“How much can a scopist expect to make? How likely do you think it is that this industry will go the way of the MT industry?”
Great questions and ones I posed to Judy at BeST Scoping Techniques.
I was particularly interested in the role of audio/video recording of legal proceedings, since I had just submitted my resume for employment as a transcriptionist with AVTranz. If you scroll down and read their press releases, it appears that “everyone” is going to straight audio for the recording of courtroom proceedings. I asked Judy about this in particular.
She said that, during her many years as a scopist, the audio/video recording trend ebbs and flows. She explained that someone in a state court system will get the bright idea that they can save money by getting rid of all of the court reporters and just record everything on audio or video tape. They get all excited, make the equipment investment, and everything hums along just fine for a while until… Then, one day, there is an equipment failure, and – depending on the circumstances – this could cause a mistrial, and the case has to be tried all over again. It stands to reason that it doesn’t take many of these “do overs” to negate any cost savings that might have been realized.
A very cursory Google of the topic produced this interesting example of just such a thing.
In addition, the actual court proceedings are only a small portion of the system where court reporters (and potentially scopists) are utilized. Before anyone ever gets to the courtroom, there are hours and hours of depositions which are then used to write the many pretrial briefs and motions, as well as to prepare for direct and cross examination of the witnesses during the trial itself.
I can tell you from recent experience over the past year that during the case in which I was personally involved we burned through hundreds of hours of depositions before we came anywhere near the actual arbitration hearing, and there were court reporters present throughout the entire process. The interactive nature of their physical presence in the room with us ensured a significantly more accurate transcript, as they would ask witnesses to slow down, to repeat their answer, to spell a particularly technical term, and read back questions or testimony that had been asked/given previously. A digital recording – audio or video – could not have done this. It should be noted that in at least one instance the court reporter did have an audio backup. But, as she explained, it was strictly for her personal benefit should she realize she had miscaptured something later.
The other aspect is the need to produce searchable transcripts. In our particular situation, our attorney used the electronic copies of transcripts from depositions to copy and paste directly into briefs or motions. Likewise, during the hearing itself, witnesses were often shown the print version of their transcript in order to remind them what they had previously stated under oath. Again, this would have been extremely difficult, if not impossible, with audio or video files.
Again, a quick Google unearthed this interesting discussion of the very issue at hand.
The question of income was one in which I had a particular personal interest and one I find frequently discussed on various forums out there where anyone is considering scopist training.
A perusal of the websites where scopists advertise their services revealed a wide range of page rates anywhere from $.85/page to $1.50/page and up. This was consistent with what Ms. Barrett of Scoping Careers International told me. Depending on your speed, technical knowledge, quality of the translation being produced by the court reporter, expected turn around time, etc., a scopist could be looking at an hourly wage of $18-$35/hour. However, in the BeST Scoping Techniques Course FAQs section on the BeST website, I found:
Q. How much can I expect to make as a scopist?
A. That will depend on many factors. First, will you be working as a scopist full-time or part-time? The average page rate is $.85 to $1.10 and up (based
on varying factors). It will depend on how quickly you can do the jobs and how heavy your workload is. An average full-time scopist can make between $18,000
and $25,000 a year.
So, doing the math on the high end quoted here, this broke down into $12.50/hour. Personally, I found this a little disappointing, so I asked Judy about this directly.
She indicated that given the terrible reputation of “work from home training programs” to promise “get rich quick” and “pie in the sky” earning potential, they had opted to underestimate the potential so that their graduates were pleasantly surprised and not deeply disappointed. She assured me that, in reality, a good scopist could earn much, much more.
This is supported by the April 2010 Rates Survey published on the BeST website. Every two years, they conduct a survey of scopists on various forums, and while it is not scientific, it gives a pretty good snapshot of the expectations.
From the survey:
What is your income goal per month?
Part-time scopists had an income goal of $800 on the low end, $1,500 average, $2,000 high end.
Full-time scopists had a low income goal of $1,500, average goal of $3,000, high goal of $5,000.
Note, the survey strictly deals with rates charged and income goals desired. The question regarding actual income earned is never asked. However, I will add that these numbers do coincide with discussions on the topic from various work at home mom type forums based on postings from actual scopists (as best one can ascertain).
Now, having said all this…only time will tell. I’ll keep you posted.
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