What Are the Core Courses of a Court Reporting Degree Program?
Court reporting programs usually lead to an associate's degree and take 2-3 years to complete. Core courses include general education and court reporting classes. The National Court Reporters Association (NCRA) imposes a specific core curriculum on the degree programs it approves.
Court Reporting Career Overview
Court reporters create word-for-word transcriptions of legal proceedings and public events. In this career, you may use specialized equipment, such as covered microphones, to record dialogue. In addition to recording exactly what is said, you're required to record any gestures or actions made. After creating a transcript, you'll edit it and provide copies to the courts or other applicable parties. Your work doesn't have to be limited to the courtroom. You could also provide captions for television or transcribe meetings for people who are deaf or hard-of-hearing. You could specialize in a specific type of equipment to do your work, such as steno masks, digital recorders or stenotype machines.
Important Facts About Court Reporting Programs
| Degree Levels | Post-secondary certificate; associate's degree |
| Degree Fields | Judicial reporting; realtime court reporting; scoping; broadcast captioning |
| Prerequisites | Computerized shorthand machine and software; some programs require minimum typing speed |
| Online Availability | Available as fully online program |
| Continuing Education | Continuing education is required to maintain professional certification |
| Median Salary (2021) | $60,380 |
| Job Outlook (2021-2031) | 1% growth |
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
Core Courses in a Court Reporting Degree Program
Community colleges usually have a 'general education' or 'liberal arts' core of courses that all students seeking associate's degrees must complete. A degree program in court reporting will have a core of professional skills courses, as well.
General Education Core Courses
A general education core for court reporting students includes courses in English composition, communications, math, social sciences, natural sciences and humanities. The latter category might include music, art and design, economics, classics, philosophy, women's studies or many other subjects. A few schools require classes in physical education or a foreign language.
Court Reporting Core Courses
The NCRA certifies educational programs that meet its standards. Most schools with court reporting degree programs offer the association's core curriculum. Core courses specified by the NCRA include:
- Realtime translation theory
- English
- Law and legal terminology
- Anatomy and physiology and medical terminology
- Judicial reporting procedures
- Technology for court reporting
- Current events
- Speedbuilding courses and labs, building toward the 225 words-per-minute speed required for graduation
- Internship in a court setting
Other Possible Core Courses for Court Reporting
A school's court reporting program staff may choose to include other courses as well. If the school requires all students working toward their court reporting degree to take those courses, they are considered core. Some examples include:
- Court reporting grammar and punctuation
- Broadcast captioning theory and skill practice
- Realtime closed captioning technology
- CART (Communications Access Real Time) captioning technology and skills practice
- American Sign Language (a likely core course in a degree program that emphasizes CART)
- Business law
- Registered or certified court reporter exam preparation