Medical Assistant

• Demonstrate knowledge of clinical procedures, laboratory and medication administration in a medical practice utilizing critical thinking skills.
• Apply knowledge of medical laboratory techniques to accurately collect specimens, perform Clinical Laboratory Improvement Amendments (CLIA) waived testing, and report lab results appropriately.
• Communicate effectively with individuals, families, groups, and/or colleagues of diverse sociocultural backgrounds through the use of verbal and non-verbal skills, written abilities, active listening, and information technologies within ambulatory care settings.
• Identify, interpret, and apply ethical, legal and social issues associated within the field of a medical assistant scope of practice.
• Employ a variety of administrative policies, procedures and techniques in a medical practice to deliver cost effective and quality healthcare.
• Professionally demonstrate confidentiality, communicate effectively, collaborating within teams along with professionalism.
• Use computer literacy skills and the ability to maintain electronic health records.
• Illustrate a caring and empathic approach to all people and cultures when interacting with a diverse patient population in the healthcare field.
• Reinforce healthy lifestyles through health promotion education of teaching individuals, families, and the community.
• Successful completion of the AAS degree will provide transferable credits that allow students to continue their higher education.

A medical assistant is eligible to work in clinics, urgent care/express care/ minute clinics, blood collection centers, research facilities and insurance companies. Duties could include administering injections, taking blood pressure readings, rooming patients, drawing blood, performing commonly ordered laboratory tests and electrocardiograms (EKG), insurance coding, medical records and scheduling patients for special procedures or other medical appointment.

Medical assistants have direct patient contact and work closely with physicians, nurses and other health care professionals. The ability to demonstrate professionalism, communicate effectively, multitask, and perform procedures quickly and accurately is essential for success.

Advancement 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.

Wage information is available from the Minnesota Department of Education and the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development.

Anoka Technical College's Medical Assitant program provides a hands-on education taught by industry experts. After successful completion of all first and second semester courses, students also complete a 280-hour externship, a supervised practicum in a health care setting.

Program Goals

• To prepare medical assistants who are competent in the cognitive (knowledge), psychomotor (skills), and affective (behavior) learning domains to enter the profession
• Continue to provide quality graduates to support the needs of our community and area employers
• Help students and communities live and learn well
• Foster an environment of critical thinking, effective communication, personal responsibility and initiative

What Students Learn

• Clinical Procedures: sterile technique, suture removal, physician procedures
• Laboratory Diagnostic Procedures: rapid strep test, white blood counts, cholesterol levels
• Administrative Procedures: medical computer scheduling, medical software, insurance billing, diagnostic codes

Virtual Tour

Take a virtual tour and review the list below to get an idea of what it's like to be a student at Anoka Tech.

Virtual Tour

The Anoka Technical College Medical Assistant diploma program is accredited by the Commission on Accreditation of Allied Health Education Programs (www.caahep.org) upon the recommendation of the Medical Assisting Education Review Board (MAERB).

Commission on Accreditation of Allied Health Programs (CAAHEP):
9355 135th St N, #7709
Seminole, FL 33775
727-210-2350
www.caahep.org

• Score of 275 or higher on the Arithmetic portion of the NextGen Accuplacer or Anoka Tech Math 0801 with a grade of “B” or betteror equivalent test score taken within the past 2 years.
• Score of 250 or higher on the Reading portion of the NextGen Accuplacer or ENGL 0102 or ENGL 0960 and READ 0900 or READ 0960 taken in the last three years or appropriate test score.
• A minimum Computer Keyboarding assessment score of 25 wpm with a 93% accuracy rate or completion of a basic keyboarding course with a minimum “C” grade.

Minnesota Law requires that any person who provides services that involve direct contact with patients and residents at a health care facility licensed by the Minnesota Department of Health have a background study conducted by the state.

Some courses in this program may require a prerequisite. Please see course descriptions for more details.

Program Sequence

MnTC General Education Requirements

This program requires completion of the following twenty-seven credits of general education from at least three goal areas of the Minnesota Transfer Curriculum (MnTC). Refer to the MnTC course list for elective courses:

Program Sequence

Students can choose to start the Medical Assistant programs part-time. Students who start part-time will take longer to complete the program than students who follow the full-time sequence listed on the official program guides. Note: It is not possible to complete the full Medical Assistant program at a part-time rate. Because every course may not be offered each semester, it is important for part-time students to reach out to their faculty advisor for help in planning their long-term course sequence.

First Semester Part-Time Course Options *

• • 4 credits: Anatomy & Physiology - HLTH 1005
  • 2 credits: Medical Terminology - HLTH 1040
  • 1 credit: Dosage Calculations - HLTH 1010

View Course Schedule 

*AAS degree students can also take additional MnTC general education credits

Nursing Assistant 

Practical Nursing

All courses required for this program must be completed with a grade of C or higher.