Medical Assistant – Career and Education Profile

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Medical assistants work doing general nursing tasks, giving you a way to get started in this field even if you have little to no formal education.

Job Responsibilities

Working as a medical assistant doesn’t require much more than some on-the-job-training, so the tasks you’ll perform in this field are not as advanced as the tasks you’d perform as an RN or LPN. Some of the tasks you will be qualified to do include recording a patient’s medical history, checking height and weight, taking blood pressure, and assisting patients with changing into medical gowns. Some medical assistants deal purely with administrative tasks like filing paperwork, getting patients to sign release forms, calling patients to remind them about appointments, driving patients to appointments, showing patients to their examination rooms, and answering phone calls. Your specific tasks will depend on your employer.

Salary and Career Options

Since you have less education than nurses, you can expect to earn a lower salary. According to reports, medical assistants earn an average of $29,450 in the United States, but this is an extremely fast-growing field, with more and more workers needed every year. Working as a medical assistant allows you to get a taste for this industry, and with your training, you can go on to earn certification as an LPN or even get an associate’s degree or bachelor’s degree to become an RN.

Educational Requirements

Medical assistants legally only need a high school diploma or GED to work in the United States, but many employers require at least a short training program for your to work in a medical assistant position. Many colleges offer diploma or degree programs in medical assisting, and some employer have their own training programs for those who want to work in this field. Your classes will cover general nursing skills and anatomy classes so you’re prepare to provide basic patient care.

LPN to RN College Programs

While several schools have online nursing degrees available, few offer LPN to RN programs. What's the good news? We have listed some accredited schools below that do offer the program in addition to schools with other bridge programs available. Find out more information and contact each school by using any of the links below.

Indiana State University—Indiana State University offers a robust online program designed for LPNs wanting to become registered nurses and earn their BSN degree. Since ISU's credits transfer to over 80 campus majors, this is an ideal program for people wanting to open opportunities for their career down the road.

The College Network—The College Network is a partnership with several universities and organizations like the National League for Nursing that focuses on online education and programs, with several courses for nurses or those interested in a nursing career. Specifically, TCN helps students prepare for their PN and RN licensures and move on to earn graduate degrees.

Other Nursing Degrees

Walden University—Walden University is typically a graduate school with several masters and doctoral programs available, but they do have BSN and RN to MSN bridge programs available. Walden is based out of Minneapolis and offers several options in transferring your previously earned credits to and from (or even within) the school.

Kaplan University—Kaplan University is one of the nation's largest and leading online educators and offers several bridge programs for registered nurses to earn their BSN or MSN degree. If you have previously earned credits, Kaplan makes it easy for you to transfer to any one of their undergraduate or graduate programs.

Herzing University—While Herzing University does not offer an undergraduate nursing degree, it is a great choice for working nurses wanting to pursue leadership positions in Nurse Education or Management. With over 10 campuses and 45 online programs available, Herzing has a massive network that makes it easy to transfer to or from the school.

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