Deposition court reporters have a very important job and there are currently over 50,000 of them in the United States. There is certainly a job market for these positions and court reporter employment is project to increase by 10% in the next six years. Being a deposition court reporter provides great experience in the judicial system, but can also be a very demanding job. Hopefully this will help you decide if you want to peruse this career.
- Outside Work — Of the 50,000 court reporters in the United States, more than 70% of them work outside of the court.
- Extremely Fast Typing — To become certified by the National Court Reporters Association, you must be able to maintain a minimum typing speed of 225 words per minute.
- Assisting Agencies — There are three court reporting associations that can assist you in your job search: the National Court Reporters Association (NCRA), the American Association of Electronic Reporters and Transcribers (AAERT), and the National Verbatim Reporters Association (NVRA).
- Long Certification Process — The court reporting education program takes an average of just over 33 months to become certified.
- Practice Time — Students who are serious about becoming deposition court reporters should spend over 15 hours each week transcribing the spoken word for practice.
- Importance of Accuracy — Along with the required 225 testimony words per minute, you must maintain a 95% accuracy rate to become and keep your job as a court reporter.
- Video Deposition — Along with working inside and outside the court, you will be required to transcribe over video conferencing and legal videography.
- Other Requirments — Maintain 225 testimony words per minute, 200 jury charge words per minute, and 180 literary words per minute.
Following these steps and keeping up with these practices should help you become a successful deposition court reporter. Remember that this is a very difficult job, but there are over 50,000 of them, so certainly this is a doable job. If you take it seriously and practice, you should be ready to begin a successful career in court reporting.
