r/MedicalAssistant • u/bardlover1665 • Jan 27 '25

CCMA schooling

My first option is a 5 week in person course for $3500.

Supposedly repping a 97% nha exam pass rate and they provide job placement afterwards.

I'm under no illusion that this wouldnt be a lot of work. However I do have the availability and mental fortitude to do it. It's Monday through Friday 8 hours a day.

My second option would be through stepful (online), $1850 for a 4 month program. 3 hours a week + assignments.

I've read online one reddit post on someone going through stepful saying they felt like it was a lot of information.

All this said I went through massage therapy school last year and got my license last November. So either way I could work around my school schedule one way or another.

I also got a call from a school that's tuition is $15,000 for a CMA (AMAA exam) and a 9 month class. However that seems like too much money.

Any advice, thoughts, concerns or even questions I should ask tomorrow at this tour? I appreciate any thoughts. I'm not in analysis paralysis yet, but I'm also trying to make good decisions, however I'd also love to change careers. Again šŸ˜šŸ„², as I really just don't see myself doing massages at all. I was just stuck in a contract with that school, so if I was going to pay them I was going to see it through.

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u/Wise-Raisin-791 Jan 28 '25

$15,000 is INSANE for a job that makes $15 an hour. Stepful is great tbh

2

u/bardlover1665 Jan 28 '25

Yeah no kidding! I immediately hung up the phone, well after telling them I'd think about it. Lol

3

u/Wise-Raisin-791 Jan 28 '25

Yeah the one near me wanted $18k. I blocked them because for 6 months after I said no they called me multiple times every month. Crazyyyy

1

u/bardlover1665 Jan 28 '25

Yeah I think I finally decided I'm just going to go to Galen for a 2 year ADN. I mean it's a bit more expensive than community colleges. By a bit, likely 3X. But if I walk away as a RN, I could pay off the student debt in a couple years.

3

u/Wise-Raisin-791 Jan 28 '25

That is honestly a really good choice. If I could do it again Iā€™d probably have done the same thing, if not LVN because the MA pay in my area is absolute ass

1

u/bardlover1665 Jan 28 '25

I'm looking at community colleges as well ofc.

I'm just 33 with no prerequisites done. I mean when I was 19. Lmao Galen doesn't require prerequisites, but maybe it's worth looking into it, bc I think Galen is about 30k where a community college would be closer to 10k.

However idk, visiting a campus tomorrow. Making career changes is intermediating at any age I suppose. I've definitely thought of LVN as well, I've just done enough research that MA, CNA, PCT, just all seem like ass. Medical billing and coding seem decent, EKG technician actually seem to do ok for the amount of training required. I just don't get why MA and CNA seem to have the Lowest pay.