MEDICAL ASSISTING (A.S.)
School of Health Sciences and School of Business and Technology

Flexible Learning Format with convenient, accessible scheduling through online or classroom adult-oriented learning environments. Regional Accreditation — The Higher Learning Commission and a member of the North Central Association. Affordable Tuition — Full-time financial aid availability and reasonable costs. Faculty — Academic credentials and real-world experience. Cohort Program - complete the program major with the same group of peers from start to finish.

Why choose Medical Assisting?
People who want to help and care for others, but are not drawn to being physicians or nurses, are good candidates to enter the field of Medical Assisting (MA). People who have a business background or an interest in management enter MA because they can build on their skills, possibly leading to a clinic management position.

Candidates for our program must:

• Be organized
• Like detail
• Be flexible
• Have good verbal, nonverbal, and written communication skills
• Have an empathetic spirit and want to help others
• Enjoy diversity among tasks and also working with different types of people
  

What can I study at MSU?
The medical assisting program comprises general studies in the humanities, business, and the natural sciences along with preparation for clinical and administrative health care positions. Medical assistant positions often include such tasks as reception, appointment scheduling, medical coding and transcribing, computer use, taking patient histories, taking and recording vital signs, medication administration, assisting the physician with minor procedures, venipuncture, and giving injections.

MA at MSU is the only program where students are dually trained - both in administrative (business) skills and clinical skills - thus, the inclusion of the program in both the School of Health Sciences and the School of Business and Technology.

Students learn to run the “front” office and can schedule appointments, answer the phone, call in prescriptions, prepare and maintain patient charts, do billing and collections, process insurance claims, transcribe medical documents, and many other administrative duties.

Students also learn to assist the physician in the “back” office, which is the clinical area. They take patient histories, screen patients, take and record vital signs, do basic laboratory tests, do EKGs, venipuncture, give injections, and assist the physician with different procedures.

Special opportunities at MSU

Student Organization. We require all MA majors to join our professional organization, the American Association of Medical Assistants (AAMA). We have an MSU Student Chapter of the AAMA which is very active, both on campus and in the community. The students hold fund-raising activities which have helped to purchase needed lab supplies and also fund such activities as an annual Christmas party for members and their families and an end-of-the-year picnic for members and their families. Our AAMA has a blood drive each year in conjunction with the MSU Nursing department. We also participate in health fairs, career days, and other activities in the community. One of our larger on-going projects is collecting aluminum can tabs for Ronald McDonald houses.

Flexibility. The medical assisting program is offered in its entirety both traditionally and through the School of Extended and Distance Education (SEDE). Traditionally, the program begins in the fall semester of each year; however, students can also enter the program in the spring and summer semesters. Within the SEDE, students may enter the program at any time during the year and take courses through Independent Study.

Special opportunities for enlisted personnel. The MA program at MSU was one of the first in the US to partner with the US Army to offer medical assisting to enlisted personnel so that they could build on what they had learned in the armed forces and ultimately receive an A.S. degree in Medical Assisting from MSU. We have several military personnel from all branches of the Armed Forces who are currently taking MA through this effort.

Small class size. We offer approximately a 23:1 student/teacher ratio. Our program incorporates classroom, computer laboratory, clinical laboratory, and clinical field experiences. We have a well-equipped clinical laboratory/classroom with examination room manikins, examination beds/tables, EKG machine, venipuncture chair, venipuncture arm, and much more. We also have an administrative classroom/office where students can simulate “front office” skills and role play various activities.

Career Opportunities
Upon successful completion of the MA program at MSU, the student graduates with an Associate of Science degree. Graduates are then eligible to sit for the Certified Medical Assisting exam, a national test which, when passed, gives the medical assistant the privilege of including the credential CMA (Certified Medical Assistant) behind their name.

Many graduates of the program have chosen to use MA as a stepping stone to further their education and go on to earn a B.S. in Nursing, Office Administration and/or Management or Medical Informatics. Some have gone into the PA program after graduating from ours.

Some students double major—they couple MA with an Associate’s degree in Office Administration, Medical track. These two programs are very compatible, and students who have double majored have done very well with these two programs. There are many job opportunities for the successful graduate of our program.

Since our students are dually trained, administratively and clinically, they have the option of doing both or concentrating on one area or the other. Typically, the MA who does both administrative and clinical tasks works in a smaller doctor’s office and usually for only one or at the most, two doctors. Physicians really like this because they actually get “two for one.” MAs are versatile, can multi-task, and are flexible. They fit well into the scheme of a busy doctor’s office.

In the last few years, some medical assistants have been employed at hospitals; this has not always been the case, but it is more common now than it used to be. Some MAs like the administrative end so much that they go on to become office managers, work for insurance companies in an advisory/auditory capacity, or further their education in a management field.

Many rural clinics and physicians’ offices hire MAs because of their well-rounded background and experience. This is very common in WV. On the other hand, we have have several graduates who have secured positions in large clinics in Charlotte and Greensboro, NC; Charleston, WV; and other metropolitan areas.

The outlook for the MA for the future is very bright. According to national labor statistics, MA is the fastest-growing allied health profession in the US.

Please see our catalog for degree and program requirements.