Looking for a Great Career Without a 4-Year Degree? W
here did people get the idea that you need a four- the rewarding opportunities available to those who work year college degree to get a great job and have a in the field. successful career? It certainly is not true today, if it ever was. What do court reporters do? — You’ve seen it on TV Court reporters and captioners are starting out in the $50,000 and in movies. pay range and moving into $100,000-plus territory within the first year or two. The skill they practice is called stenography. In Court or Pretrial Discovery: Court reporters operate There is a global shortage of skilled stenographers which an advanced shorthand machine with some of the most means certified court reporters are in ultra-high demand, cutting-edge technology to create an accurate record both here in the U.S. and internationally. of what every person says in a wide variety of settings. Most trials conducted in the United States are recorded Professional stenographers are necessary to the operation by a professional stenographer who uses their specialized of our court system, all legislative operations in government, equipment to note the exact words spoken in the and the smooth running of the business economy. Some courtroom. Court reporters work in both criminal and civil stenographers’ work involves captioning live college trials, sometimes in cases of murder, robbery, or gun or and university class lectures to provide hearing-impaired drug crimes. Family courts handle cases about juvenile students with full accessibility to higher education. offenses, parental neglect, divorce, and child custody issues. The required training to become a certified professional court reporter can take as little as two years to complete. Law Firms: Outside of court, stenographers work every Young people right out of high school can enroll in an day at different law firms taking down the testimony of on-site or an online independent court reporting training witness at depositions in cases from all areas of the law. program. As some community colleges add stenography Typical deposition testimony could focus on injuries from training programs to their curriculum, more students can car accidents, medical malpractice, dangerous product become certified in the program while they complete their liability, environmental law violations, or multimillion dollar associate degree. business disputes. Project Steno — Free Introductory Course and Training Public Service – Government: Court reporters are relied Prep on to record the speeches delivered and debates engaged in by representatives and senators in the United States Project Steno was created to offer young people a free, Congress and in state legislatures. reliable, properly structured introductory training program Law Enforcement: In many states, court reporters listen to to find out if court reporting is a career path they might like tape recordings of grand jury proceedings and transcribe to try. We want more young people to enter the profession the audio recordings produced by law enforcement during and reap all the benefits the profession offers. Project secret surveillance authorized by search warrants. Steno encourages high schools and community colleges to establish court reporting certificate programs to respond to Corporate Meetings: Every large corporation the shortage of stenographers and to inform students about or organization is required to memorialize some 66 | VEGASLEGALMAGAZINE.COM
