CART captioner and broadcast captioner — 3 out of 5 stars

• What it is: Providing live captions for deaf and hard-of-hearing people: in classrooms, courtrooms, meetings, and broadcasts. CART (Communication Access Realtime Translation) providers work remotely much of the time, captioning by machine or voice writing.
• Certificate or training: Trained through court reporting or captioning programs, with certification available as a Certified Realtime Captioner. Built on the same stenography or voice-writing skills as court reporting.
• Cost to get qualified: $3,000–$15,000 depending on whether you train from zero or convert from court reporting
• Time to job-ready: 1–3 years; faster for trained reporters adding captioning
• Typical pay: $45,000–$90,000 a year equivalent; much captioning is freelance at strong hourly rates
• Why it works for a blind person: Captioning is listening and producing text at speed — the machine work is tactile, the delivery is a text stream, and remote CART sessions run over ordinary video calls.

Job 14 of 100 · Phones, dispatch, and public service

Start here, step by step

1. Learn the words first: CART is one-to-one or small-group live captioning, usually booked for a specific deaf client or class. Broadcast captioning covers television and large events. Both pay for accuracy at speed.
2. Build the base skill first — stenography or voice writing — through a captioning or court reporting program, checking platform accessibility before enrolling.
3. Specialize your dictionary: captioners build custom word lists for each setting (a chemistry course, a city council) so names and terms come out right the first time.
4. Start with an agency: captioning companies supply the clients and the platform while you build speed, accuracy references, and a reputation.
5. Take direct clients as you grow — universities, government meetings, and conferences book regular captioners term after term, which steadies freelance income.
6. Add broadcast work for the highest rates once your accuracy is proven under pressure.

How AI can help

Use AI to prepare term lists from course materials and meeting agendas, and to draft session summaries. AI captioning exists, but clients book certified humans where accuracy is a legal accommodation — that requirement is your job security.

Rating: 3 out of 5 stars

Meaningful, well-paid work riding on the same long skill build as court reporting. Rated three for the same honest reason: the runway to working speed is measured in years, though captioners who finish training rarely lack work.

Pros and cons — the honest version

Pros

• Remote-friendly and in steady demand
• Your work is a legal accommodation — required, not optional, for buyers
• Freelance rates are strong

Cons

• Years of speed-building before full rates
• Errors are public and live — accuracy pressure is constant
• Freelance income needs several regular clients to steady out