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Aims Medical Assistant Certificate students practicing bandaging a wound in a lab setting

Medical Clinical Assistant Certificate

Earn a Medical Assistant Certificate at Aims

If you enjoy working with people and want to work in healthcare, take the first step toward a new career by earning a Medical Assistant Certificate at Aims. Medical clinical assistants perform a variety of vital functions as part of healthcare teams in private practices, clinics and hospitals. Working directly with patients, they obtain patient histories, take vital signs, explain tests and procedures, and draw blood or collect other tissue samples. They also help physicians and nurse practitioners with medical examinations and procedures and submitting prescriptions to pharmacies.

In the Aims Medical Assistant Certificate program, you can get hands-on expert training from instructors with experience and industry connections in the field. In just two semesters (not including prerequisites), you can earn a medical assistant certificate and enter the workforce immediately. If you’re planning to advance your career in the future in management or teaching positions, then earning an associate degree can give you a professional edge. After completing the Medical Assistant Certificate program requirements and becoming certified, you can choose to earn an Allied Health Professional Associate Degree while working. This option allows you to invest in career growth while minimizing student debt, and you can apply course credits from this certificate program toward earning your associate degree.

The Aims Medical Assistant Certificate program will help you prepare for the professional certification required for employment through either American Medical Technologists (AMT) or the National Center for Competency Testing. Using skills assessments and practice tests, you can prepare for testing with these medical assistant certification programs. After graduation, you can take the exam with confidence and become a certified Medical Clinical Assistant.


Gain the skills you need to start your career as a medical clinical assistant

Medical assistant classes at Aims combine lectures with hands-on training, including skills practice in the lab and clinical assisting courses. An internship helps you gain practical work experience in the field, with academic guidance from an Aims instructor.

In this program, you will learn:

  • Medical and pharmacological terminology and principles that clinical assistants need to know
  • Laboratory skills and techniques for collection, handling and examination of laboratory specimens
  • Healthcare customer service and office administration skills
  • Clinical skills used in medical offices, such as gathering patient histories, taking vital signs, and administering tests and treatments

Working under the direction of doctors, physician’s assistants and nurse practitioners, medical clinical assistants perform a wide variety of exams and procedures in medical offices, including:

  • Injections
  • Venipuncture and capillary puncture
  • EKGs
  • Vital signs
  • Eye exams
  • Ear lavages
  • Suture removal
  • Catheterization
  • Strep tests
  • Casting

Earn a Medical Assistant Certificate at Aims and Start Your Healthcare Career

Healthcare careers are in high demand, including positions for medical clinical assistants. As a student, you can make connections with employers through a one-semester internship. Your instructors also have strong industry ties with regional employers who frequently share job openings available to Aims students.

Medical clinical assistants work in a variety of healthcare settings, including:

  • Medical offices
  • University healthcare systems
  • Healthcare clinics
  • Hospitals

Questions about the Aims Medical Clinical Assistant program?

Contact Stephany Wood at stephany.wood@aims.edu.

Note that there are entrance requirements for this program. See the admission requirements page for more information.

Aims Medical Clinical Assistant Faculty

The Aims medical clinical assistant faculty have real-world experience working in healthcare settings, so you can gain both essential textbook knowledge and insight into how to put your learning into practice. Small class sizes also give you plenty of opportunities for one-on-one attention from instructors invested in your success.

  • Headshot of Ryan Mayeda

    Ryan Mayeda

    Department Chair - Health Science, Phlebotomy & Medical Assisting
  • Stephany Wood

    Stephany Wood

    Professor, Health Science, Phlebotomy & Medical Assisting
  • Shannon Navarette

    Shannon Navarrette

    Professor, Health Science, Phlebotomy & Medical Assisting
  • A headshot of Lacey Feavel

    Lacey Feavel

    Instructor, Medical Assisting & Phlebotomy
  • Portrait of Tracy Gary

    Tracy Gary

    Instructor, Health Sciences
  • A headshot of Jonathan Mundt

    Jonathan Mundt

    Part-Time: Assistant Instructor, Phlebotomy