How To Become A Medical Billing And Coding Externship: What It Is and Career Path

What is a medical billing and coding externship and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

3 min read

Quoted expert

Eve Leija AAS, NCMA

The average medical billing and coding externship salary is $36,112. The most common degree is a diploma degree with an health care administration major. It usually takes 1-2 years of experience to become a medical billing and coding externship. Medical billing and coding externships with a Certified Billing and Coding Specialist (CBCS) certification earn more money. Between 2018 and 2028, the career is expected to grow -3% and produce -38,500 job opportunities across the U.S.

What general advice would you give to a medical billing and coding externship?

Eve Leija AAS, NCMA

Medical Assistant Program Director, Website

To maximize salary for a medical assistant obtaining certification from one of the credentialing organizations such as American Association of Medical Assistants (AAMA) can make a new hire more competitive. Continuing educations along with developing any specialized skills such as phlebotomy. Demonstrating professionalism initiative and reliability, along with gaining a strong reference from previous employers.

ScoreMedical Billing And Coding ExternshipUS Average

Salary

2.8

Avg. Salary $36,112

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability level

6.2

Growth rate -3%

Growth rate 0.3%

Diversity

5.9

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 0.84%

Asian 6.78%

Black or African American 10.57%

Hispanic or Latino 21.81%

Unknown 4.26%

White 55.74%

Gender

female 88.17%

male 11.83%

Age - 47

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 3.00%

Asian 7.00%

Black or African American 14.00%

Hispanic or Latino 19.00%

White 57.00%

Gender

female 47.00%

male 53.00%

Age - 47

Stress level

6.2

Stress level is manageable

7.1 - high

Complexity level

7.5

Complexity level is challenging

7 - challenging

Work life balance

8.6

Work life balance is excellent

6.4 - fair

Key steps to become a medical billing and coding externship

Explore medical billing and coding externship education requirements

Most common medical billing and coding externship degrees

Diploma

42.5 %

Associate

23.2 %

Certificate

20.5 %

Start to develop specific medical billing and coding externship skills

Skills	Percentages
Patients	22.55%
Insurance Eligibility	6.10%
Data Entry	5.37%
EOB	5.24%
Insurance Verification	4.04%

Complete relevant medical billing and coding externship training and internships

Accountants spend an average of 1-3 months on post-employment, on-the-job training. New medical billing and coding externships learn the skills and techniques required for their job and employer during this time. The chart below shows how long it takes to gain competency as a medical billing and coding externship based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real medical billing and coding externship resumes.

Gain additional medical billing and coding externship certifications

Medical billing and coding externship certifications can show employers you have a baseline of knowledge expected for the position. Certifications can also make you a more competitive candidate. Even if employers don't require a specific medical billing and coding externship certification, having one may help you stand out relative to other applicants.

The most common certifications for medical billing and coding externships include Certified Billing and Coding Specialist (CBCS) and Medical Assistant.

More About Certifications

Research medical billing and coding externship duties and responsibilities

Manage chart completion (ICD-9-CM and CPT coding/abstracting), chart assembly and analysis, patient admission and patient information privacy/security.
Verify correct ICD-10 and CPT codes for a variety of specialties.
Review physicians' appointment notes to determine appropriate ICD-9 and HCPCS code for the medical service render.
Identify and code the principal diagnosis and procedures using ICD-9-CM and CPT-4 codes to each patient's medical records

Prepare your medical billing and coding externship resume

When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your medical billing and coding externship resume.

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Choose from 10+ customizable medical billing and coding externship resume templates

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