How To Become A Medication Aide: What It Is and Career Path

What is a medication aide and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

4 min read

The medication aide is in charge of delivering daily medication to patients in a medical facility. This can be either prescription or non-prescription medications. He/She works with various nurses to help with patient care and medications. He/She monitors patients as they are using their medication to ensure it is taken properly and that dosage instructions are followed. Similarly, he/she observes patients for any changes in their appearance or behavior. Also, he/she attends to patient emergency call signals to identify their needs.

Employers seek a minimum of a high school diploma or a relevant qualification. Candidates must be certified with at least two years of experience in a similar role. You must be prepared to work a flexible schedule, including evenings, weekends, and holidays. You must possess interpersonal, problem-solving, and communication skills. You must also be conversant with medical and pharmacological terminology. Medication aides earn about $31,381 in a year. Their salary falls between $24,000 and $41,000.

ScoreMedication AideUS Average

Salary

3.2

Avg. Salary $40,799

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability Level

8.5

Growth Rate 9%

Growth Rate 0.3%

Diversity

10.0

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 0.91%

Asian 6.53%

Black or African American 8.46%

Hispanic or Latino 15.55%

Unknown 4.97%

White 63.58%

Gender

female 84.26%

male 15.74%

Age - 41

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 - 41

Stress Level

8.5

Stress level is very high

7.1 - high

Complexity Level

7.0

Complexity Level is challenging

7 - challenging

Work Life Balance

10.0

Work Life balance is excellent

6.4 - fair

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Key steps to become a medication aide

Explore medication aide education requirements

Most common medication aide degrees

High School Diploma

23.3 %

Associate

23.0 %

Bachelor's

21.4 %

Start to develop specific medication aide skills

Skills	Percentages
Compassion	11.31%
Resident Care	11.10%
State Regulations	7.77%
Infection Control	6.99%
Incident Reports	5.25%

Complete relevant medication aide training and internships

Accountants spend an average of Less than 1 month on post-employment, on-the-job training. New medication aides 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 medication aide based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real medication aide resumes.

Obtain the necessary licensing

Becoming a licensed medication aide usually doesn't require a college degree. However, you need to pass an exam to become a licensed medication aide in most of states. 25 states require medication aides to have license for their work. You can see the list of states below.

State	Education	Exam	License Url
Alaska	Degree required	Third-party exam required	Nurse Aide
Arkansas	Specific course required	Both state and third-party exams required	Nursing Assistant (Certified)
California	Specific course required	State exam required	Certified Nurse Assistant
Colorado	Specific course required	State exam required	Nurse Aide
Connecticut	Specific course required	State exam required	Nurses Aide

Gain additional medication aide certifications

Medication aide 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 medication aide certification, having one may help you stand out relative to other applicants.

The most common certifications for medication aides include Medication Aide Certification (MACE) and Medical Assistant.

More About Certifications

Research medication aide duties and responsibilities

Manage memory unity within facility.
Provide care for patients in need of long term care and rehabilitation.
Administer medication according to state laws and guidelines as well as facility guidelines and assist residents with ADL's.
preserve patient's dignity while providing such duties as bedpan changes, bathing, diapering, emptying catheter and colostomy bags.

Prepare your medication aide resume

When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your medication aide resume.

You can use Zippia's AI resume builder to make the resume writing process easier while also making sure that you include key information that hiring managers expect to see on a medication aide resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.

Choose From 10+ Customizable Medication Aide Resume templates

Build a professional Medication Aide resume in minutes. Browse through our resume examples to identify the best way to word your resume. Then choose from 10+ resume templates to create your Medication Aide resume.