I've been an MT for 16 years now. Whenever I consider doing something else, as much as I may bellyache from time to time, I still always come back to this. I like what I do. Not 100% of the time - but 90% of the time I do.

I know the thread you are referring to - and I cannot speak for the person who wrote that she does not recommend anyone new starting in this field, but I can tell you that in general I tend to agree with her. There are, however, exceptions.

If someone is willing to go through the proper training (and Andrews certainly fits that bill) and has realistic expectations of what this profession is all about and what it entails, then I certainly would not dissuade them.

Expectations? What are your expectations? I can tell you what the reality of this job is.

If you are planning on working at home fresh out of school - be prepared for long hours, lots of stopping/starting to look things up, frantic cries for help to whomever because Dr. Mumbles is eating lunch while dictating again and you cannot understand him/her, and probably quite a few tears. Going through the proper training will cut down on some of that and will make the process easier, but I don't think you get a pass on any of the above.

Do NOT expect to make a heck of a lot of money doing this at first. One of the things that discourages ME about this profession is the pay scale. I started out in 1986 at $0.06/line. That's pretty much the starting rate still today. 16 years later, I don't make a heck of a lot more per line, but I am faster, do not have to look up as many things, and I now also have other benefits (health insurance, etc.,) that I did not have initially. You will (at least every MT I know) probably reach a plateau at some point; i.e., you can only type x amount of lines per hour, have so many "canned" reports, and so many abbreviations in your word expander. I've pretty much been making the same amount now for the past 5 years or so. Possibly even longer. Don't look for huge raises in pay rate and again, even your speed/knowledge, etc., reaches a peak. Working on production in the beginning can be rough - and not terribly lucrative. You spend a great deal of time proofing, looking words up, etc. You need to take that into consideration when starting out.

If you are planning on working at home, you absolutely must be extremely disciplined. Distractions are a killer - and friends/family have a tendency to think "oh, she's home, she can do such-and-such..." You are going to need to learn how to schedule your time and understand that you ARE at work - even though you're home and then train everyone else in your life as well.

If you are working at home it can be somewhat isolating. Me? I don't much care for office politics, so this suits me just fine. The internet drastically cuts down on that feeling - but that can be a double-edged sword as well ---- another distraction.

Now to the actual work itself -- it's not always easy. You'll have your easy doctors who are dream boats - but they seem to be few and far between. There are the ESLs, and the mumblers, and the speed demons, and the toilet flushers, and the chewers, and the cell-phone users, and the unorganized page flippers, etc., etc., etc. My feeling on these always is...........if every doc was a dream boat - then really...anyone COULD do this job. They're not, so they can't, and that's why I still have a job all these years.

You'll be sitting sometimes for what feels like an eternity -- the days your fingers just don't work right and it feels like you've been chained to your chair for 24 hours. It's always those days that you look at your line count with absolute horror realizing you only did 500 lines in all that time.

This profession is not for everyone - not by a long shot. What profession is? Again, if you have realistic expectations and are prepared to go through the proper training, I see no reason why NOT to start out as an MT. Linda (Andrews) is well aware of the fact that this profession is not for everyone - that's why she has a screening exam for potential students. You will be getting a top-notch education through Andrews and you will be as prepared as humanly possible to start this job. The rest will then be up to you. But like every other job out there - do a good job and enjoy what you do - and there is no reason why this cannot be a rewarding career that you can and will enjoy for a long time.

[ 11-25-2002: Message edited by: Annie ]

Annie's summary really says it all -- and consider that as one of the moderators of this board, she devotes a large part of her "free" time to it and therefore to the profession, as well.

I have many MTs that work from thier own home, in their shorts or robe, never having to leave the house unless they want to, making 600-1000 dollars a week.

Our company lets the MT work whenever they want, no quotas no minimum hours, no nothing. They dictate what they make, the more they type the more they make. I also used to be a MT, an I loved it. I could roll out of bed whenever I wanted and work for a while, my wife would come home for lunch, I stopped working, sat with her and watched her soaps with her and when she went back to work, so did I. The biggest advantage of it is FLEXIBILITY.....

While I cannot validate anyone's decision to do anything, I can tell you what it is like for me. I started in this profession while going to college. I worked part-time for a prominent medical center where they taught me everything. After graduation, I went to work for an insurance institution but always helped out on a few accounts. After ten years in the insurance industry, I, along with thousands of others, was laid off. I picked up MT work with a local company and learned about the outsourcing business. The minute I learned how much I was paid versus how much the client was billed, I started going after my own accounts (only institutions, no doctor's offices). It took a while but eventually, with my reputation preceding me, I was able to secure several very, very nice contracts. This is where the money is. It may take a while to get there. You have to pay your dues and be dead-on with knowing your stuff. Forget about the 9-5 or slacker mentality; this is a daily grind, you stay until it is done and when the sun rises the next day, you do it again.

Do I love this job - I will have to say that the money and flexibility does if for me. I have a little one at home and I love being able to spend time with him. You can't do this with a "regular" job where you have to go into the office. I will say though, I pay for this -- I get up real, real early and do as much as I can. I also stay real, real late after he is asleep.

One other thing that that I love is bringing other transcriptionists into my business. Typically, we are thought of as kind of pink-collar workers without much status in the food chain. Our group acts as a kind of co-op and we share fairly equally in our contracts. This has changed everyone's financial status to the point where now they have choices they never had before.

Overall, I will tell you that for me, I never would be in the financial position or have the luxury of time to spend with my child had I stayed in the insurance business (and I thought I had a good job there at the time). I don't have to put up with the crap of office politics (although I think every job has a "crap component"). I have ultimate control of what I do, when I do it and how it is done. That autonomy is intoxicating.

I wish you well in whatever you decide to pursue. If you decide to join us, prepare yourself as best you can. The rewards are there but you have to work for them.

Best of luck.

Deb

[ 11-27-2002: Message edited by: Debo ]

quote:

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I could roll out of bed whenever I wanted and work for a while, my wife would come home for lunch, I stopped working, sat with her and watched her soaps with her and when she went back to work, so did I. The biggest advantage of it is FLEXIBILITY.....

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I agree that there is SOME flexibility - but I've been an MT for 16 years (since I had my daughter) and I cannot recall a day when I've rolled out of bed whenever I wanted.

No disrespect, but I don't find too many MTs that do this either. Most do have a schedule they try to stick to and it does indeed take discipline to stay at home, take care of the house, the kids, the husband, and get the work done.

It just seems that why we've (I think!!) been trying for years to get away from this stereotype of how "easy" it is to work at home, to see someone come in and make it sound like a day in the park just kind of hit me the wrong way.

[ 11-27-2002: Message edited by: Annie ]

It was a struggle when I first started. I figured I was probably making about $3.00 an hour, but after I got used to my doctors and got my macros together, I average about $23.00 an hour.

Good luck to you. I hope you find this profession as rewarding as I have.

Debbie

Then, through a friend of a friend of a friend, I learned of a woman in my area who is an independent MT, and gave her a call. I didn't necessarily ask for a job, but in just asking general questions about MT in our area, she offered to let me try out some of her work to see how I like it. I LOVE it! I started at 7 cpl, and will be working my way up to approx 9-10 cpl. I work at home, and I'm able to work around my children's and my husband's schedules.

I have to add in here that she is a wonderful mentor to me, I can pick up the phone and ask questions any time it is needed. She not only helps me out with words I can't understand, but she explains what they are and how they are used in detail. All in all, I consider myself very fortunate to have found someone who is willing to work with me, take the time to teach me, and was willing to give me a chance.

The most frustrating part in looking for a job was the 'We won't hire you unless you have five years of hospital experience" problem. I honestly think that if I had not found someone willing to take me in and help me out, I would have had an incredibly hard time breaking into this field, even with a 4-year-degree as well as a two-year certificate from the local community college.

There were times when I was just starting out that I averaged $2-$3 per hour, because of the very poor quality of the tape, the amount of lookup and research that I had to do, and the pulling-your-hair-out factor of it all. A month and a half later, with a LOT of learning still to do, I average about $8 per hour, and it is only getting faster and easier as I go.

As a semi-newbie, I agree that it is a hard field to break into. The most important thing I learned from my schooling is how much I still have yet to learn. 90% of the time I AM able to roll out of bed when I want to and spend time with my children, but that means that I have to be very disciplined during the day. Sometimes things around the house just don't get done if I have a large workload. I have to tell friends when they call that I can't go out to lunch or talk for a while, that I'm working. For the most part, they understand this.

So... I guess what I'm saying is this: I love my job, and I'm glad that I made the decision to quit my previous job and pursue MT. The dream of being able to work at home and make a decent living is possible, but it's not an easy road. There are times when I wonder if it's really all worth it, but in the long run, for ME, it is. I just lucked out in finding someone who was willing to give me a chance and train me.

Be prepared to work for hardly nothing to begin with, to stay up until 3:00 am trying to get that last report done when you can't keep your eyes open any more, and don't expect a job to fall into your lap. But if it all works out well, the rewards can be worth it.

Ok... I'm done rambling now

Avalon

quote:

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I cannot speak for the person who wrote that she does not recommend anyone new starting in this field, but I can tell you that in general I tend to agree with her. There are, however, exceptions.

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Awww...I can't tell if you meant me or Julie...but I can surely tell you why I said ...

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no longer recommend this as a career that anyone is likely to do for the next 20 years and retire from, nor do I recommend it to anyone who must rely on a single income (regardless of whether or not that person has children, is young, older) or needs benefits...health insurance.

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Do the math...pay rates for MTs, especially just starting out in your first ever job...run from 5 to 7 cents a line if you are extremely lucky. MT has always been field where folks found that first job more by luck and word of mouth than any other method. As automation takes over more and more of the rote dictation that "new" MTs have traditionally been started on when newly hired the opportunities to break into the field are going be fewer and fewer. The "ear training" time that every MT must have (and I don't care how good you think you are fresh out of school or what other "medical" training you may have had that ear training is a must for each one of us") is going to become scarcer and scarcer because the price per line may have stagnated but the overall cost of doing business has gone up and up and service owners can no longer afford to train the way they once did. Nationals are paying tops 9-13 cents for MTs with many years experience. From that comes SS, FICA, matching insurance, retirement accounts..not to mention that more and more national services are downgrading employee status to SE specifically so they can do away with the necessity of providing benefits because they just cannot afford it. If you are an IC those added things still come out of the paycheck at some point or another, not to mention the entire burden of day-to-day operating expenses are yours as well.

I agree with Annie, there are always exceptions, and there will always be people who are "naturals" who can afford to take the time to train properly and who will get lucky and get that all important first job right away...but those folks are hard to find and the opportunities they face for employment are going to be harder to find for them as well.

quote:

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read a few posts that were pretty discouraging

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Those posts were telling you the way it is. Some people will do well in the business for years to come...a great many will not. Whether you will do well is something only you yourself can determine through lots of hard word, a lot of luck, and realistic expectations about a profession that is changing daily into something very few people ever expected it to be. Like I said, it is not something I would encourage my daughter to do if she had to depend on a single income to survive...a two-income family, now that would a whole different ball game.

Nae

[ 11-27-2002: Message edited by: Nae ]

I apologize if I painted a picture that appeared rosy ---- this job is far from it; however, it works for me right now.

Take care and enjoy your holiday,

Deb

As for the future of this profession, no one can really say what is coming. I encourage new MTs to be cross-trained in coding, office administration, whatever takes their fancy, because I think we will need to adapt to changing situations. The only ones who will be out of work will be the ones who say, "I only want to sit and transcribe!" For others who are willing to enlarge their expertise into related fields, I think the opportunities will be there.

At this point I am perfectly content working for a national company, making not much money, but gradually becoming better and better at what I do. I realize that I could leave the national and pick up my own accounts and my income would go up (or at least my line rate). However, that is something that I am in no way ready to do for several reasons, my inexperience for one and the fact that I am not ready to work 16 hour days or keep working come hell or high water until the work is done. Right now I'm happy being able to turn my computer off when my shift is over.

So, yes I love my job. I really love it actually. I have to say, though that this business about rolling out of bed whenever and wearing whatever is kind of for the birds. Like my kids, I really need a strong routine which is why my butt is up out of bed well before the kids and I am up, showered, and fully dressed when I sit down to work.

Anyhow, just wanted to share my very rambling, 2 cents worth.

Mandie

I work part time only, which is why I CAN have a flexible schedule working from home. That's not to say that I've never been up until the wee hours of the morning trying to get a particularly hard tape finished. This is not our sole source of income. If we had to pay the mortgate with my MT job alone, there is no way we could do it.

I think that people just starting in this field have to realistically look at how much they can make, and the amount of hours they would have to work in order to make enough to support themselves. Just starting out, don't be surprised to clear about $2 per hour because of all the time needed to research and reference things. Also, consider the amount needed for investing into transcription equipment, software, and a GOOD reference library.

A relative of mine is a full-time MT, and she never works less than 60 hours per week. She is also always taking on extra assignments, filling in for people on vacation, etc. She basically has no life beyond her desk and computer, but that's what she has to work in order to support herself.

It's definitely not a "gravy" job as a sole means of income. IF it is a job to supplement another income and IF you can find someone willing to work with you and mentor you, as I did, then it's, IMO, worth a try.

I think my situation might be unique in that I have found someone nearby willing to work with me, teach me, and give me a chance to make this all work out. Without a good mentor, there is no way I could attempt to make a go of this job.

Avalon