medical assistant.

[shahab6]

I'm 28 years old and I graduated from college about two-three years ago, never being able to find a good decent job, I pretty much have been doing some freelance work. Which I made some decent money, but I'm looking for something more steady. And somebody recommended me to go become a medical assistant. So before I go to school for another two years, I have some questions. how much do they honestly make? some people telling me they make about 80k per/year, and some say as low as 30k.
if I can even make 45k per year from MA, I would be able to live a happy comfortable life, but I'm not sure exactly how much they make In California. If if they really make 30k per-year, I'm better off trying to find a job with my bachelors.

Anyway, here are some of the questions I have. 1. How hard is it to become one in regards of studying? is it worth spending another 2 years of school and becoming one? Any feedback and comments are welcome.
thanks in advance.

 

[addictivepersona]

For salary, and other information, check out Career InfoNet. Once there, go to "Salary + Benefits" > "By Location" > Select your state > Click "Continue" > Scroll down to "Healthcare Support", click it and check the box by "Medical Assistant". Scroll down, click "Continue" > Find your area. Click it and click "Continue" > And now, finally, it'll give you unbiased answers on the earnings of people the field in your area, compared with the whole country.

The website also has a whole slew of other resources. There's a section for common questions asked during an interview for your intended profession. There's a resume guide. The website is pretty cool.

We had a career counselor come in the other day who showed us this. He also said that while seeking a job right out of school to aim for the "median" wage, plus or minus a few thousand dollars, since directly out of school it's not probable to make within the "90%" column. ;)

 

[kokaino]

I myself did an accelerated 3 year BS in Medical Laboratory Science, but don't work in the field. I tried once to get hired in a hospital microbiology lab, I got called for the interview but didn't pass the interview I guess because I was never called back again. I tried to go back to school and get my Masters in Biochemistry but didn't do it because of money issues.

I ultimately wanted to be a zoologist/herpetologist. I'm a big snake guru, especially venomous snakes. I am currently helping write "A Small Dose of Toxicology: The Health Effects of Common Chemicals" by Stephen Gilbert Ph.D. I write the section on snake venom toxicology.

 

[Perpetual Indulgence]

Medical assistant is not the same as a physician's assistant. That is where the salary discrepancy might come from. 30K vs 80K.