How to become a medical secretaries and administrative assistant
Perform secretarial duties using specific knowledge of medical terminology and hospital, clinic, or laboratory procedures. Duties may include scheduling appointments, billing patients, and compiling and recording medical charts, reports, and correspondence.
Steps to get there
Most employers expect usually requires a high school diploma or ged, though some occupations may not..Some occupations may need little or no previous experience; others require several months to a year of experience. For example, landscaping and groundskeeping workers might require very little training or previous experience, while agricultural equipment operators can benefit from on-the job training.
What medical secretaries and administrative assistants do
- Answer telephones and direct calls to appropriate staff.
- Greet visitors, ascertain purpose of visit, and direct them to appropriate staff.
- Transmit correspondence or medical records by mail, e-mail, or fax.
- Maintain medical records, technical library, or correspondence files.
- Receive and route messages or documents, such as laboratory results, to appropriate staff.
- Interview patients to complete documents, case histories, or forms, such as intake or insurance forms.
Skills that matter most
- Speaking
- Active Listening
- Reading Comprehension
- Writing
- Critical Thinking
- Monitoring
- Active Learning
- Mathematics
Is medical secretaries and administrative assistant a good career?
On the numbers, this job is close to the average across occupations. Median pay is 10% below the all-occupation median. Whether it fits you depends on the work itself, the schooling you are willing to do and where you want to live.
Where it pays most
- Washington $58,100
- California $54,490
- Massachusetts $50,290
- Oregon $50,130
- Minnesota $50,030
Medical Secretaries and Administrative Assistants salary by state and city
Sources: O*NET® 31.0 (CC BY 4.0, USDOL/ETA) and BLS Employment Projections 2025–35. Pay: BLS OEWS May 2025.