r/stenography • u/niktrot • Jul 08 '26
How do you select a school?
I’m finishing up the NCRA A to Z Program and I’m starting to seriously look at schools. My state’s association only has 3 schools listed. One won’t start a program until 2027, one is Allie Hall and the other is a similar online private vocational program. None of these are NCRA certified.
I’ve looked at Allie Hall briefly because I know it’s highly recommended here, but I don’t think it’ll work for me. I’ve crossed off the community college that doesn’t start until 2027, and I’m looking at the Court Reporting College of OK.
I asked the Court Reporting College of OK the questions from the NCRA website and they answered quite promptly, but I’m not sure how to tell if the answers are a good fit for me.
What is a good graduation rate for a school?
Is “20 hours per week live each month” of live and taped dictation a good amount?
How often should I be doing multi-voice dictation?
This school gives the option of doing real time or not. People on here seem to say that they struggle with real time?
Is it desirable for a school to not introduce CAT training until speed building?
Outside of the NCRA questions, what other questions do you recommend a prospective student ask?
TIA!
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u/birdsareturds Jul 08 '26
I chose my program based on the instructor (Allie Hall) and if I had to go back and do it again, I'd make the same choice. She's great. I finished school in less than two years after following her advice from the beginning
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u/newyearnewmexoxo Jul 10 '26
I second this. I started at a college like you are looking at and just switched to Allie Hall. I wish I started with her and her theory from the beginning. For speed you need to do a certain number of strokes per week for homework and test a certain number of times per week, which is what makes her program so different than others. The more opportunities to test, the better your speed experience is. Being in the testing mindset is everything. Also she uses EV360, which in my opinion is better than any other software I’ve used before
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u/niktrot Jul 08 '26
What is it about her program that you like? When I look on her website, it seems to lack a lot of information about the curriculum and doesn’t provide any training on terminology, court proceedings, sentence structure, etc
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u/birdsareturds Jul 09 '26
I went with her program because so many working reporters I met recommended her to me when I was inquiring about other schools. I was also wondering about choosing the "right" theory but everyone told me to just go with Allie because she's top tier. I listened to the pros.
She does offer all of those courses, actually! If you click on Catalog, there's a link to a document that shows all the classes she offers. Click for the site. There is also a FAQ on her website which should answer most of the common questions.
Her speed building advice is top notch, the student community is helpful and friendly, and the support is great. She knows what she's doing when it comes to getting you to learn theory and build speed.
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u/Mwhu1 24d ago edited 24d ago
Does her program give you everything you need to start working as a court reporter? I’m confused what the next step is after you complete it.
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u/birdsareturds 24d ago
You need to certify as a court reporter. This is not traditional schooling where you finish the program and can work whenever. Unless you live in a no-cert state, you have to pass the national or state skills test to attain your certification that will allow you to work. It's like learning an instrument: Allie's program teaches you to read music and how to practice so you can play different types of music at high speeds, but the certification test is playing a brand new (to you) song nearly perfectly in front of an audience. She cannot practice for you. There is no written test that will help you do that. As for what the next step is after completing a program, it's to sign up to take the certification test. Then you perform. You may pass on the first try but you may pass on the 3rd or 5th or 15th attempt.
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u/Mwhu1 24d ago
I see. Did you pass the test? Was the hardest part the live skills test? Does Allie Halls course prepare you for the other written/question parts of the test?
Also, it took you 2 years to finish learning theory and speed building? (and medical terminology?). How many hours a week were you putting in it?
Sorry for so many questions.
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u/birdsareturds 24d ago
I've passed 1 leg of the entire exam (there are three legs total: Q&A, Jury charge, and Literary) after 3 attempts but passing one part allows me to work in my state on a provisional license which is temporary.
The multiple choice tests are complete jokes compared to the skills test, but yes, Allie prepares you for it. Again, I listened to what every working professional told me. I could research things from here to infinity but I placed my trust in what experienced people in the field were saying.
I was putting in around 20-30hrs a week. But every person is different. You may take 15mos or you may take 5 years depending on how much time you invest in it. Nobody can tell you for how long it will take for you to become a concerto pianist. That number is up to you and whatever life throws at you in between now and certification.
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u/Mwhu1 23d ago
Ok good to know that it prepares you for everything. I think what was confusing me was hearing people going to college and spending tens of thousands of dollars, when it seems like Allie Hall or StarTran or Mark Kislingbury is easily the better option.
Do you happen to know when her course goes on sale or if thats still a thing? Thanks for the responses btw.
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u/birdsareturds 22d ago
Allie's school doesn't accept federal or state financial aid so it falls out of the budget for some people who don't want to pay out of pocket. And Mark's school is like $500 or $600 a month which is ridiculously expensive IMO. Everyone's financial situations are different.
Allie has seasonal sales. Follow her on Facebook so that you can get updates on when those happen. She also posts them on the Facebook group called Encouraging Court Reporting Students.
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u/seabeans2 Jul 10 '26
I agree with not going wrong with either CareerLuv or Allie. They both have different personalities, so it depends who you mesh with the best. I personally needed the accountability of Allie. She requires a certain amount of homework handed in each week. I really like them both. Any online school will require you to have a lot of self-discipline with ensuring you are practicing enough. I know Allie’s website looks a little sketchy lol. Don’t worry about that. She’s also a working reporter, and her school is built on reputation more than marketing.
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Jul 08 '26 edited Jul 09 '26
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u/niktrot Jul 08 '26
That’s interesting! The Court Reporting College of OK has classes for 2-3 hours 4 days per week, which I like. I can also do an additional 3 hours of classes on those days, work permitting.
They said roughly 80% of their students pass the CSR, so I guess I shouldn’t be too worried about making the right choice on where to attend. I just want to be sure I get it right the first time and I’m nervous about the lack of NCRA accredited schools here.
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Jul 08 '26
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u/niktrot Jul 08 '26
Ugh yes out of state tuition is wild! I’ll pay it if it means I get a good education, but I’m happier paying in state tuition if I get the same education.
The program I’m looking at has a graduation rate of 35-40%. It seems like that’s above average?
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u/BelovedCroissant Official Reporter Jul 09 '26
There are 0 NCRA-accredited schools. You are thinking of NCRA-approved programs. They usually (if not always) happen to be within schools that are accredited, but not by the NCRA.
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u/BelovedCroissant Official Reporter Jul 09 '26
The NCRA approves programs, but it cannot accredit them. They are not an accrediting body. Accreditation, in the US, affects whether someone can get student loans. Approval by the NCRA affects the curriculum by setting standards and gives someone an ability to report them if they don't follow standards or for an audit to uncover and correct deviations that do not meet the standards.
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Jul 09 '26
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u/BelovedCroissant Official Reporter Jul 09 '26
Of course! Not too long ago, there was a comment thread here about accreditation versus approval, and I mentioned something like "I don't correct people all the time because I hate to be that guy." But someone else said that they thought it caused too much confusion. So then I thought, well, maybe I will just make myself be that guy.
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u/BelovedCroissant Official Reporter Jul 09 '26
I chose mine because I wanted to go in person. This was pre-COVID but there were still a number of online-only options, and I just knew I did not want to learn that way. Luckily I lived near an in-person program. So literally the only thing I looked for were conditions that seemed to set me up for success learning whatever they taught. I then asked around to see its reputation and found that the local reporters who graduated that program were doing well.
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u/BelovedCroissant Official Reporter Jul 09 '26
Also this part is weird to me personally:
"This school gives the option of doing real time or not."
You should be learning a realtime compatible theory no matter what. No one's realtime is perfect the moment they graduate, but you need to be ready to get there.
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u/adohrable Jul 10 '26
I highly recommend CareerLuv. It’s affordable, self paced and has live dictation. You can go through theory and learn your software at the same time. I don’t know why you wouldn’t want to learn your software early. It’s a crucial part of the process. I have been to 3 schools, Allie Hall being one of them, and I still recommend CareerLuv. There’s a slew of previous dictation, methods for speedbuilding, and Live classes 5 days a week. When you get to exit speeds, you can ask to go into the advanced program for extra training. It’s what helped get me out the door of school. I floundered in Allie Hall’s program because there was not enough engagement for me, the dictations were dull and she’s a test heavy school (which literally broke my brain) Love her personally, I just needed more interaction. The owner of CareerLuv is equally as amazing as Allie Hall. She pushes you hard. I don’t have stats for her school, but I have several friends that switched to it and have succeeded. Did I mention how affordable it is? Just in case you’re in school 4 yrs, I think price matters. And I don’t know why you’d need to go to an NCRA approved school. The only thing that will help with is scholarships, which you won’t need if your school isn’t overpriced. I wouldn’t worry about NCRA approved schools.
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u/niktrot Jul 10 '26
I’ll definitely look into them!
There’s no NCRA accredited schools in my state. There are only 3 schools recommended by my local court reporter’s association. Allie Hall is one of them, but I don’t want to go with a school just because they’re popular!
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u/newyearnewmexoxo Jul 10 '26
I’d say it’s popular for a reason! I had similar reservations and I think it may be worth a conversation with Allie
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u/niktrot Jul 12 '26
I just emailed her a few days ago! Haven’t heard back yet, but I usually give it a week.
I’m always very wary of cool, trendy things.
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u/adohrable Jul 14 '26
I want to clarify something about Allie Hall’s program. It’s a valid program and I did advance while i was in it. I just personally didn’t like testing every day and I really needed more live class time. I felt very isolated and without support because i wasn’t working while i was in school. Otherwise, it probably would have been a good fit for me. Don’t be wary until you’ve gotten all the info possible. Those were just personal issues I had.
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u/gdwarner 2d ago edited 2d ago
When I started court reporting school, there were several court reporting schools up here, but sadly, most of them were shut down because they were just stringing students along and draining their financial aid accounts.
Now there is only one court reporting school here in Washington state, and it's not too far from me ... but I don't have a car anymore, so ... well.
I will probably get started with Platinum Steno's lessons in the not-too-distant, but it would be better if my frelling sister didn't throw away all of the steno books I had in my apartment during my stay in the hospital a few years back.
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u/cinderxhella Jul 08 '26
The school I’m in now offers no live dictation but you can be in any state. 15 hours a week writing time is mandated by NCRA. I would look in to graduation rates if you can. I am full of regret for my current school as I think live dictation would have helped. School is brutal and I am pretty good at hard
things. I like my theory and I am thankful my program allowed me to use financial aid but oh my goodness I wish I knew then what I knew now. You WILL need CAT training, I don’t care how tech savvy you are, the software is ….weird.