subject: How To Prepare For Medical Assistant Certification [print this page] By just passing a medical assistant certification exam, you can place yourself on the path to higher pay and improved career prospects in the medical assisting profession. Many certification programs last for a year or so and may be taken online while the pupil continues to be employed. Not just that, but most online medical assistant programs are quite inexpensive, costing about 50 % of the amount a student would expect to pay for a two-year associate degree program.
Is a Medical Assistant Certificate Necessary to Work?
While it's true that certification has not been traditionally required to become a medical assistant, many of today's hiring managers are demanding that job seekers hold a certification. On top of offering proof of experience necessary to do your position, gaining your certificate also shows possible employers that you're committed and serious about succeeding in the medical assisting profession. Registered Medical Assistants (RMAs) and Certified Medical Assistants (CMAs) furthermore commonly earn salaries that place them at the top of their industry, so there are an abundance of amazing benefits to becoming certified.
Are There Prerequisites to Take the Medical Assistant Certification Exam?
The major licensing bodies that oversee medical assistant certification include the National Healthcareer Association (NHA), AMT, and The AAMA, AMT, and NHA are bodies that regulate the licensing for medical assistant certification courses. Specific programs are typically licensed by one of these previously mentioned bodies however, besides the title given to graduated pupils (the ones from AAMA-certified programs get the title of CMA, whereas all the other programs grant Registered Medical Assistant certifications), there exists almost no distinction between them.
With regards to exact requirements to sit for a medical assistant certification examination, the vast majority of programs ask for candidates to own five years of relevant work experience, or be a graduate of a certified medical assistant course. It's not a requirement of any one of the three previously mentioned licensors that a pupil own an associate degree before becoming allowed to sit for the examination.
What's on the Examination?
The subject matter covered on certification examinations tests pupils on their understanding of both administrative and clinical theory, procedures, and terminology. General math, reading and writing questions are included as well along with the expected questions about anatomy, physiology, and pharmacology. The standard skills content on the test should project your all around effectiveness as a medical assistant, since daily accountabilities demand their use.
The commercial testing facilities that offer them administer the timed, multiple-choice exams at personal computer work stations. When taking their test, students are restricted from using notes, reference sources, or any cellular phones. Basically, you will have to be relaxed, focused and absolutely clear on the material in order to register a passing score in the given time period.
Ways to Get Ready for the Medical Assistant Certification Exam
While preparing to sit for the test, you will get a few sample tests online, or you'll be able to go to any nearby test center and grab a study guidebook. To better mimic the testing situation, you should study in 40-minute increments by trying to answer groups of 50 problems to the best of your ability. The majority of people who study in this manner consider the testing environment and pace at which the test is administered to be quite easy to adjust to, and usually score well as a consequence.
