Akash Agarwal

Experienced copy editor, proofreader, and accessibility writer with a strong command of English grammar, syntax, punctuation, and style. Currently copy editing academic manuscripts to Cell Press and Elsevier standards at Way2Class, and writing WCAG-compliant STEM alt-text at Integra. Skilled at improving sentence structure, clarity, and readability — identifying errors in consistency, parallel construction, and formatting across academic, legal, and scientific content.

Experienced in house style maintenance, author querying, editorial workflow, and publisher-specific style guides including Cell Press, AMA, APA, Chicago, MLA, and AP. Reliable, self-motivated, and deadline-driven.

Freelance Copy Editor - Way2Class - Dehradun — Remote (2026-01) - Copy edit academic manuscripts following Cell Press style guide — correcting grammar, punctuation, spelling, and word usage; managing abbreviations, enforcing Oxford comma and sentence-case heading rules, and verifying citation order and reference formatting.

• Apply Elsevier copyediting levels 2T and 2F — raising professional author queries on title changes, figure-text consistency, affiliation completeness, and missing manuscript sections per house style requirements.
• Ensure full editorial compliance — title character limits, highlights formatting, eTOC blurb accuracy, keyword separators, and back-matter completeness (acknowledgments, declarations, data availability).

Freelance

Alt-Text Writer - Integra - Pondicherry — Remote (2025-11) - Write accurate, WCAG-compliant alt-text descriptions for images, diagrams, and charts in academic STEM content — covering biology, physics, chemistry, and mathematics — meeting a productivity norm of 87 images per day while maintaining consistent quality and accessibility standards.

• Apply strong subject knowledge to describe complex scientific visuals — molecular structures, graphs, schematics, microscopic images, and mathematical figures — clearly, objectively, and without interpretation or color reference.
• Collaborate with project teams on publisher requirements; classify each image type correctly and adhere to character limits in a deadline-driven environment. Alt-Text Writer & Copy Editor - Freelance / Independent - Singur — Remote (2024-01) - Write WCAG-compliant alt-text and perform copy editing across biological, scientific, and humanities content — correcting grammar, punctuation, sentence structure, and style; ensuring consistency and accessibility compliance across all deliverables. Sample work available on request.
• Apply a Life Sciences background (Zoology, Botany, Physiology) to interpret scientific figures accurately; manage concurrent projects and meet client deadlines reliably. Transcriptionist & QA Reviewer (Proofreading) - Percept Legal - Kolkata — Remote (2024-02 - 2026-04) - Proofread and quality-reviewed legal transcripts — correcting grammar, punctuation, spelling, sentence structure, and formatting with thorough attention to detail; performed copy editing to improve clarity, parallel structure, and voice consistency.
• Post-edited ASR transcripts and processed multi-speaker audio; maintained strict NDA compliance and met SLA deadlines consistently.

Science

Educator - Explore International School - Singur — Hybrid (2017-04 - 2023-10) - Taught science subjects across secondary and higher-secondary levels — designing lesson plans, delivering structured instruction in English and Bengali, developing curriculum-aligned materials, and maintaining academic records over six years.

B.Sc. (Hons) - Zoology with Botany & Physiology - University of Calcutta (2017)

Higher Secondary - Science Stream - WBCHSE (2013)