Certification Exams
Established in 1995, AAERT’s ongoing certification exams for digital (electronic) reporters and transcriptionists is a test of our members’ professional skills.
Individuals with AAERT certifications are required to keep their annual Professional level membership dues active and current to maintain earned certifications.
AAERT does not require any specific type of exam preparation or training, and the exams are not based on any single reference. AAERT credentialing examinations are based on an Exam Specifications “blueprint.” The blueprints govern the competency requirements for each credential and provide the outline of topics for the examinations. Examination questions are developed from the blueprints and applicants should base their examination study on the blueprint.
AAERT exams are provided in an online proctored environment where the candidate schedules their exam session at their convenience 7x24x365.
AAERT publishes and offers for sale a Best Practices Guide, which covers a wide range of professional standards. Candidates are not required to purchase or use the guide in order to qualify for or take the certification examination. PLEASE NOTE: As standards change and the profession evolves, some of the information in the guide may become outdated.
As a courtesy to individuals interested in taking a certification examination, AAERT may publish on its website a list of courses and/or approved schools for examination preparation of which it is aware. AAERT does not endorse any specific person, product, resource, or service as a means of preparing for or achieving certification. Candidates are encouraged to plan their own course of study by reviewing the examination blueprint, identifying any areas of weakness, and securing the necessary resources to adequately prepare for the examination.
CER®
(certified electronic reporter)
CET®
(certified electronic transcriber)
CDR®
(certified deposition reporter)
Register for an exam
Exams are done remotely and registration is always open.
Breakdown of the Certification Exams
Certified Electronic Reporter (CER®)
The Certified Electronic Reporter captures the record by digitally recording court and non-court proceedings, including trials, hearings, depositions, EUOs, statements on the record, aids of execution, meetings, arbitrations, etc.
To obtain your CER® certification, you are required to pass an online multiple choice knowledge examination. The knowledge examination includes questions covering:
- court and non-court proceedings,
- reporting protocols and digital reporting software and equipment,
- general legal procedures,
- ethical and professional behavior, and
- vocabulary
The exam consists of 189 questions of which 171 are scored and 18 are not scored. You will need a score of 80 percent or higher to pass. Only the questions that are scored contribute to your overall score. The questions that are not scored are being tested for use in future exams. You will have 120 minutes to complete the exam.
Once you’ve passed the certification examination, you are awarded the CER® certificate.
Certified Electronic Transcriber (CET®)
The Certified Electronic Transcriber captures the record by transcribing digitally recorded court and non-court proceedings verbatim.
To obtain your CET® certification, you are required to pass an online multiple-choice knowledge examination and produce a transcript from a digitally recorded proceeding (practical examination). These two test portions take place on different days; you must pass the knowledge portion of the exam prior to sitting for the practical portion.
The knowledge examination includes questions covering:
- transcript formatting and proofreading,
- transcription software and equipment,
- general legal procedures,
- ethical and professional behavior, and
- vocabulary
The exam consists of 157 questions. You will need a score of 80 percent or higher to pass. You will have 120 minutes to complete this portion of the exam.
Once you have received a passing grade, you will be instructed on how to schedule a time to take the second portion of the exam, the practical examination. If you did not receive a passing grade, you will need to retake the knowledge portion of the exam again prior to moving on to the practical exam.
The practical examination entails creating a transcript using the federal format. You will be given a mock court proceeding recorded on four-channel digital software. You are required to complete all of the audio files supplied to you at the time of your exam. The transcript will be approximately 10-20 pages and must include a title page, index page, and certification page. You will have 150 minutes to complete the transcript.
In order to pass, you will need to demonstrate 98 percent accuracy. If you do not receive a passing grade, you will only need to retake and pass this portion of the exam in order to receive your certification.
- Review all information found on the Exam Resources page of AAERT website. You will find many federal formatting examples, Word templates, as well as a practice Sample Transcript with answer key.
- CET Practical Transcript: You must use federal formatting and your transcript must include a title page, index page, and certificate.
- CET Practical Exam Overview recorded presentation
Once you’ve passed both portions of the certification examination, you are awarded the CET® certificate.
Certified Deposition Reporter (CDR®)
The Certified Deposition Reporter captures the record by digitally recording depositions and other out-of-court legal proceedings, including EUOs, statements on the record, and aids of execution. The knowledge examination includes questions covering:
- depositions and other non-court proceedings,
- reporting protocols and digital reporting software and equipment,
- general legal procedures,
- ethical and professional behavior, and
- vocabulary
The exam consists of 154 questions. You will need a score of 80 percent or higher to pass. You will have 120 minutes to complete the exam.
FAQs and Tips
Tips for Success?
To help you have a positive testing experience, we recommend the following:
- Read and follow all of the provided exam instructions. This is critically important to a successful exam process!
- Test equipment through ProctorU website before proctored exam.
- Do the unproctored and proctored practice. You don’t want to discover equipment issues on exam day!
- Give yourself plenty of time before and after your exam session so you are not rushed.
- Study Materials:
- AAERT Best Practices Guide
- AAERT-approved Training Programs
- Exam Resources page. You can find many federal formatting examples, templates, as well as a practice sample transcript with answer key.
- CET Practical Transcript: You must use federal formatting and your transcript must include a title page, index page, and certificate.
- Review the exam blueprint linked above on this page.
Am I eligible to take the exam?
- Testers do not need to be a member of AAERT in order to sit for an AAERT exam. If they pass the exam(s), they must become a Professional Member within 30 days in order to receive their certification.
- In order to sit for the exam(s), testers must:
- be eligible for a notary public commission AND
- have obtained a high school diploma or its equivalent
- For a greater likelihood of passing the exam, the following is recommended (not required) for testers:
- have one year of experience as a reporter or transcriber; OR
- have completed a course of study in court reporting.
- Testers are not required to be a US citizen.
What is an Online Proctored Exam?
- An online proctored exam is an exam that can be taken from your home or office. There will be a person, a proctor, who verifies your identity and secures your testing environment. The proctor will be able to see you and your screen.
What are the fees for the examination?
Information on Fees and Deadlines can be found on our Fees and Deadlines page.
Can I appeal my score if I do not receive a passing score?
AAERT shall provide candidates with an opportunity to provide feedback on its examination content and procedures regarding:
· The technical accuracy of the examination.
· Fairness in the administration of the examination.
A candidate who has a concern about administrative procedures at a testing site or who has observed a breach of security or other improper conduct during a test should submit a report in writing to the AAERT Certification Director within 5 calendar days after taking the examination. Candidates may also report such concerns by completing the electronic comment form which is available at the end of the examination.
A candidate who has a question or a concern about the reliability, validity, and/or fairness of the test may submit the question or concern in writing to the AAERT Certifications Director no later than 5 calendar days after taking the examination. Candidates may also report such concerns by entering comments in the space provided after each item on the test, or by completing the electronic comment form which is available at the end of the examination.
AAERT will not consider reports about improper test administration procedures or test content which are not submitted within the 5-day deadline.
Will AAERT share my test results or certification status with anyone other than me?
By default, your test results will only be shared with you. However, if you include anyone else in the email thread or phone call, we will take this as your permission to share your information with that person as well.
By registering for any AAERT exam, you grant AAERT permission, if you become certified, to verify your certification status to outside parties including potential employers, court administrators, and others. This service is provided as a courtesy in the case you as a certification-holder are unable to provide your certificate to a third party or the third party would like to verify that the certification remains active.
It is your responsibility to earn CEUs, maintain active membership, and perform all duties to keep your certification active. It is also your responsibility to inform AAERT of any changes to your personal information that might affect certification verification, including name changes, or changes to any other information that employers, courts, or others might use to verify your certification with AAERT. AAERT assumes no responsibility for the professional consequences of any certification validation.
What are the recertification rules and process?
Click here for the recertification rules and process.