Overcoming Lack of Experience

Medical offices, clinics, and hospitals need medical assistants MORE than EVER! Join the "Community of Caring" by starting a rewarding career as a medical assistant! We provide important resources, such as career and self-study guides, certification and scope-of-practice info, active message boards, schools, and job listings in every state to help you get started.

Follow your heart... be a medical assistant!

Explore Hundreds of Medical Assistant Schools Near You!

Click button below

Select your state

View all schools---It's that simple!

	Overcoming Lack of Experience

	Move Your Career In The Right Direction!
	Do You Want Your Career To Stand Out or Stand Still? Sadly, many medical assistants have told us that not having sought certification sooner was a mistake they came to regret. Until they took charge their career went nowhere... but precious time was lost. We don't want this to happen to you! Take the first step in the right direction today. Receive this FREE Career Information Kit IT'S IMPORTANT - And 100% FREE!

Do You "Suffer" From Lack of Experience?

Lack of experience can be an obstacle for new medical assistants fresh out of school. Most employers are looking for workers with one to two years experience when they hire and it is the new medical assistant who feels the sting of not having the amount of experience the employer expects.

How to Beat the Lack of Experience Dilemma

New medical assistant graduates always seem to fall into the controversial "I can't get work without experience, but I can't get experience without work" rut. They see it as a catch 22, and wonder "how can I get experience, if nobody wants to hire me?"

However, there are ways to overcome the perpetual "lack of experience trap" and still land the job you want. Although it is always a BIG challenge, the trick is to highlight strengths and other selling points in a well written resume, and making an excellent impression during the jop interview.

HELPFUL TIPS FOR THOSE WHO "SUFFER" FROM LACK OF EXPERIENCE:

Request an appointment with the human resource manager or nurse supervisor to learn what they are looking for. Find out if there is room for exceptions. Tell them what you can offer their facility and how great of an asset you will be.

Try to offer your service by volunteering. Mention relevant skills you have, such as your accomplishments while you were in school, or college; include scholastic awards and—most importantly: mention your externship. Time spent in a medical office in form of the externship is work experience.

Anyone attending a job fair should bring several copies of a well written resume, dress professionally and be prepared for on-the-spot interviews! Those who do not have a dress suit should wear their best professional attire, such as crisp clean scrubs, along with a name tag, professional badge and sparkling white nurse's shoes to impress.

Don't focus so much on titles, or lack of experience. Instead highlight all the other valuable skills you have under your belt, such as those acquired through activities in community groups, volunteer work, or even personal interests. Don't forget courses, workshops, or seminars taken, for example in sales, interpersonal communication, languages, customer services, data entry, computer applications, and word-processing skills.

Tell everybody you know that you are looking for a job, including people that you know already working in the industry, plus the doctors that you see. People who know and like you will focus on who you are, your personality, talents, and character, and less on what's in your resume.

Continue to communicate with your medical assistant school faculty, advisors, and former classmates. Also, be on the lookout and build new networking places, such as with the medical office staff where you go for your medical appointments, the hospital cafeteria, medical assistant online communities, your child's school, or church.

Even neighbors, fellow moms, and family members should know that you are at the crossroads of a new career and open for any suggestions they have to get into the medical assistant field. Just tell everybody who is willing to listen.

Never arrive empty handed to an interview. Be prepared to mention how satisfied your former employers, field supervisors, clients and instructors were, supported by as many letters of recommendation that you can get.

When asked "What do you like most about being a medical assistant?" during your interview, always answer that you like working side by side with different healthcare professionals, and providing patient care and customer service. Also say that you like the paperwork!!! It may surprise the interviewers, but at the same time makes you stand out from the rest like a red torch. A lot of MAs go into this field not realizing how much paperwork is involved. When asked why you like the paperwork, tell them that it goes hand-in-hand with your personality and desire to be well organized so that things are ready and easy to find when needed.

Explain various problems and obstacles you've solved, other related job experiences, volunteer work, and don't forget to provide the names of your references. Related skills and experience could be:

phlebotomy skills

obtaining vital signs

working knowledge of EKG’s

first aid, CPR

conversational Spanish

Microsoft Word

typing, or shorthand

medical records filing

insurance form processing

Red Cross volunteer work

All the above can help you to convince an employer that, although you may not have the desired amount of work experience as a medical assistant, you are certainly worth their attention and consideration for the available medical assistant postition.

Read:

Medical Assistant Interview Success Tips