How to Become a Certified Medical Assistant

Why become a certified medical assistant? It’s good career sense—that’s why. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, certified medical assistants will have better employment opportunities in the future than that of their non-certified counterparts. Your certification tells employers that you meet all of the professional requirements for medical assisting and that they can hire you with complete confidence.

Getting Started

Your first step to becoming certified—going to school—will take anywhere from 9 months to 2 years.

But not just “any school” will suffice. You must attend a school specifically for medical assistant training and that school must be accredited and it must be one that requires you to complete an externship program.

Accredited Schools

For a school to become accredited, it must prove that it has met certain criteria. These criteria include the exact composition of its curriculum, the qualifications of its teachers or professors, and the quality of its subjects.

Although there are many accrediting organizations, there are only two that the American Association of Medical Assistants Recognizes—the Commission on Accreditation of Allied Health Education Programs (CAAHEP) or the Accreditation Bureau of Health Education Schools (ABHES).

Before you register in a medical assistant training program, make sure that the school is accredited by at least one of these organizations.

Why is Becoming Certified so Important?

Receiving certification (CMA) from the American Association of Medical Assistants (AAMA) is an important step in your medical assisting career. Having a CMA tells the medical profession—some of whom will be your future employers—that you have the requisite training, knowledge, and skills that you need to become a medical assistant.

Preparing for the Exam

The AAMA administers the Certification/Recertification Examination for Medical Assistants. As of April of 2009, you can take this test throughout the year.

But before you take this examination, you must study, study, study.

The certification exam covers a wide variety of subjects that include lab procedures, medical terminology, anatomy, and physiology, and the best way to pass it is with an intensive course of study.

To prepare for the Certification/Recertification Examination, the AAMA recommends that you:

• Obtain and review medical assisting journals
• Study content outlines
• Take an exam review course
• Take practice exams

You may contact the AAMA for information about these, and other, resources that will help you to pass the certification exam.

Registering for the Exam

To take the exam, you must fill out an application and provide the requested documentation. You must also attach include a payment of $125 or a payment of $250 (as of 2009) with your application.

Completing or recent graduates of a CAAHEP or an ABHES accredited medical assisting program will pay the lesser amount. If you are a non-recent graduate, however, you will have to pay the $250. Both of these fees are nonrefundable, so be sure that you are prepared to take the certification exam before you submit your application.

After you submit your application, the AAMA will inform you of your status within 45-days of the application deadline.

Scheduling the Exam

After your application has been approved, the AAMA will send you a scheduling permit with instructions on how to schedule your appointment with your local Prometric test center.