What is the average court reporting salary in Texas? What schools or classes are required for a license?

I have so many questions about this. I hear that court reporters in California can make up to $100,000, but what is the average income of court reporters in Texas, specifically Houston and surrounding areas? What is the starting salary and the average maximum? How much experience is needed to make the maximum? How demanding is this job as far as work hours? And lastly, what schools or classes are needed to become licensed?





I've been researching the income and usually end up with mixed results anywhere from $40,000 to $80,000. There is a pretty big gap there. I currently make around $40K/year, but $80K is ideal. I don't know how big of a demand there is for court reporters in Texas, but it seems like something I'd enjoy doing, although living on a nice income is my main concern. Any advice or personal experience is appreciated.|||Court reporters had median annual earnings of $42,920 in May 2004. The middle 50 percent earned between $30,680 and $60,760. The lowest paid 10 percent earned less than $23,690, and the highest paid 10 percent earned more than $80,300. Median annual earnings in May 2004 were $41,070 for court reporters working in local government.





Both compensation and compensation methods for court reporters vary with the type of reporting job, the experience of the individual reporter, the level of certification achieved, and the region of the country. Official court reporters earn a salary and a per-page fee for transcripts. Many salaried court reporters supplement their income by doing freelance work. Freelance court reporters are paid per job and receive a per-page fee for transcripts. CART providers are paid by the hour. Stenocaptioners receive a salary and benefits if they work as employees of a captioning company; stenocaptioners working as independent contractors are paid by the hour.





That being said, it depends on the sector of government for which you work. Education can be obtained through a number of on-line schools. There are also community colleges that offer a certificate program for court reporting. To earn the maximum salary, typically 8 - 10 years experience or more is needed.





The amount of training required to become a court reporter varies with the type of reporting chosen. It usually takes less than a year to become a voice writer, while electronic reporters and transcribers learn their skills on the job. In contrast, the average length of time it takes to become a stenotypist is 33 months. Training is offered by about 160 postsecondary vocational and technical schools and colleges. The National Court Reporters Association (NCRA) has approved about 70 programs, all of which offer courses in stenotype computer-aided transcription and real-time reporting. NCRA-approved programs require students to capture a minimum of 225 words per minute, a requirement for Federal Government employment as well.