Frequently Asked Questions

While advancements in AI and speech recognition technology continue to evolve, they are not currently a replacement for trained court reporters. In fact, the greater challenge facing the industry today is a significant shortage of qualified court reporters nationwide.

Court reporting requires a high level of accuracy, real-time judgment, and accountability, especially in legal settings where the record must be precise and defensible. Courts and legal professionals continue to value the human element for these reasons, as certified court reporters are able to ensure clarity, manage multiple speakers, and take responsibility for the official record in ways AI cannot reliably replicate.

AI may play a supportive role in the future, but it is more likely to be used as a tool rather than a replacement. If anything, increased reliance on AI would be a response to the ongoing shortage, not a direct threat to the profession.

Please refer to the Student Books & Equipment List PDF located in the School Information section of the website.

Every court reporter should be good at reading back and this takes practice. Although reading back in no way helps increase writing speed, you need to practice it and become good at it. We will teach you how to read back at a good pace and how to practice to keep that pace.

Here we focus not only on increasing your speed, but also your accuracy.

We train you to increase your speed by teaching you how to move your fingers faster, initially at all costs, even sacrificing accuracy, in order to improve your ability to record strokes faster.

We focus on four main areas in order to increase your speed:

1. We teach you how to get a stroke for everything and to not drop any strokes at all.
2. We teach you how to keep up with the speaker at all times and at all costs, even a stroke, so that you never lag behind the speaker.
3. We teach you how to always form the right stroke based on your own personal ability. We teach you how to "feel" yourself approximating the stroke, even if it is not 100% right.
4. We teach you how to stay focused and give all of your concentration to the speaker and what he is saying at all times.

That's perfectly fine since we have an online format. There are two enrollment options for students: Online-Live and Online Non-Live. 

We only enroll Onlive-Live students in the Fall Quarter (unless you're starting in Speed Building). Online-Live students must be available to stream the classes live through Zoom. We are located in Houston, Texas and all class times are in Central Time. 

Online Non-Live students are enrolled for a start date at the beginning of each new quarter if the enrollment deadlines have been met. Online Non-Live students will watch the recorded classes when it fits in their schedule each day. Online Non-Live students are also given an extra month to complete each quarter's classes. This means that while we complete a quarter in 3 months, Online Non-Live students will have 4 months to complete each quarter. 

All students, regardless of enrollment type, are held to the same hour completion and grade requirements to stay in good academic standing. 

Although it is hard to narrow down, the best court reporters are sharp individuals who are strong in English and quick with their fingers. Playing a musical instrument, speaking multiple languages, typing fast or excelling at video games may also be an indicator of court reporting talent.

This program will fully prepare you to pass the state and national tests that may be required in certain venues, such as Certified Shorthand Reporter (CSR) and Registered Professional Reporter (RPR).

The principal occupational skills that will be taught include using machine shorthand to write literary dictation at speeds up to 180 words per minute, jury charge dictation at speeds up to 200 words per minute, and question-and-answer testimony in legal settings at speeds up to 225 words per minute, all at a minimum of 95-97% accuracy.

You will receive advanced schooling in English vocabulary and usage, punctuation, proofreading and editing skills, current events, as well as law, legal and medical terminology.

We do not accept federal financial aid, including FAFSA, as we are regulated by the Texas Workforce Commission and are not eligible to participate in federal aid programs.

However, we do offer an internal scholarship program for eligible students enrolled at Mark Kislingbury Academy of Court Reporting who demonstrate financial need and a strong commitment to their education.

We also accept private scholarships, provided the awarding organization can issue payment directly to the school on the student’s behalf to be applied toward tuition.

You can also find scholarship opportunities through Project Steno. Please see their website for their application and eligibility requirements. 

Please submit a contact request form to receive up to date information on the current enrollment period we are in. In that response, you will receive information on how to sign up if you are interested in proceding with enrollment. 

Our program is designed to be completed in 18-24 months.

The Theory portion of the program is 9 months (or if you are a non-live student, you may take up to a year to complete that portion if needed).

Speed Building varies dependent on how quickly your fingers can pick up speed and stamina. Speed Building is greatly impacted by how well you learn your briefs in Theory, which is why we have chosen to focus first and foremost on Theory as your solid foundation for getting through Speed Building. It is possible to complete the Speed Building portion of the program in 12-15 months with dedicated practice, focus, and solid knowledge of the Magnum Steno Theory. 

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the median annual wage for court reporters and simultaneous captioners was $63,940 in May 2023. The median wage is the wage at which half the workers in an occupation earned more than that amount and half earned less. The lowest 10 percent earned less than $35,890, and the highest 10 percent earned more than $126,440.

A court reporter, also known as a stenographer, is hired to transcribe spoken or recorded speech into written form.