For several decades, researchers and university students have leveraged digital recordings (both audio and video) to log their academic content. This has proven to be beneficial to them, as it enables them to focus on the core task at hand!
While a lot of academics have benefitted from digital recordings, it still has a red flag – digital recordings take painstaking amounts of time to be reviewed.
When a listener is trying to analyse the material, they ‘have’ to listen to the recordings intently to get hold of the tiniest details all while taking furious notes and constantly rewinding to double check the captured statements. This means, a task that needs just around one hour could take nearly four hours to complete.
In doing so, you’re simply wasting your time unless, you know, you’re a transcriptionist by profession.
So, what could researchers and students possibly do to make sure they’re making the most of their time?
The best way out here is to tap into experienced transcription services. Not only is it an excellent option for people who’re tight on budget, but academic transcription also promises accuracy – thanks to the constant advancements in technology.
Contents
Academic Transcription – Why Do You Need It?
You have the raw data with you (the audio recording of the academic content), so why go the extra mile (or expense) and get it transcribed by professional transcription companies?
Whilst you could easily go back to the audio file to pick up on the nuances of expression and later create a border picture, parsing and mining the data you require can be extremely difficult. A professional transcriber, on the other hand, will have the required tools to get the audio file converted into a text document.
What Kind of Transcription Should You Choose?
When it comes to professional transcription services, there are various options to choose from.
The one that’s best for you highly depends on your requirements and how the digital recordings will ultimately help your research. However, here are a few options for you.
Full Verbatim
This form of transcript captures every single detail.
Not only does it jot down the main body of the recordings but also the various grunts, “aahs”, pauses, “y’knows”, “umms” and other tics that are included in the speech.
While this could be seen as an unnecessary distraction, it could also be considered as important in terms of qualitative context – ultimately, it really depends on what your requirements are. In fact, you could also get notes on those speeches for an added cost.
Verbatim
Also termed as clean verbatim, intelligent verbatim and word for word verbatim, this form of transcription is more like the ‘full verbatim’ but without those pauses and grunts.
Every speech tic is completely eliminated and you only get what’s said. This is what makes verbatim the most easiest and best option for researchers. This could, however, include deads ends and off topic conversations.
Detailed Notes
At times, it isn’t necessary to note down everything that’s said in the recordings. This is because, sometimes it’s best to distill the recording content in a couple of pages for easy and quick interrogation and reference.
What’s more, with all the extraneous data removed, a detailed note allows you to get to the point as easily and quickly as possible.
Academic Transcription – Top Three Benefits
Here are the top three benefits of leveraging professional academic transcription services for your research.
1. Get Every Single Detail In One Go
“Wait, what exactly did that person say?” “Who said that?”
“Let me rewind a bit and listen to the recording once again!”
Rewatching the video or re-listening to the audio clip by rewinding it multiple times is one of the biggest challenges of simply relying on digital recordings for your research.
Although you might listen to the clip multiple times, you’re sure to miss out on something or the other every time you rewind – this will be highly ineffective!
By leveraging a transcription service, however, you can get rid of the need to rewind and replay the recording. The transcribed document will highlight who’s saying what in the exact same manner. Additionally, with this service, instead of tracking back to get hold of every detail, you can focus on the core task.
2. Instantly Make Your Content Actionable
If you’re working with quantitative information, you can instantly take the required action once you have the necessary research. This is because you have all the trends identified and numbers clearly highlighted.
Having said that, this isn’t the case when it comes to qualitative data particularly when it’s recorded through digital tools. A significant amount of work needs to be carried out by you before you could sit and evaluate all the qualitative research.
This is the benefit you could reap through transcription services. Not only do you get access to top quality text but it also helps you arrive at quick conclusions and breakthroughs.
Transcriptions can clearly outline the data, making it easier for your spot anomalies and identify patterns.
3. Convert Your Content Into Something That’s Searchable
One of the biggest components of the academic research, the review process is extremely crucial because it makes sure that all the data that’s presented is to the point.
This can be extremely difficult to carry out, especially when you’re working only with video and audio recordings. The files won’t be searchable, meaning using the phrase or keyword used by speakers won’t get you to the data or the respective file.
This is where transcription comes in handy!
One research work is likely to comprise loads of video or audio files and sifting through each one of them to double check your facts can be tricky. Through transcriptions, you can absolutely turn the tables. Transcribers can enable you to look for and pull up content that you need in a quick and efficient manner.
To Conclude
Conducting academic research needs you to put in a huge amount of time, energy and effort. Leveraging a professional transcription service, however, can save you a lot of time while also reducing the tedious work you need to undergo!
