7 Best Transcription Courses Online

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Are you looking for the best transcription classes and tutorials online? We’ve put together a list of the best ones on the web, below. We’ve included both free and paid courses to give you a variety of options.

But first, lets answers an important question – what is transcription?

Transcription is the process in which speech or audio is converted into a written document. Typically, transcriptionists convert conversations into word documents. Transcription is used in many industries, including law firms, medical and healthcare providers, market researchers, podcasters, video production firms and much more!

To learn to master transcription, you don’t need to spend hours at a college or university. There are still plenty of online classes and courses that cover everything you need to know. Suitable for those of all levels, I have spent the time researching the best transcription online tutorials out there. If you’re looking to progress your transcription skills to pursue a career as a legal or medical transcriptionist, or to just to enhance your skill set overall, there will be an online course that is right for you.

 

1. Learn How to Transcribe (Skillshare)

  • Level: Beginner to Intermediate
  • Completion time: 1h 21m
  • Cost: 14-day free trial
  • Certification: No
  • Number of people who have completed the course: 1,653
  • Course rating: N/A

Taught by Elizabeth Le Roux, a transcription enthusiast and passionate teacher, this course will teach complete transcription newbies all the fundamental skills they need! Similarly, this course is suitable for intermediate transcribers who wish to brush up on their current transcription skills!

The course will begin with taking a look at transcription comprehension. You will then look at transcription accuracy, common homophones, speaker labeling, spelling, useful transcription skills and much more! Towards the end of the lesson, you will cover more advanced modules such as notation tags, research and the difference between verbatim and non-verbatim transcription!

After completing this course, Elizabeth sincerely believes that you will have the skills to be able to provide a transcription service to either their own clients or a transcription company!

 

2. Transcription Skills – Learn Beginning to Advanced Skills (Udemy)

  • Level: Beginner
  • Completion time: 1h 21m
  • Cost: $79.99
  • Certification: No
  • Number of people who have completed the course: 7,994
  • Course rating: 4.3/5 (1,632)

This comprehensive course is suitable for anyone who is looking to learn how to professionally transcribe and edit audio transcripts.

In this course, you’ll learn all the skills, shortcuts and practice techniques that you need to use so that you can produce quality transcriptions and grow your career as a transcriptionist. You will cover how to transcribe an audio file from the start with minimal mistakes, how to master grammar and punctuation so you can type what being said with accuracy and how to increase your productivity. You will also learn more advanced techniques, such as how to work with files with more than two speakers and  how to clean up bad audio.

By the end of this course, you should feel confident producing professional transcripts in an efficient and accurate manner!

 

3. How to Become a Transcriptionist (Udemy)

  • Level: Beginner
  • Completion time: 1h 16m
  • Cost: $69.99
  • Certification: No
  • Number of people who have completed the course: 5,458
  • Course rating: 4.4/5 (out of 1,758 ratings)

Chelsea Flint has transcribed hundreds of podcasts, interviews, forums and speeches… and she’s going to be sharing her talent and knowledge with you in this Udemy course.

In this course, you’ll cover how to strengthen your typing and grammar skills, transcribe short audio files and how to use Express scribe. Furthermore, you’ll also create a transcription-specific resume and find the bast companies to work for!

By the end of this course, you’ll have gone from a transcription newbie to a confident transcriptionists. Plus,  you’ll have the skills to charge over $20 an hour as a transcriptionist!

 

4. The General Transcription Certification (Transcription Certification Institute)

  • Level: All levels
  • Completion time: 3 months
  • Cost: $499
  • Certification: Yes
  • Number of people who have completed the course: Over 9,000
  • Course rating: 4.6/5 (out of 1,257 ratings)

Although more costly and more time consuming, after completing this course you will receive an industry recognized certification… which leaves you in a good position for future jobs!

Through reading, studying and reviewing each lesson, as well as by taking a final exam, you will gather the skills necessary to be a fantastic transcriptionist!

Once you have completed this certification, you will have the proficiency in English, typing skills, listening skills and computer skills that are required for a transcription career!

 

5. Step-by-Step Transcription from Home – Start A New Career (Udemy)

  • Level: Beginner
  • Completion time: 1h 44m
  • Cost: $50.00
  • Certification: No
  • Number of people who have completed the course: 1,199
  • Course rating: 4.6/5 (out of 351 ratings)

Recently updated, this course is taught by a 17-year active transcriptionist. It is best suited to complete transcription beginners who are wanting to learn the advanced skills needed to become a transcriptionist.

This course will teach you the different styles of transcription, what skills successful transcriptionists need and how to set up an effective home office for transcription. On top of this, you will also cover the work-life balance of a transcriptionist and the best place to gather transcription work. After completing this course, you really will have all the skills you need to kickstart a successful transcription career.

 

6. General Transcription Theory and Practice (Transcribe Anywhere)

  • Level: All levels
  • Completion time: 2-4months
  • Cost: $797
  • Certification: No
  • Number of people who have completed the course: N/A
  • Course rating: N/A

This course covers everything you need to know about transcription. You’ll take a look at how to get the best deal on transcription equipment, how to use text expanders and shortcuts, a good transcription style guide, how to find higher-paying work and how to build and market a transcription business.

On the more practical side, you’ll get your hands dirty with seven levels of practice dictations  and you’ll have lifetime access to all the materials that helped you gather this knowledge so that you can refer back to them whenever you need to.

 

7. Transcription and Captioning Masterclass | Master Video Captions and Subtitles (Skillshare)

  • Level: Beginner
  • Completion time: 1h 57m
  • Cost: 14-day free trial
  • Certification: No
  • Number of people who have completed the course: 766
  • Course rating: N/A

Taught by Niltay L, who is an English and Hebrew translator, proofreader and transcriptionist, this course is suitable for those who want to learn basic transcription terms and the general purpose of transcription.

You will cover how to use both free and paid tools and how to use automated transcription tools. The course will also cover how to remove background noises, keyboard shortcuts, practices to sharpen your transcription skills and how to work in transcription through online job sites.

By the end of this course, you should feel confident using basic captioning terms (e.g., subtitles), different shortcuts and autocorrecting software.

 

Conclusion

So, there you have it… the 7 best transcription tutorials online that are suited to those wanting to improve their skills for medical transcription, legal transcription or just overall in general.

There are lots of online options available for you to advance your transcription skills! There are free courses that take less than an hour, and there are more expensive courses that take longer to complete! Some courses are suitable for those who have never really transcribed properly before. Whereas other courses are best suited for those with excellent transcription skills, but are looking to take their learning one step further.

The online classes on this list are the best of the best. Each is taught by an experienced and dedicated teacher and they all have lots of satisfied and happy customers.

So, which course you decide take depends on your experience, funds and spare time. Are you a complete transcription newbie? Or have you got years of experience of turning audio into text and just want to further develop your skills? Do you have a huge amount of money to spend on your skill development? Do you have a lot of spare time, or are you just looking for a quick, but effective, skill top up?

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