According to the U.S. Department of Labor Statistics, medical assisting is one of the fastest growing careers right now. Three are a couple of reasons for this. Technological advances in medical treatments, combined with the aging of the baby boom generation, have led to an explosion of new medical centers, clinics, and other health care facilities. These new medical facilities need new medical assistants—and fast. This is why many people are enrolling in medical assistant certificate programs.

Benefits of Medical Assistant Certificate Programs

You don’t have to think hard to discover the benefits of obtaining a certificate in medical assisting. The major benefit of such programs is their speed of completion.

You can complete a medical assistant certificate program in nine months to one year. Their training is so fast because they offer focused, practical training in medical assisting. Unlike associate’s degrees in medical assisting (or bachelor’s degrees in other professions) there are no liberal arts requirements to fulfill. Medical assistant certificate programs are designed to prepare you for the exact qualifications of the job as quickly as possible.

But there is another benefit to obtaining a medical assistant certificate—employability.

Although some employers prefer to train their own medical assistants, this practice is becoming very rare. Most employers today are looking for well-trained personnel—the kind that medical assistant certificate programs produce. The U.S. Department of Labor Statistics predicts that those medical assistants—particularly certified medical assistants—will have the best job prospects in the future. To become certified, you must have earned a diploma, a certificate, or an associate’s degree from an accredited medical assistant school.

Another benefit to medical assistant certificate programs is their cost. Because you can complete these programs in a year or less, the cost is roughly half of that of an associate’s degree program.

Now For the Negative…

Although there are a lot of benefits to medical assistant certificate programs, there is a negative aspect that you should consider.

Certain employers may require that their medical assistants have associate’s degrees. You may complete your certificate in medical assisting program only to find yourself passed over for someone who has an associate’s degree. You need to decide whether or not you want to take that chance or whether it would be better for you to get an associate’s degree instead. But don’t think that having a diploma in medical assisting is not important. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor statistics, the most employable medical assistants are those who have some kind of formal training in medical assisting. Having a diploma degree from an accredited school tells employers that you are well trained and ready to tackle the challenges inherent in the medical profession.

What Do You Need to Apply?

A good knowledge of biology, math, and anatomy—via high school coursework—is advisable. This will form a good foundation for the in-depth training that you will receive in a certificate program.

Since medical assistants also perform administrative functions, any high school coursework in office procedures, bookkeeping, and computers will be helpful.

Post Graduation

An essential step after graduating from a medical assistant certificate program is to becoming certified. Although not a requirement for this occupation, an increasing number of employers are requiring that there medical assistants be certified.

To become a certified medical assistant, you must have graduated from an accredited medical assisting school. Before enrolling in a medical assisting program, make sure that the school is accredited by either the Commission on Accreditation of Allied Health Education Programs (CAAHEP) or the Accreditation Bureau of Health Education Schools (ABHES)

Besides the ability to be certified, attending an accredited school assures you that your medical assistant training meets a certain standard of academic excellence.

Once you graduate from an accredited medical assistant school, you may apply to take the CMS (AAMA) Certification/RecertificationEexamination. If you pass this exam, you become a certified medical assistant and your job security and employment options are much improved.