The only course for PhDs, professors, and postdocs who want to turn their experience, knowledge, and skills into a profitable academic business.
A self-paced course for ambitious academic entrepreneurs
Burned Out, Underpaid, and Wondering What Else You Can Do?
You’re burning out in your academic job, but you don’t want to give up your calling or your flexible schedule.
You’ve spent years giving all of yourself to your students, your department, and your university—with no pay raises (not even COLAs).
Administrators (who make 3x what you do) are talking about cutting programs or increasing the teaching load—but aren’t giving up their own salary or perks. 🙄
The constant anxiety, guilt, and worry are wearing you down.
You’re on the brink of collapse, but you’re terrified to take the leap into something different.
You’re not alone. I get messages like these every day:
I know you didn’t spend years earning your PhD to feel this miserable.
You have valuable expertise—but you need a new way to use it that doesn’t involve toxic departments, endless committee meetings, or begging for scraps.
What if you could take all that academic experience and build something that’s actually yours—matching or exceeding your current salary while working whenever and wherever you want?
Introducing…
Becoming an Academic Editor
(or Coach)
BAE Is Your Step-by-Step Plan to Transform Your Academic Skills into a Profitable Business—Without Burnout
Becoming an Academic Editor (BAE) is an online course that teaches you how to start—and grow—a sustainable freelance editing or coaching business.
Whether you want to start slowly as a side hustle or you’re ready to go full-time, BAE shows you exactly how to:
✅ figure out the kind of business you want—one that fits into your life and gives more than it takes
✅ set up your editing or coaching business—with all the tools, templates, and resources you need to launch and grow
✅ land your first clients (and cash your first check 💵) in 90 days or less
✅ grow your business at a pace that works for you—you’re in complete control of your schedule and time commitment
Get the Clear, Step-by-Step Process
Get immediate, lifetime access to my proven system that shows you exactly how to price your services, land your first clients, and build a sustainable income stream—even if you’ve never freelanced before.
Whether you want to supplement your income with part-time editing or coaching work, or replace (or exceed) your academic salary with a full-time freelance business, BAE gives you the proven roadmap and community support to make it happen.
Everything you need to launch and grow your business is inside this course. But, if you decide you want the community support inside the Core and Accelerator plans, you can always upgrade and join a cohort later. Just email me and pay the difference between your Lite (course-only) plan and the plan you want to join.
Hi, I’m Paulina. After years of exhaustion, anxiety, and burnout in a tenure-track job, I finally got the courage to leave academia in 2019. At the time, I was working 7 days a week and had a newborn at home.
As a professor, I had no idea that academic copy editors even existed. But when I discovered that I could actually make a living while working from home, setting my own hours, and reading exciting research from kind, brilliant clients, I jumped in without hesitation.
Within one year of taking on private clients, I was earning 20% more than my previous assistant professor salary. By 2024, I had a six-figure business, working with clients I love and setting my own schedule.
I’ve now helped over 80 academics build their own editing and coaching businesses—many landing their first clients within 90 days of getting started.
I created Becoming an Academic Editor (BAE) because I know how overwhelming this transition feels. After a few years of freelancing, I cracked the code and hit $10k months as an editor. Now I’m sharing everything I’ve learned inside the BAE program.
You Deserve Better Than Burnout and Uncertainty
Let’s be honest about what staying in academia really costs you:
😩 Another year of 60-hour work weeks… for a salary that barely pays your bills
😩 Another round of job applications that disappear into the void—or get rejected after months of waiting
😩 Another semester of worrying and wondering what the next budget crisis will bring
😩 Endless Sunday nights spent dreading tomorrow’s trip to the office
If nothing changes… nothing changes.
Every month you wait is another month of your life that you can’t get back.
But here’s what I know about you:
You didn’t spend a decade or more earning advanced degrees and building expertise just to accept a life of burnout and financial struggle.
You already have everything you need to build something better. You just need a guide to help you get started.
What if you could run a profitable business (and work just 25-30 hours a week)?
Imagine this (because it’s exactly what my students are living):
👉 You work with doctoral students and professors who actually respect and appreciate you
👉 You set your own schedule—around your family, health, and life, not department meetings and mandatory office hours
👉 You feel confident and valued because clients actively seek you out and refer their colleagues to you
This isn’t wishful thinking. It’s what many BAE students have accomplished while completing our program.
These BAE grads are thriving… and so can you!
Meg was a tenured professor who was fed up with administrative BS. She’s now fully booked with editing and coaching clients and is moving home to live near family.
Julia gave all her time and energy to her job in a campus writing program, leaving little for herself and her family. Now she has a steady stream of editing and coaching clients pouring in—and she schedules her appointments around her kids’ dance classes and play dates.
Laura was utterly burned out and chose to retire early so she could start living her life instead of continuing to sacrifice her health to her job. She’s done almost no marketing and has been booked out for a year with editing clients.
Sophia recently finished her PhD and knew that academia wasn’t right for her. She landed her first editing and coaching clients during her first 90 days, and even moved countries to live where she loves.
What’s the difference between where you are now and these lovely people? Just 90 days. They learned my proven system for attracting clients, pricing your services, and building a business that brings you joy and a reliable paycheck.
Course Modules + Resources
Becoming an Academic Editor (or Coach) has been thoughtfully designed to guide you step by step to build your academic business from the ground up. The modules support you through shifting your identity from burnt-out academic to renewed, rejuvenated, and empowered business owner. The videos and their accompanying resources build on each other so you always know which step to take and in what order.
Get immediate lifetime access to BAE Lite
Lite
✔️ Lifetime access to all course materials and updates
✔️ Watch clear instructional videos that guide you step by step in building and growing your academic business
✔️ Download dozens of templates and guides that show you exactly how to start, market, and run your business
✔️ Best for those who are confident working alone or want to move at your own pace
Start slowly and build a side hustle while you continue in your academic job. Or go all-in and quickly launch a full-time career as an academic editor or coach. You get to decide what works for you.
Instant access
100% money-back guarantee
I’m so confident that you’ll LOVE Becoming an Academic Editor that this program comes with a 14-day money-back guarantee. If you watch the videos during the first 14 days and still feel like the program isn’t the right fit for you, I’ll issue a full refund.
Take a Peek Inside BAE ⤵️
Curious what’s actually inside the course? Watch this quick walkthrough to see exactly what you get when you enroll.
How I Went From Burned-Out Academic to Six-Figure Freelancer (Working Just 30 Hours a Week)
When I started editing in 2020, I didn’t know if I could replace my salary—let alone exceed it. But year after year, my income kept growing as I built a business that truly fit my life.
Here’s what that growth has looked like:
👶 Year 1: I had a toddler at home and worked just 25 hours a week.
🍼 Year 2: I had Baby #2 and took 3 months off.
🚀 Year 3: I finally found the courage to seek out private clients. This changed everything.
💼 Year 4: I exceeded my faculty salary—working just 30 hours a week.
💸 Year 5/2024: I earned a six-figure income from editing and coaching (about 70% from editing, 30% from coaching).
I have a proven system for building a freelance business—and I’m sharing it with you inside BAE.
Instead of spending years figuring it out for yourself, you can fast-track your success with the exact blueprint I wish I’d had from day one.
🎓 Over 80 people have already joined Becoming an Academic Editor.
Here’s what they’re saying:
You’re Standing at a Crossroads. Which Path Will You Take?
You’ve already done the hard work—building your skills, navigating academia, showing up every day.
This means you’re not starting from scratch. You’re starting from experience. You have the knowledge, skills, creativity, and persistence to apply your academic training in a new context—one that you control, where you are appreciated, and where you get to call all the shots.
So… you can keep hoping academia miraculously solves all its problems…
Or you can take the first step toward a career that truly supports your life.
Becoming an Academic Editor gives you the roadmap to build a business you actually want to wake up to.
It’s your turn to thrive.
To your bright future,
FAQs
How much time will this take each week?
It’s totally up to you. You get to choose how quickly you move through the course materials. You can complete the program in just 1-2 hours a week watching the videos and working on the templates. When you begin editing, you can spend as little as 5 hours to edit just one article per week.
How long will it take me to complete the program?
The course is fully self-paced, so you can take as much or as little time as you like. And with lifetime access, you can return to the videos, templates, and other materials again and again.
Is there a payment plan?
There is no payment plan for BAE Lite. If you decide to upgrade later to a cohort (the Core or Accelerator plans), you would pay the difference between Lite and the cohort-based plan you choose, either paid in full or using a payment plan. Just send me an email and I’m happy to help work this out.
Something to consider: even if you charge a low rate as a beginning editor, it’s possible to make back your investment–and then some–when you edit just one document. This course teaches you how to set up your business, land clients, and earn money. The ROI is clear!
Can I take this course if I’m an academic but have never published anything? What if I’m an editor but don’t have a scholarly background?
Becoming an Academic Editor assumes that you know how to edit scholarly research (i.e., that you can spot errors/typos–if you want to do copy editing–and that you can offer constructive feedback on how to improve the client’s writing and get published–if you’re doing developmental editing or coaching). Whether or not you’ve published anything doesn’t matter.
If you’re a strong writer with an eagle eye (regardless of your publication experience or educational background), you should make a successful copy editor. And if you don’t like making red-pen edits, or English is not your strongest language, but you know what it takes to publish in peer-reviewed journals and with academic presses, then you can still make a great developmental editor or publishing coach! If you have any questions or doubts, don’t hesitate to email me.
What can I really accomplish in this course?
I’ll let my students’ work speak for itself. These students created their websites from scratch during our 12-week group coaching program. They had editing projects and coaching clients rolling in before the end of the 12-week cohort. All of the content, instruction, templates, and other resources they used to create these websites and launch their businesses are included in BAE Lite.
When can I access the course materials?
You have immediate access to all of the course materials (videos, templates, and more) as soon as you enroll. You can enroll at any time.
How long do I have access to the course?
You have lifetime access to the course, including all new materials and updates. As long as the course is published online, you’ll be able to access the videos, downloads, and other resources.
What if I have questions while completing the program?
If you need individual support, you’re welcome to schedule a 1:1 coaching session with Paulina. Please email me for more information. If you decide you’d like to join a future cohort, email me and I’ll send you the link to enroll.
Is the course relevant to people outside the US?
Yes! Academic editors are everywhere, and so are the companies that hire them. I’ve personally freelanced for companies in the US, Canada, the UK, and Australia, and I’ve worked for clients all over the world. There may be some limitations regarding how people from certain countries can pay for the course on the Thinkific platform, but if you have any problems, please email me and I’m happy to help figure it out.
What technology and tools do I need?
Because most academic clients use Microsoft Word, you will need a personal computer, access to a recent version of Word, and an internet connection.
What about AI? Will AI take all of our editing jobs?
I’m no fortune teller, but my prediction is a hard NO. Check out my article about how terrible AI is as an editor. And remember: human editors provide something that AI simply can’t: connection. Scholars come to you for your expertise not only in checking their grammar and sentence structure, but also to get your feedback on the persuasiveness and construction of their arguments, which journals or presses they should submit to, and even moral support. I don’t see AI taking over editing jobs anytime soon.
What if I have another question that’s not answered here?
Please email me with your question. I’m happy to help!