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The differences between student medical assistant-externships and medical clerks can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 6-12 months to become a student medical assistant-externship, becoming a medical clerk takes usually requires 1-2 years. Additionally, a student medical assistant-externship has an average salary of $35,588, which is higher than the $32,439 average annual salary of a medical clerk.
The top three skills for a student medical assistant-externship include patients, vital signs and EKG. The most important skills for a medical clerk are patients, medical terminology, and data entry.
| Student Medical Assistant-Externship | Medical Clerk | |
| Yearly salary | $35,588 | $32,439 |
| Hourly rate | $17.11 | $15.60 |
| Growth rate | 16% | -8% |
| Number of jobs | 178,362 | 166,322 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 45% | Bachelor's Degree, 26% |
| Average age | 37 | 49 |
| Years of experience | 12 | 2 |
Student Medical Assistant Externship is a broad term for catering students for short, reliable, and practical work experience. Once you graduate, you can get a chance to meet contacts that may be useful for your career. You can have a better chance to work in a clinic, hospital, and any medical platform after going through this kind of externship.
A medical clerk works in the administrative area of a medical facility or hospital. The medical clerk collects all patient information and medical records. The clerk also does all the clinic or hospital paperwork and generates reports of all transactions that transpired in a day's work. The medical clerk also processes admission and discharge papers, medical charts, properly file and safeguard all patient records and secure them from unauthorized access. The medical clerk is expected to be highly organized, capable of handling pressure, and has good communication skills.
Student medical assistant-externships and medical clerks have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Student Medical Assistant-Externship | Medical Clerk | |
| Average salary | $35,588 | $32,439 |
| Salary range | Between $26,000 And $47,000 | Between $26,000 And $40,000 |
| Highest paying City | - | Washington, DC |
| Highest paying state | - | Minnesota |
| Best paying company | - | Brinks Gilson |
| Best paying industry | - | Government |
There are a few differences between a student medical assistant-externship and a medical clerk in terms of educational background:
| Student Medical Assistant-Externship | Medical Clerk | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 45% | Bachelor's Degree, 26% |
| Most common major | Medical Assisting Services | Business |
| Most common college | - | - |
Here are the differences between student medical assistant-externships' and medical clerks' demographics:
| Student Medical Assistant-Externship | Medical Clerk | |
| Average age | 37 | 49 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 23.8% Female, 76.2% | Male, 15.5% Female, 84.5% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 12.0% Unknown, 4.7% Hispanic or Latino, 22.4% Asian, 9.4% White, 50.7% 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% |