Corporate Transcriptionist Overview
Corporate transcription jobs cover everything from transcribing the minutes of board meetings, group/section meetings, memos, letters and other things of this nature. Basically, if there is some type of transcription needed in a corporate setting, a corporate transcriptionist is there to help.
What skills are needed to do corporate transcription jobs?
As with all transcription jobs, the biggest skill that is required for any corporate transcription job is the ability to type quickly and accurately. By far, this is the number one skill that is mentioned in any recruitment ad.
Because, today, more people have basic keyboarding skills due to the prevalence of computers in our lives, the thing that many people have to work on is speed. Many jobs require 60 wpm or more and often will test this. There are several online sites such as TypingTest.com that can assist you in increasing your typing speed.
Another skill you will need to have is ability to type what you hear. Now, many jobs require verbatim, which means every word, every ummm, uhh, er and so forth. Others will require you to edit those out and give it a natural flow. So, you will need to know the specific directions as to the type of transcription that is required.
Regardless of where you are, you will need a very good understanding of the rules of grammar for whatever language you are transcribing in. Since we are writing this in English, you will need to not only understand, but apply the rules of English grammar and punctuation, especially for any outgoing communication. Along with this is the ability to spell words correctly. Nothing is more frustrating for a client than misspellings and if repeated often enough, will result in termination.
Is an education required to have a job in corporate transcription?
There is not any specific educational requirements for any type of transcription job. That being said, there is some training and classes you may want to have. Many online and local higher education facilities have a certification program for transcription. You will be trained in formatting Word, the most common program used for transcription. You will be given advance keyboarding lessons that include how to make certain punctuation that is not standard such as the accent mark used in Spanish, keyboard shortcuts and other such necessary items.
You will also be trained, if you choose, in office procedures, various terminologies such as legal or medical terminology, general computer skills, Microsoft office and various types of transcription equipment and/or programs.
While this certification is not necessary, having it along with the skills taught in this certification program will give you a leg up on the competition.
What type of training will help you be good with corporate transcription?
This kind of goes with the educational requirements mentioned above. However, training that will assist you include: Advanced keyboarding skills, Word formatting, business law and office communications, which covers letters, memos and other types of communication that are often dictated.
You may want to take an advanced English course to be able to correctly punctuate. Also, knowing what online resources you have such as a thesaurus and dictionary are helpful, especially for those hard to spell words that aren’t used often. Also, an English course will assist you in being able to proofread and edit your work so that it is client ready when you send it.
How much do corporate transcription jobs pay?
Most corporate transcription jobs are done in an office. Unlike freelance or at home transcription, most corporate transcription jobs pay by the page or by hour. However, when it comes to hourly rates, if you do not have a quick enough typing speed where the turn-around-time (TAT) is not average or above, you will be terminated. You need to be able to do more than 1 audio hour per day to be competitive. The client will not want to pay by the hour for someone who is not productive.
General rates run from $10.00 per page to $15.00 per hour and will depend on the location of the job. One of the advantages of working in an office is that you are often eligible for benefits.
Where can I find corporate transcription jobs?
There are a wide variety of places to find corporate transcription jobs. Online, we will discuss the 6 most common sites to find local, national and international corporate transcription jobs.
TranscriptionJobsHQ.com: We have partnered with top companies to offer you a very easy-to-use job search engine that pulls all listings from Simply Hired, Monster, and Indeed to show you just about all of the legal transcription jobs that you can find on the internet. If you can’t find your job here feel free to keep searching elsewhere, but we are confident that our database has most of them.
Upwork.com: The transcription jobs on this website range from large to small. Once you create a profile, start out by charging a reasonable rate by audio/video minute and then build up your profile to eventually have a higher cost and repeated clients. It takes some time, but this can be a great way to get multiple clients coming back over and over again.
Rev.com: This is a great company to join if you'd like consistent transcription work provided to you. The problem with joining this company is that you'll be paid less per audio minute because they have to make money too, but they are very consistent with the work that they get.
Simplyhired.com: This is a job listing site that covers a wide range of industries. You can search by keywords such as transcription or corporate transcription. You will want to have a general cover letter that you can edit for each job and a relevant resume as you apply directly to the company itself. These jobs can be at home or in an office.
Careerbuilder.com: One of the largest of the job listing sites, careerbuilder.com has been around for well over 15 years. Again, you will want to upload a relevant resume and have a general cover letter that you can review and edit for specific companies. Since companies can also search the database for relevant workers, it is good to have a copy there as well.
Again, using key words, you will search the database for relevant jobs and apply per the specifics listed in the job details.
Monster.com: Another large job listing site, you can upload resumes, use the resume builder, develop cover letters, search the database for position and review job details. You will apply to each job per the instructions listed in the job details.
Corporate transcription jobs are a highly specialized section of industry. While there are no required educational requirements, having skills such as typing quickly and accurately, understanding grammar and punctuation, along with formatting and terminology, you can decide whether this is the right thing for you.