Work.

FORMATTING MATTERS.

If accurate footnotes or appropriate spacing are eating up the time that you would rather spend researching or writing, then I would love to work with you.  I have been formatting and editing for SBTS students for over 13 years. I have assisted over 350 doctoral students in completing their dissertations, projects, and theses.

I work with some students for a few years, starting with the proposal/prospectus, and other students I process their defense drafts within a few weeks to meet deadlines.  I am with the student from beginning to end (however long it takes), making sure everything is just right—in compliance with what the doctoral offices want and Style Manual requires.

Services.

FULL-SERVICE FORMATTING & EDITING

My work is full-service formatting and editing of doctoral projects, theses, and dissertations.  I charge a flat fee and complete the work from top to bottom. 

BASIC PROOFREADING.

While reading through the text, I will correct spelling, grammar, capitalization, and typos, and also comment on issues that may need attention.

FORMATTING.

I will take care of the spacing and formatting of the front and back pages (copyright, title page, approval, table of contents, preface, abstract, and vita). You don’t have to get your ruler out to make sure it’s just right—I got this!

I will position your headings to their proper place and space the text and footnotes according to the style manual guidelines.

For many students, formatting footnotes and the bibliography takes significantly more time and energy than they would like. I want students to be able to focus their efforts on the research and writing.  As long as you provide the details, and more or less “try your best” at putting the information in the right order, I will make the references comply to the seminary Style Manual and Turabian.

About.

BIO.

I have been formatting and editing for SBTS students for over 13 years, and SWBTS for about 5 years. I have assisted over 350 doctoral students in completing their projects and dissertations.

What began as an opportunity to stay home with our small children and also contribute to our household income has turned into a larger opportunity and ministry to serve pastors, administrators, and laymen in reaching others with the gospel, through the completion of their doctoral studies.

I have been married to Jeremy, an avid Jeep owner and all-around car genius, for almost 20 years.  The small children I was once eager to stay home with are now 13 and 16 and loving school (just as I did at their age). I have lived in Louisville and around SBTS my whole life, and it is a privilege for me to continue to serve students and the community.

Submissions.

HOW WE’LL WORK TOGETHER.

After you have written your proposal, a chapter, or perhaps completed your entire project, you would send me a Microsoft Word document of the work.  I would make simple adjustments and edits throughout the text to comply to the style manual, and also add comments for areas on which I have a questions or suggestions. 

My main job is to make the work look good and make it readable.  While I do read the content of the work, and let the student know if something perhaps does not make sense to me, major content matters are between the student and supervisor (i.e., content issues I leave for professional theologians!)

Once I complete a full formatting and editing of the Word doc, I will continue to work with you through as many versions and edits as are necessary, before and/or after the supervisor reads and approves the work.  I charge a flat fee for each degree.  I do not charge by the hour; I am simply with you until the very end. Sometimes a student needs me three weeks before graduation and we hustle to get an acceptable submission, and sometimes I am with students for a few years as we tweak and edit to make the work just right, from proposal to defense drafts. I will get the work done to the satisfaction of the student, supervisor, and seminary.

Contact.

LET’S TALK.

References.

COMMENTS.

Supervisors/Readers

“As a supervisor of doctoral students, I cannot recommend Betsy’s services any more highly. For those who don’t want to take time to conform their work perfectly to the Chicago Style Manual, Turabian, and the Seminary Style Manual, she is worth every dollar. Having seen many submissions with and without Betsy’s editing, the difference is obvious when I see the amount of red ink on those who did without. When time is critical—like during post-defense revisions—you will be even more thankful you signed on to have Betsy handle the editing for you.”
DANNY BOWEN, Adjunct Professor of Educational Ministries, SWBTS

“I would highly recommend Betsy Fredrick as your style editor. Her work is excellent, but even more importantly is the way in which she approaches her role. She has a servant’s heart and fully understands how her efforts ultimately advance kingdom work as she seeks to encourage and support the writer.”
MICHAEL S. WILDER, Dean, Terry School of Educational Ministries, Professor of Educational Ministries, SWBTS

“Betsy Fredrick is the most experienced and capable editor with whom I have worked at SBTS.  She has mastered the style manuals, computer issues, and all SBTS requirements.  When a manuscript she has edited crosses my desk, I breathe a sigh of relief because I know that the format will be correct and that errors, if any, will be minor. I have never had to reject a submission that Mrs. Fredrick has prepared.  If I personally were writing a project, thesis, or dissertation, I would hire Betsy Fredrick immediately because everyone needs an editor!”
MARSHA OMANSON, SBTS Style Reader, 2000-Spring 2020

“Every writer needs an editor. No one, regardless of experience or education in writing, can produce anything worth reading without a second set of eyes evaluating it. Doctoral students are among the most in need of editorial services, for their project/thesis/dissertation is often the first major piece they have written that must conform to a style guide. I require all my doctoral students to pass every chapter through an editor before submitting it to me. In the end this saves them both time and money. If a student cannot write well, I’ll keep sending back their material for revision. Multiple revisions can result in lengthening the time a student is in his or her program, which costs more money. A good editor can help a student reduce the number of revisions. Many of my students have worked with Betsy and have been very pleased with her work.”
DONALD S. WHITNEY, Professor of Biblical Spirituality; Associate Dean of the School of Theology, SBTS

Students

“Thank you for working with/for me on this. My committee members thought that the paper was excellent, and supervisor said that the caliber of it is rare compared to other defense drafts he has read. I think part of this can be attributed to your support. Having you in my corner gave me the ability to focus on the content of my writing rather than the formatting.”
Recent DMin graduate

“Unless you are completely immersed in Southern Style and are an extremely well-crafted wordsmith, you need Betsy Fredrick. The money I have spent with her services has saved me HUNDREDS of hours in edits of my own. SBTS has different styles for different parts of the doctoral project and Betsy knows the nuances of each partition. Betsy will collate and hand carry every part of your project to the appropriate office. I would be sunk without the service she provides. You can do it on your own. The military taught me one main concept “Work Smarter Not Harder” I have lived by those words my entire ministry.”
Current DMin student

“There is a lot of stress and pressure when pursuing a doctoral degree and some of that can be relieved by a great editor. Betsy Fredrick is your great editor.” 
Recent DEdMin graduate

“Betsy, I can’t begin to thank you for how exceptional your work was—you really allowed me to focus on my content.  There is no way I would have been successful if I conducted my own formatting.”
Recent EdD graduate

“Betsy is a professional, meticulous, and trustworthy editor. My doctoral thesis included hundreds of footnotes and over 100 sources, and she edited every single one to perfection. She is quick to respond to questions and concerns, which is a huge stress relief in the midst of a lot of doctoral stress. I have recommended Betsy to other doctoral students without hesitation, and I will continue to do so in the future.”
Recent PhD graduate

“Your writing project is going to bring you a lot of joy and a good portion of headaches. However, you can remove a lot of unnecessary headaches by trusting Betsy to be your style editor. From prospectus to defense draft to any revisions, she helps you the whole way. Working with Betsy was one of the easiest decisions to make to help get me across the finish line. I’d work with her again in a heartbeat. ”
Recent PhD graduate