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Concerns to Ask Medical Assistant Programs
Before you can start evaluating your medical assistant school options, you must determine which type of credential you would like to attain, and if you want to attend classes on-campus or online from home. As soon as those selections have been made, you can start the process of evaluating medical assistant schools. As we discussed at the opening of this article, some students restrict their searches to the schools that are closest to Carrboro NC with the lowest tuition. Although cost and location are important qualifications, they are not the only ones. There are several additional issues that you must look at when evaluating programs. To help you with that task, below are a few questions that you should ask about each of the schools you are thinking about before making your final choice.
Is the Medical Assistant School Accredited? There are several good reasons to ensure that the school you enroll in is accredited. To start with, accreditation helps ensure that the instruction you receive will be both comprehensive and of the highest quality. Second, if you intend to become certified, you must enroll in an accredited program. Two of the approved agencies for accreditation are the Commission on Accreditation of Allied Health Education Programs (CAAHEP) and the Accrediting Bureau of Health Education Schools (ABHES). If your school is not accredited by one of these agencies, you will not be qualified to take the CMA examination. Additionally, if you anticipate obtaining a student loan or financial aid, they are normally not offered for non-accredited programs. And last, as mentioned previously, a number of prospective Carrboro NC employers will not employ a medical assistant who has not graduated from an accredited school.
What is the School's Passage Rate? The majority of accredited medical assistant colleges develop their programs to ready students to pass one or more certification examinations. To start with, you must learn which of the certifications the colleges you are reviewing are preparing their students for. If you are planning on taking the CMA for instance, then naturally you will need to enroll in a program focused on that certification. Next, learn what the school's passage rate is for the certification and compare it to the national average. Doing this is one of the methods to help evaluate the quality of a college's program. Obviously schools with lower rates are those that you will prefer to eliminate.
Which Programs are Provided? As we previously covered, there are essentially two routes to getting medical assistant training. You can select a certificate or diploma program and receive entry level training in the fastest amount of time, starting at just 6 months, however the average is closer to 1 year. Or you can opt to obtain an Associate Degree and receive a broader education that will require approximately two years to finish in a community college or trade school. Whatever program you elect to enroll in, make certain that the colleges you are looking at offer the type of program you are interested in.
Are Internships Available? A large number of medical assistant programs offer internship programs with Carrboro NC area medical care providers. They are a great method to get hands-on practical experience and training. They can also assist students build relationships within the Carrboro medical community. And as an added benefit, they are an asset on resumes and for job interviews too.
Is Job Placement Service Furnished? Finding that first job can be a daunting undertaking for graduating medical assistant students unless they have some help from a job placement program. Confirm that the schools you are researching provide job placement assistance in the Carrboro NC area and find out what their placement rate is. If a school has a high job placement rate for its graduates, it indicates that it has a good reputation within the healthcare community. It also suggests that it has a broad network of employers to help place students in positions.
How Big are the Classrooms? Class size can be an indicator of how much individual instruction you will get during your training. Small classes and classes with a higher teacher to student ratio are more likely to furnish greater access to instructors and one-on-one interaction. If convenient, try to attend a few classes before selecting a school to observe what the teaching atmosphere is like and how much attention the students receive.
Is Class Scheduling Practical? If you plan on attending a medical assistant school while you continue working full time, it's important that the college you enroll in offers classes that fit your schedule. If you have to go to classes at night or on weekends near Carrboro NC, verify that those times are available. You may be able to fit your classes in more conveniently with an online school, but you will still have to schedule any clinical training or internships that might be required. Also, find out what the policy is for making up classes that you may have to miss due to work, illness or family emergencies.