist and they can help you with expanding your skills.

The fourth thing to consider is to volunteer your services in transcribing genealogical documents. This will give you plenty of practice in reading old handwriting.

The fifth thing is your writing skills. You have to be knowledgeable in the proper way to format your source citations. You have to have good grammar in your writing skills to communicate with your clients. The only way of improving your writing skills is to write and keep writing. Submit a genealogy article to a local genealogical society for possible publication in their newsletter.

The sixth thing you might want to consider is joining the Association of Professional Genealogists. This organization is for professional genealogist and also for people who want to further their skills.

The seventh thing is your business skills. You will have to work on your business skill constantly. If you don't know anything about taxes, accounting, advertising, billing and managing your time wisely, you won't succeed.

You also have to consider what area of specialty is for you. Not all genealogists just work with clients. Some are teachers, authors, adoption specialists, and bookstore owners. You can chose from just doing research in your local city, to expanding your research area by regions. You can even go as for as an expert for a different country.

There are lots of books out there on being a Professional Genealogist. The best one I would recommend for you to start with is the Professional Genealogy: A Manual for Researchers, Writers, Editors, Lectures, and Librarians. This book has helped me. It will give you information on everything from abstracting to setting up a business.

Several other things you might want to check into are the websites for the Association of Professional Genealogist, the Board of Certification of Genealogists and the International Commission for the Accreditation of Professional Genealogist (ICAPGen).

The International Commission for the Accreditation of Professional Genealogist is an accreditation program that test individuals on both theoretical research in the location and use of original documents that are unique to the regional area in which the person has applied for accreditation. This is a rigorous program and every five years you have to renew your accreditation.

The Board of Certification of Genealogist test and certifies individuals in several different categories and you also have to renew your certification every five years.

Both the International Commission for the Accreditation of Professional Genealogist and the Board of Certification of Genealogist have a code of ethics and conduct that you have to read, sign, and abide by.

Certification and Accreditation are not required in order to be a Professional Genealogist but the fact remands, people who hire individuals to do any type of work want to be able to see some kind of proof that the individual can do what they claim they can do and do the job right.