Medical Assistant Jobs Outlook

Medical Assistant Employment & Outlook:
About 417,000 medical assistants were employed nationwide in 2006, with most working in physicians' offices. Career opportunities for medical assistants are projected to grow much faster than the average for all occupations through 2016. About 148,000 additional jobs are expected to be added to the field, thanks to an expanding health care industry, technological advances in medicine, and an aging population. Medical assistants who can handle both administrative and clinical duties are expected to have the best job prospects. Advancement in the field typically requires more training and certification. Many medical assistants choose to become nurses or other health care workers through further study. Administrative positions provide another popular career path because an administrative medical assistant can rise to the position of office manager without additional education.
Typical Salary for Medical AssistantsMedical assistants earned mean annual wages of $28,270 in 2007, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. State government facilities were the highest paying employer, with medical assistants earning annual mean wages of $36,430.