Court Reporting

What will I learn?

A court reporter makes a verbatim record of legal proceedings in a courtroom or deposition setting and provides a certified transcript for use by the legal profession. Conferences also may be reported and transcribed. Texas State law requires that shorthand reporters be certified to work in the courts or as freelance reporters.

What can I do with this course of study?

Official court reporters are employees of the court system. There is a fixed salary and benefits. In addition, these reporters earn a per-page fee for transcripts produced.

Freelance reporters work for court reporting firms as independent contractors. These reporters make up about 70 percent of employment in the court reporting field. Most work is in the deposition area (testimony of witnesses taken under oath outside the courtroom setting). However, these reporters also cover meetings, conferences, and conventions.

Persons not certified may work in business, civil service, or medical transcription using machine shorthand skills. Those with excellent machine shorthand skills may caption for television or write real-time for the hearing impaired.

What's special about the program?

The PP&S Department offers OSA, Occupational Skills Certificate; Level I; Level II;, and A.A.S, Associate in Applied Science Conference and Court Reporting.

The San Antonio College Court Reporting Program offers a "conflict-free," computer-compatible theory. This program provides the proficiencies needed to pass the certification examination administered by the Court Reporter Certification Board of Texas and the Registered Professional Reporter examination administered by the National Court Reporters Association.