Medical Assistants: Salary, Job Description, How To Become One, and Quiz

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Medical Assistants

Medical Assistants perform administrative and certain clinical duties under the direction of a physician. Administrative duties may include scheduling appointments, maintaining medical records, billing, and coding information for insurance purposes. Clinical duties may include taking and recording vital signs and medical histories, preparing patients for examination, drawing blood, and administering medications as directed by physician.

Salary
$36930
Becoming One
Medium
Education
Post-secondary certificate
Job Satisfaction
Job Growth

Personality



Job description

Medical Assistants perform administrative and certain clinical duties under the direction of a physician. Administrative duties may include scheduling appointments, maintaining medical records, billing, and coding information for insurance purposes. Clinical duties may include taking and recording vital signs and medical histories, preparing patients for examination, drawing blood, and administering medications as directed by physician.

  • Record patients’ medical history, vital statistics, or information such as test results in medical records.
  • Prepare treatment rooms for patient examinations, keeping the rooms neat and clean.
  • Interview patients to obtain medical information and measure their vital signs, weight, and height.
  • Show patients to examination rooms and prepare them for the physician.
Read more about what does a Medical Assistant really do at work and what is it like being and working as one.



Salary

Average salary
$34540 per year

Average hourly wage
$17 per hour


Medical Assistants with little to no experience tend to make between $24790 and $28400 while the more experienced ones can earn over $39190 per year.

Top 5 paying states Hourly Annual
AK $22 $45,490
DC $20 $42,010
WA $20 $41,340
MN $19 $40,320
MA $19 $40,270

One of the easiest ways to increase your salary as a Medical Assistant is to move to a higher paying state like AK. Right now, the highest paying states for Medical Assistants are AK, DC, WA, MN and MA.

However, a higher pay at AK doesn’t guarantee that you will make more because the living expenses at AK might be twice as high than where you are currently at now.

Three other factors that can increase your salary as a Medical Assistant is the degree you hold, the industry you work in, and lastly the company you work for.


Requirements

Recommended degree level
Post-secondary certificate

We asked other Medical Assistants what degree they had when they got the job and most of them said they had a Post-Secondary Certificate followed by an Associate’s Degree.

Other than that, we also asked them what did they major in and here are the most popular majors that came up.

Medical Office Assistant/Specialist
Medical Reception/Receptionist
Medical Insurance Coding Specialist/Coder
Medical Administrative/Executive Assistant and Medical Secretary
Medical/Clinical Assistant
Read more about how to become a Medical Assistant and the degree, training and education you need.

Pros and Cons

Here are some of the pros and cons of being a Medical Assistant.

PROS
Suitable for people who likes to help and teach others
Suitable for people who values relationships between co-workers and customers and wants to work in a friendly non-competitive environment
This career is perfect for people who love to work indoors.
It is not too difficult to get into this career. Previous work-related skill, knowledge, or experience is required for this career.
Normal working hours (40 hours per week)
CONS
Not suitable for people who likes to work with designs
One of the lowest paying jobs

What is the job like

Job satisfaction
71%

Is this job meaningful
76%


71% of Medical Assistants said they were satisfied with their job and 76% said they feel like their job is making other people’s lives better.


Is this right for me

Best personality for this career
The Helpers and The Organizers

You can read more about these career personality types here.

People who are suitable for this job tends to like working with, communicating with, and teaching people. They like helping or providing service to others..

They also like following set procedures and routines. They like working with data and details more than with ideas.



Learn more about Medical Assistants

Summary (You are here)
Job Description
Salary
Requirements
Quiz

Related career information

Medical Assistants job description, Medical Assistants salary, Medical Assistants information, what is the job of a Medical Assistant like, pros and cons about Medical Assistants, colleges and universities for Medical Assistants, is Medical Assistants the right career for me, careers in Healthcare and Medical

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