Career Overview: Medical Administrative Assistant

What is a medical administrative assistant?
A medical administrative assistant is a person who handles the clerical duties in a doctor's office. The list of tasks they perform each day are widespread and may change according to the type of doctor they work for. Medical administrative assistants do patient intake, schedule appointments, basic office paperwork, organize files and may even expand into billing and coding with the right training and certification
Students at Bryant & Stratton attend a type of billing bootcamp at the end of their degree program to prepare for the medical and billing specialist exam. The best part is, the entire expense is covered by the university. If students pass, they will be certified as medical and billing specialists and will be able to earn more money on their first job with that certification and their associate’s degree.
Medical administrative assistant pay per hour
The wage per hour that administrative medical assistants can expect is very good. Here are the basic facts for medical administrative assistants, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (for 2015, the last available data)
Median Pay: $ 30,590 per year, $ 14.71 an hour
Number of jobs, nationwide: 591,300
Rate of job growth: 23 percent a year
Studies and Career Path
What you will study: As a medical administrative assistant, you will focus on learning HIPPA laws and practices, communication skills and medical terminology.
Growth Opportunities: Once employees demonstrate they have the skill set to take care of an office, many assistants are moved into office manager positions. Having the additional credentials in billing means assistants could be moved into a management position in the billing office as well.
Professional Resources: To learn more about careers as a medical administrative assistant, check out these professional associations related to the field. Each of these organizations can help you find information, connect with mentors and research job opportunities.
To learn more about getting a medical administrative assistant degree, contact the Admissions office at Bryant & Stratton College.