WAHM Forums

I've been browsing the forum looking for beginners' information, and I still have some questions that I'm hoping someone can answer.

I have a bachelor's degree in journalism and a full-time job as a technical writer. I type about 90 wpm, have a firm command of language and am proficient with spelling and grammar. I'm looking for part-time transciption work to do in the evenings and on weekends.

Should I expect difficulty finding part-time work as a beginner, despite my skills and background?

Where might be a good place for me to start, keeping in mind that I'm looking for part-time work? I've seen a few different recommendations. The place that seems to have the most positive reviews is AccuTran, but their website says all transcriptionists must meet availability requirements during peak times that I would be unable to meet. Is this type of thing the norm, or something specific to AccuTran?

Someone in another thread mentioned a company called Verbal Ink (http://www.verbalink.com/transcription-jobs/), and it sounded like a possibility. One of the posters seemed to think a beginner with excellent language and typing skills might be able to secure work with Verbal Ink if she could pass a difficult test. I'm curious what a test like this would entail - some type of industry-specific knowledge, or just a firm command of language and the ability to type quickly and accurately?

Thanks for any input you have!

Try Tigerfish. They will give newbies a chance. They were my first paying client back in 2004, helped me get my foot in with Net Transcripts down the line.

Tigerfish Transcription: Employment (http://www.tigerfish.com/employment.html)

Good luck!

Hi Erika, You can also find a pretty comprehensive list of transciption companies with notes as to who hires newbies, etc. here: List of Transcription Companies | Freelance Transcriptionist Road (http://freelancetranscriptionistroad.com/list-of-transcription-companies/).

Some companies have specific hours of work like Accutran because they transcribe financial earnings calls. And during peak season, for transcribing the work is only in the morning. Now on the proofing side, all the work is in the evening and pays average $20 an hour (work hour). You can apply thru their site and test for both transcription and proofing or if you'd like more info and have more questions, you can contact me off-board as I do proofing and referrals for them.

Different transcription companies will have different TATs depending on what type of transcription they are doing. Entertainment is usually 24 to 36 hours. General can be anywhere from 24 hours to 7 days. Legal can be 3-5 days, but that does not include court reporting which usually has much tighter TATs.

Testing usually consists of getting an audio of some sort and a template and you will need to listen to the audio and transcribe it in the correct format following their guidelines. Some companies have very specific guidelines while others are less stringent. VI is one with pretty stringent testing standards and is a difficult test to pass.

HTH

Thanks so much for your responses, Kait and Sadie!