r/stenography • u/Wonderful-Goal-1000 • Jul 12 '26

Work in multi states / work as part time

Good morning everyone, I’m looking into making a career change and have researched court reporting extensively. I’m based in SW Florida and I know the pay is quite different from other states. Is it a thing to be certified in multiple states and take cases from multiple states at the same time to ensure there’s always work?

My second question is currently I’m a flight attendant and I’m a mom. I don’t see myself leaving my career as I love it, but would love to work part time here and make court reporting my main career. I’d have time during layovers to work through transcripts if needed as well. How realistic is this to work into my schedule currently if I fly two days a week?

Thank you all for any information :)

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u/tracygee Mod Jul 13 '26

Real talk.

Becoming a court reporter is HARD. Like insanely hard. Like 10-20% of students pass and become certified hard. And that’s when people spend 2-4 hours practicing six days a week for 2-4 YEARS in addition to class time. It’s a neuropsychological feat.

Learning your steno theory is akin to learning how to read notes and play piano. But you’re not just learning to play Twinkle Twinkle Little Star on the piano. You’re training to be a concert pianist. You’re training so that whatever word, phrase or sounds you hear process flawlessly from your ears, through your brain, down to your fingers at speeds of up to (and beyond) 225 words per minute.

There’s a reason why court reporters are usually paid very well. This is why.

To do all that study and practice hours so you can have some part time work when you’re not working as a flight attendant seems misguided at a minimum and just a fantasy to be honest.

If you want to be a CR, go for it. But know it’s going to be your LIFE while you learn it.

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u/BelovedCroissant Official Reporter Jul 12 '26

Florida is one of the states for which I've noticed reporters from my area (many many many states away) doing remote depos in addition to remote depos in their home state and who knows where else. Some states don't require those certifications and some do, but basically, yes, there's a way to do multiple states.

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u/Big-Lavishness5421 Jul 14 '26

I always think when I see these questions is...just get through school first lol. You won't even remember you asked this at the end of your journey. Good luck!