How important is typing speed

[shaz]

 I was concerned so I got one of those Meavis Beacon programs.After some practice I am upto 25 wpm. Is there some minimum that I am going to have to work upto. I am worried about exams. I think I read somewhere that an exam could be like 4-8 hours and an answer could be like 10-20 pages. I remember typing a philosophy paper once and it took me a couple of days for 10 pages. My hands were hurting worse than third grade piano lessons.

[jgruber]

I think time spent improving your typing speed before school starts is probably well spent.  If you can't touch type (types without looking at the keys), you should try to get there before school starts.

[thinknpositive]

 I was concerned so I got one of those Meavis Beacon programs.After some practice I am upto 25 wpm. Is there some minimum that I am going to have to work upto. I am worried about exams. I think I read somewhere that an exam could be like 4-8 hours and an answer could be like 10-20 pages. I remember typing a philosophy paper once and it took me a couple of days for 10 pages. My hands were hurting worse than third grade piano lessons.

25 WPM?? That is real bad.  My golden retriever can type at 30 wpm with 82% accuracy.  The average person speaks at an average speed of 125-150 words per minute.  You are going to have a lot of trouble taking notes and taking tests.  You should try typing with more than just your two index fingers.

In all seriousness, you need to work on that.

[shaz]

I am working on it. What is a good speed? What should my goal be?

[IvyWoman]

I type about 70wpm and I don't have a hard time keeping up. I would aim for 40wpm at a minimum but shoot for 60wpm.

[NeverForever]

20 pages in 8 hours? Eeeek.

[shaz]

What is the best software?

[jgruber]

What is the best software?

    I don't have a clue.  I learned to type 31 years ago, when we thought we were riding high if we got an IBM Selectric

[Regal_Muse]

I type around 90wpm. I highy recommend that you take a typing class before enrolling in law school. In the summer of 8th grade, my parents enrolled me in a typing class because they got tired of hearing me whine while I stayed up all hours of the night typing up book reports. Trust me, its a very useful skill to have. Good luck!

[swifty]

I think time spent improving your typing speed before school starts is probably well spent.  If you can't touch type (types without looking at the keys), you should try to get there before school starts.

I don't think so.  Typing certificates are based off a page you need to duplicate.  That's what slows you down if you can't touch type.

I average about 50-60 WPM when I am just responding to a question like this, or answering an email, etc.  My Certificate says I type 30 WPM.  I'm not too worried.