Clinical Assistant Colleges

Clinical Assistants are responsible for administrative tasks in clinics, doctor’s offices, nursing care facilities and hospitals. Some positions also require minor medical tasks such as changing dressings and drawing blood. As both the first and last person a patient sees, clinical assistants have to be good communicators and have plenty of patience. To excel in this career you’ll need to be organized and discreet since you’ll be keeping patient records and handling insurance and billing.

Clinical Assistant majors must complete either a 1-year certificate program or a 2-year career training associates degree. Schools offering these programs include technical schools, community colleges, online schools, 4-year colleges and universities. As a Clinical Assistant major you’ll take courses in medical terminology, medical law and ethics, anatomy, insurance processing and laboratory techniques. Often, you’ll also complete an internship to gain invaluable hands-on experience.

Other majors that require similar coursework include Medical/Clinical Assistant and Medical/Health Management and Clinical Assistant/Specialist.

Find Schools Offering Clinical Assistant Degree Programs

Choosing a Clinical Assistant School

Technical schools, community colleges, 4-year colleges and universities across the country offer degree programs for clinical assistant majors. You can choose to go to school at a 1-year certificate program or you can pursue a 2-year associates degree. When choosing a college, university or school be sure to find out what specialties they offer within the clinical assistant major. You may wish to focus on medical billing or ophthalmology for example. Internships are also important—ask about the duration and location of clinical rotations at prospective schools.

Find Clinical Assistant Schools

Clinical Assistant Degree Programs

Clinical Assistant majors have two options. Some choose to complete school in 1 year through a certificate program at a technical school or community college. Others enroll in a 2-year program to earn an associates degree from a college, university, community college or technical school.

Programs for both degrees will include clerical- and science-based courses including recordkeeping, accounting, insurance processing, anatomy, medical terminology, first aid and pharmaceutical principles. Most programs also include an internship to provide real world experience in a clinic or other type of health care facility.

In general, more advanced degrees and hands-on experience lead to better job prospects and higher earning potential. If you choose to specialize in a specific area within the clinical assistant major, you can qualify for more job opportunities—though the top paying jobs often exist in hospitals and outpatient care facilities rather than private specialist’s offices.

Online Clinical Assistant Degree Programs at Online Schools

Some clinical assistant majors choose to earn their degree through an online school. While an online degree may not include a hands-on internship, you can study courses such as anatomy, medical terminology, medical billing and insurance processing. Through an online school, you can get either a 1-year certificate or a 2-year associates degree.

Online Clinical Assistant Schools:

High School Preparation

To prepare yourself for a Clinical Assistant program in high school, hit the books hard in science, math and computer classes. College admissions officers also place importance on communication skills so speech classes or roles in school plays are a plus. Any work, either volunteer or paid, in health care settings such as nursing care facilities or clinics will give you an edge. You can also benefit from studying a foreign language that you could use with non-English speaking patients on the job later.

Find Schools Offering Clinical Assistant Degree Programs

Popular Careers in the Field of Clinical Assistant

If you earn a Clinical Assistant degree, you can expect excellent job prospects. Experts predict it will be one of the ten fastest growing careers in the next decade. About 60 percent of clinical assistant majors end up working in physician’s offices, but the highest paying positions are often found in general medical and surgical hospitals. Other opportunities exist in outpatient care centers and offices of specialists such as podiatrists, optometrists or chiropractors. Typically, if you pursue a clinical assistant career, you’ll earn between $22,000 and $31,000 annually.

A clinical assistant career often focuses on keeping a well-run physician’s office including medical billing and patient history forms. But some states allow clinical assistants to perform more medical tasks such as taking blood or changing dressings. Many employers prefer certified clinical assistants and you can open even more doors by becoming certified in a specific specialty such as podiatry or ophthalmology.

If you wish to advance a clinical assistant career you can work toward medical administration or office manager positions. You may also enjoy related careers as a Medical Assistant, Physical Therapy Aides, Software Engineers, Network Systems Analysts or Fitness Trainers.

Find Schools Offering Clinical Assistant Degree Programs

Collapse