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The differences between medical assisting externs and medical office administrators can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 6-12 months to become a medical assisting extern, becoming a medical office administrator takes usually requires 1-2 years. Additionally, a medical assisting extern has an average salary of $35,737, which is higher than the $34,252 average annual salary of a medical office administrator.
The top three skills for a medical assisting extern include patients, vital signs and EKG. The most important skills for a medical office administrator are patients, patient care, and customer service.
| Medical Assisting Extern | Medical Office Administrator | |
| Yearly salary | $35,737 | $34,252 |
| Hourly rate | $17.18 | $16.47 |
| Growth rate | 16% | -8% |
| Number of jobs | 81,077 | 179,503 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 34% | Bachelor's Degree, 31% |
| Average age | 37 | 49 |
| Years of experience | 12 | 2 |
A medical assisting extern is responsible for supporting the medical team in ensuring that the patients are offered the best care services by providing treatments and medications. Medical assisting externs' duties include practicing their medical skills by shadowing on medical professionals' activities, assisting patients with their inquiries and concerns, facilitating medical procedures with the doctor's supervision, and learning to operate medical tools and equipment as needed. A medical assisting extern must have excellent knowledge in the health industry, as well as a fast-learner to be familiarized with the complexities of medical processes and procedures.
A medical office administrator is responsible for performing administrative and clerical duties within a health care institution, supplying physicians and medical professionals with patients' information, and coordinating with insurance companies. Medical office administrators handle the information and data management system to ensure the accuracy of patients' details, medical history, and treatment plans. They also schedule doctor appointments and cancellations, as well as monitoring the inventory of medical supplies. A medical office administrator submits payment reports, respond to patients' inquiries and concerns, and process billing disputes.
Medical assisting externs and medical office administrators have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Medical Assisting Extern | Medical Office Administrator | |
| Average salary | $35,737 | $34,252 |
| Salary range | Between $26,000 And $48,000 | Between $27,000 And $41,000 |
| Highest paying City | - | Anchorage, AK |
| Highest paying state | - | Alaska |
| Best paying company | - | University of California, Berkeley |
| Best paying industry | - | Health Care |
There are a few differences between a medical assisting extern and a medical office administrator in terms of educational background:
| Medical Assisting Extern | Medical Office Administrator | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 34% | Bachelor's Degree, 31% |
| Most common major | Medical Assisting Services | Health Care Administration |
| Most common college | - | - |
Here are the differences between medical assisting externs' and medical office administrators' demographics:
| Medical Assisting Extern | Medical Office Administrator | |
| Average age | 37 | 49 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 24.3% Female, 75.7% | Male, 9.4% Female, 90.6% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 10.8% Unknown, 4.7% Hispanic or Latino, 24.1% Asian, 9.6% White, 50.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.8% | Black or African American, 9.6% Unknown, 3.8% Hispanic or Latino, 12.0% Asian, 3.8% White, 70.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4% |
| LGBT Percentage | 6% | 9% |