A scopist is a professional stenography reader that assists court reporters in the transcription process. Not all court reporters use scopists, but those that do feel they can turn around work much more quickly.
When a reporter takes down a job, whether in court, deposition or at a convention, the notes are written phonetically into a steno machine. Each keystroke represents a sound. As the sounds are put together they create words, phrases and sentences. The stenographer uses a special computer program that translates the notes into English.
The computer files are sent to the scopist, who goes through the transcript and makes sure that everything translates properly and makes sense. She takes the time to look up technical words and spellings. This takes time; valuable time that would otherwise prevent a court reporter from completing a transcription quickly and getting the finished product to the client, who is most often an attorney.
The main focus of the scopist is to make sure the transcript says exactly what the reporter recorded in steno. As a result, the scopist must be able to read the stenographer's notes and interpret them correctly. There are two ways scopists receive training. One is through scoping school. There are training programs throughout the country and online that offer certification in the art of interpreting steno and creating a proper transcription.
Learning to interpret steno is like learning another language. It can be done online or in person, depending on the school. These programs often take about two years for the novice to complete. Some schools offer an associate's degree, while others give a certification. Many schools that offer a court reporting curriculum also offer scoping as an abbreviated version of the same training.
The other way a scopist can be trained is by being a reporter. Many reporters become scopists while on maternity leave. Others start a second career after they retire from reporting. They already have the court reporting software and understand the language and nuances of the court reporter's job. For those with hearing problems, physical disabilities or lifestyles that prohibit them from taking and producing jobs as stenographers on a daily basis, this is a workable alternative. This may also be a way to make a little extra money.
Scopists generally choose how much or how little work they wish to take on. Most work out of their homes with individual stenographers as clients. For scopists who are former reporters, this is an easy transition that makes sense.
In the court reporting world, everyone charges by the page. Depending on whether the job is technical and how quickly it must be complete dictates the amount charged per page.
There are several national associations that scopist may join, including the Friends of National Verbatim Reporters Association (FNVR).
It should be noted that regardless of what the scopist produces, it is still the reporter's responsibility to make sure the transcription is accurate before sending it out to the client.
Author Resource:-
Author is a freelance writer. For more information on Court reporters please visit http://www.huseby.com/.
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