You don’t have to have medical assistant certification to be a medical assistant. If you already have a job and you are pretty sure you are going to keep it you may not want to bother with medical assistant certification.That would be the case if you are working for your parents or your best friend who grew up and became a doctor.
Medical Assistant Certification Improves Opportunities
However if you are just starting out and you are going to be looking for a job as a medical assistant your chances will improve if you are certified. Certification shows that you have some training and some education and that you know how to do the tasks you will be expected to do.
Furthermore even though medical assistants are not required by law to be licensed or certified some states require medical assistant certification certification for specific tasks such as taking x-rays or drawing blood. If your medical assistant certification covers those procedures you will have significantly more services you can offer.
There are basically two routes to medical assistant certification. You can get either a certificate/diploma or an associate’s degree. Before you enter a training program be sure you study the course description carefully and ask plenty of questions. You want to make sure your course of study is taking you where you want to go.
Medical Assistant Certification Time
Certificate/diploma medical assistant programs are shorter and don’t cost as much as the associate’s program. The course content focuses specifically on the what you need to know and be able to do in order to be a certified medical assistant. This means you will not be taking general education requirements, just what you need for the job. This type of program takes between nine months and a year to complete.
Collegiate Medical Assistant Certification
The second option is the associate’s medical assistant degree programs. An associate degree is offered through a community college or career college. It’s a real college degree program.
That means that you will be required to take and pass some liberal arts classes outside of your major. The associate’s degree is a two year college degree and takes about two years of full time study to complete. It can be done in less by taking extra units.
It can also be spread out over several years if you aren’t able to attend college full time. This is a good program if you suspect you might want to go on and complete a four year college degree some time. Some of your credits may apply toward your bachelor’s degree. Having a college degree may help you attract a higher salary than medical assistant certification would.
