AI-Assisted Copywriter & Content Writer for Long-Term Work

We're looking for a part-time AI-assisted copywriter for our doctoral coaching brand. Beyond PhD Coaching helps doctoral candidates finish their dissertations and defend successfully. Our audience is academically sophisticated, working professionals in PhD programs, often in education, healthcare, or executive roles. They respond to substance and authority, not hype. Our lead coach is Dr. Steve Tippins, who has sat on 300+ dissertation committees over 35 years in higher education. This is explicitly an AI-assisted copywriting role. You will not be writing every word from scratch. You will be directing AI (Claude, ChatGPT, or similar), editing the output to brand voice, and shipping it. The judgment is what we are paying for: knowing when copy sounds right, when it sounds AI-generated, and when it is off-voice. Because of the AI assist, your production should be meaningfully faster than if you were drafting from scratch. What you would be doing: -Writing LinkedIn posts in Dr. Tippins' voice (the largest piece of the role by hours) -Writing broadcast emails, event promotion sequences, and post-event sales and nurture sequences -A weekly 1-hour Zoom with Dr. Tippins to extract raw content ideas, which you turn into transcripts, YouTube video outlines, and SEO articles -Reviewing edited YouTube videos and giving structured feedback to our editor Must have: -Highly fluent written English with strong editorial judgment -Demonstrated comfort with AI writing tools as a primary workflow -Ability to hold a consistent brand voice across many pieces over time -Availability for one recurring weekly 1-hour Zoom during business hours (US Central Time) -Professional, reliable communication Nice to have: -Background in higher education, academic writing, or working with professional adult learners -Experience writing for cautious, considered-buyer audiences (less hype, more substance) Brand voice notes: We have hard rules. No exclamation marks. No em dashes. No hype language like "amazing," "transform," or "game-changing." No motivational-speaker tone. Warm but direct. System-blaming rather than person-blaming framing (we do not tell candidates they are failing; we tell them the system is broken). A detailed style guide and examples are provided on hire. Logistics: 5+ hours per week, long-term engagement Paid weekly through Upwork To apply, please answer all five questions below. Applications that skip questions will not be considered. 1. Portfolio. Share three samples that are closest in tone and substance to the work in this role. One link or attachment each: One LinkedIn post or similar One SEO article One marketing email 2. Speed estimates. Using AI as your primary tool plus our brand guidelines, give a single number (not a range) for each: Writing 7 LinkedIn posts: ___ hours Writing 1 SEO article (1,500-2,000 words): ___ hours Writing a 5-email promotion sequence: ___ hours 3. Logistics. What time zone are you in? Can you commit to a recurring weekly 1-hour Zoom during US Central Time business hours? Note: Please ONLY apply via Upwork. Applications sent via our website or email will not be considered.