With starting salaries of around $27,000 pr year and a huge demand, working as a medical assistant is a great career choice. If you chose to start working in a private practice it can also be a very pleasant work environment and working with patients can be a very rewarding experience. Its not uncommon to find assistants who have been with employers for 30 or 40 years which is a testament to the fact that its both a stable job and a very rewarding one.Although the starting salaries are quite modest it really depends on your level of experience and on your qualifications. The quickest and easiest way to start working is to simply apply for an opening. Many private practices still take in apprentices and you can gain experience and learn on the job. This used to be the norm, but it is slowly dying out because medical professionals are looking for people with a basic working knowledge of medicine and running a medical practice.For this reason its well worth looking into online programs. Most of the big online universities like Kaplan have courses for medical assistants and it varies from 1 to 2 years of study with a practical component. Online qualifications offer great flexibility and are usually much cheaper than attending a school.University or college qualifications tend to carry more weight though - especially those that are accredited by The American Association of Medical Assistants. Another great benefit is that these schools work with practices and usually help with job placements which is a huge advantage as it will give you a head start over everyone else.See my blog to learn more about medical assistant careers.