How to Get a Job Doing Real-Time Captioning

Captioning helps TV viewers who are hearing impaired. Captions appear on screen, sharing what people are saying. Real-time captioning provides text for live broadcasts such as sports or news. A real-time captioner connects a computer with software to a stenotype machine that translates shorthand into words. Here is how to get a job in this field.

Instructions

Difficulty: Moderate

1. Go to a court reporting school for training. Search online or in your telephone directory for the nearest schools. You must learn skills in computer technology and court stenography.
2. Take classes in shorthand theory. Learn to use a steno keyboard that has 24 keys with a number bar. You should be able to use a combination of keys to create words without typing all of the letters. Take advanced classes in speed and accuracy to learn how to type more than 200 words a minute in real time, as the words are being spoken.
3. Seek certification to become a real-time closed captioner. Test in your state for a the Certified Shorthand Reporter license, and aim for an error rate of less than one and a half percent.
4. Add your skills and work experience to your resume. List any related courses that you have taken. Start by volunteering at a captioning company or public television station if you don't have hands-on work experience.
5. Research the captioning company or television station, then contact them for any openings. Ensure that your resume is readable and is no more than two pages. Submit references along with a demo tape that displays your captioning work.
6. Prove your skills. In addition to the interview, expect to be tested on your English and grammar. You may also have to take a live skill test to show how well you do with translating words into text.

Tips & Warnings

• If you are already a court reporter, go for advanced credentials to move up to real-time captioning. Register with the National Court Reporters Association to test and become licensed as a Registered Professional Reporter, a Certified Real-Time Reporter or a Registered Merit Reporter.
• You can work from home doing real-time closed captioning as an independent contractor. You will need a shorthand machine, a computer with a modem, specialized computer software, a television and a caption encoder.
• To be a real-time closed captioner, develop a solid vocabulary. Study a court reporting or captioner's dictionary. Stay on top of current events and political terms if you are working in broadcast news. You will need to know states and capitals, names of U.S. presidents and national figures, and weather terms. For sports captioning, collect sports terminology dictionaries.

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