Key College Florida or Atlantic Technical Center, Florida

[Jaime Stepp]

Hi All,

Does anyone have any info or have heard anything in regards to Key College in Dania, Florida.

http://www.keycollege.edu/court_reporting.html

I am trying to find a school and this is one close to me that is NCRA certified.

The other school is Atlantic Tech

http://www.atlantictechcenter.com/Default.aspx?tabid=518

Not sure which one to choose or what to look for really. Any advice from anyone would be great. It's all new to me! Thanks!

[Mary Jo Cochran]

Neither website gave much information. At least they didn't say 18 months.

[Glen Warner]

Hi, Jaime.

Mary Jo's right -- neither site gives a lot of info about their program (what theory do they teach? Are they teaching machine (steno) or voice writing?).

Ordinarily I would recommend checking to see what their student's pass rate for the state CSR has been like, but Florida's CSR is relatively new, so that won't tell you anything ....

Probably the best thing to do in this instance is schedule a visit to both schools. While the Admissions person will tell you all sorts of great things, you should remember that their job is to get you to enroll in their program ... so you should take most of what they tell you with a grain of salt.

During your visit, see if you can sit in on a class or two: Theory, speed building, Medical Terminology, Legal Terminology, etc.

You should also talk to some of the students -- preferably at all levels. Questions you might ask of the medical and legal students is do they get to practice what they're learning in these classes on their steno machines. I know that at my (now closed) former school, neither class did that ... and after we had taken the classes, none of the terminology we learned ever ended up in the dictation!

Should both schools have that same issue, then you know that you're going to have to supplement your training in those classes.

Questions you should ask the speedbuilding students should include how much help are the instructors when you get stuck at a speed level, or do they help you analyze your notes, or do the instructors take the time and analyze your notes for you, and provide feedback to help you improve/get past your plateau.

I'm sure others will have other such questions you should ask, so take notes!

Good luck to you .....

--gdw
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"For a Good (steno) Time ...."
http://www.cheapandsleazy.net

[Jaime Stepp]

Thank you so much!

My main concern is studding here and moving back to California. The state board exam there seems intense and there is alot I don't understand. Im just hoping that it's possible.

I had no other option except to move home with my family in Florida and study while I am here, go to school and save money for when I go back. Here is a link to the test I am going to have to take before moving back to california.

http://www.courtreportersboard.ca.gov/applicants/eligibility.shtml

From what I have heard about key college is all of the students are up and working in no time. The local demand for them is high, so it seems they have a good rep and have been around since the 70's.

I really want to become a court reporter, always have. It just makes me nervous schooling here and plannning on working there. I am willing to go to all lengths to do so. Although I have to attend school here in Florida.

I so appreciate all of your advice/help etc! Thank you so much!

[Glen Warner]

Jaime --

You're welcome!

Probably the best thing for you to do would be to finish school, study for and get your RPR, work a bit in the area, save up some extra $$$, get your CA license, and move back to San Diego.

In the meantime, there's a young lady who recently graduated from her CR school, and from what I've been seeing, she's crazy busy down there in Miami! She has an article about why Miami is a great place for court reporters on her website ... so you might want to mosey on over there and check it out, when you have a chance.

Take care ...

--gdw

[Mary Jo Cochran]

From what I have heard about key college is all of the students are up and working in no time. The local demand for them is high, so it seems they have a good rep and have been around since the 70's.

This statement is really not a good sign of the quality of the school. Sounds like they are processing them. Almost all of us took at least three years (some seven) to get through court reporting school.

As Wanda the Witch said (I talked about her before) you don't want to just "get done"; you want to be qualified and have the confidence when you're done with the program so you are truly qualified to call yourself a court reporter. A few new court reporters have stated here, they got to their first depo, and were blown away.