---
title: The Timeframe to Become a Medical Assistant
url: "https://arizonacollege.edu/blog/the-timeframe-to-become-a-medical-assistant/"
type: post
date_published: 2016-04-18
date_modified: 2016-04-18
schema:
  @type: Article
language: en-US
word_count: 538
reading_time: 3 min
canonical: "https://arizonacollege.edu/blog/the-timeframe-to-become-a-medical-assistant/"
featured_image: "https://arizonacollege.edu/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/Arizona-College-Healthcare-Careers-13.jpg"
categories:
  - AZC Healthcare Programs
topic:
  - Medical Assisting
---

# The Timeframe to Become a Medical Assistant

![Teachers writing on the whiteboard at Arizona College](https://arizonacollege.edu/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/Arizona-College-Healthcare-Careers-13.jpg)

Medical assisting careers can have a variety of options for schedules, job
duties and work environments. From working in medical offices and emergency
clinics, medical assistants normally work directly alongside a physician.
However, medical assistants are not to be confused with physician assistants.
Medical assistants do a lot of routine administrative and clinical tasks,
whereas physician assistants will perform more in-depth procedures in examining,
diagnosing and even treating the patient.

All medical assistants essentially perform a similar set of job duties. We’ve
broken down the different administrative and clinical tasks below:

**What are common medical assistant clinical duties?**

- Prepping patients for exams
- Taking blood
- Performing lab tests
- Assisting physicians during exams
- Collecting lab specimens
- Explaining treatments to patients
- Administering medications as directed by physician
- Changing wound dressings
- Taking electrocardiograms

**What are common medical assistant administrative duties?**

- Scheduling appointments
- Updating patient records
- Answering telephones
- Greeting patients
- Operating various computer applications
- Filling out insurance forms
- Booking laboratory services
- Handling bookkeeping and billing

Now that you have a good understanding of exactly what you’ll be doing in your
new career, let’s look into how long it takes to
[become a medical assistant](https://www.arizonacollege.edu/all-programs/medical-assisting/become-medical-assistant/)
.

**How long is a medical assistant program?**

Many medical assistant programs take under a year to two years to complete. At
Arizona College, students have the choice of taking our diploma program or our
associate’s degree program. Our diploma program is 30 weeks long, providing a
strong foundation of academic and laboratory experience, followed by an
externship in a real-world clinical setting. The associate’s degree program
provides even more in-depth exposure to modern laboratory equipment and
procedures; biology courses; and a crash course on the legal side of the
healthcare industry. Our associate’s degree program is 60 weeks long (six
quarters of 10 weeks) which includes five weeks of externship experience.

No matter which you choose, both programs have sessions starting every five
weeks, perfect for students who can’t commit to a program far in advance because
of a job or living situation.

**Getting Certified**

After you’ve completed a program to become a medical assistant, it’s time to get
certified. Arizona College’s medical assisting program includes training in all
the skills and knowledge needed to pass your certification test. Graduating
students can get their Certified Medical Assistant (CMA) from the
[American Association of Medical Assistants](http://www.aama-ntl.org). This test
is offered three times a year and must be renewed every five years.

**Next Steps**

After you achieve your certification you will be well positioned to start
applying to jobs and working with
[our career services department](https://www.arizonacollege.edu/about-arizona-college/career-services/)
. Make sure to include your certification information on your resume as you’re
applying to jobs. With your due diligence, and the help of our experienced
career services staff, you’ll become a medical assistant in a desired
environment of your choosing in no time.

Want to start your journey to become a medical assistant? Use the Request
Information form today to get in touch with an Arizona College representative!

---

_Information in this blog post is accurate as of April 18, 2016._

**Categories:** AZC Healthcare Programs