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The differences between unit assistants and student medical assistant-externships can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 6-12 months to become both a unit assistant and a student medical assistant-externship. Additionally, a student medical assistant-externship has an average salary of $35,588, which is higher than the $33,802 average annual salary of a unit assistant.
The top three skills for a unit assistant include patients, customer service and HIPAA. The most important skills for a student medical assistant-externship are patients, vital signs, and EKG.
| Unit Assistant | Student Medical Assistant-Externship | |
| Yearly salary | $33,802 | $35,588 |
| Hourly rate | $16.25 | $17.11 |
| Growth rate | 16% | 16% |
| Number of jobs | 174,425 | 178,362 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 39% | Bachelor's Degree, 45% |
| Average age | 37 | 37 |
| Years of experience | 12 | 12 |
A unit assistant is responsible for performing administrative duties within a department of a health care institution, ensuring that the patients receive the highest quality care services for their concerns and needs. Unit assistants assist the patients and the visitors, confirm their appointments, and direct them to the correct personnel or medical department. They also manage the adequacy of medical supplies and report defective equipment and machine to the maintenance for immediate repairs or replacements. A unit assistant must be highly organizational, especially on storing medical records and updating patients' information on the database.
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.
Unit assistants and student medical assistant-externships have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Unit Assistant | Student Medical Assistant-Externship | |
| Average salary | $33,802 | $35,588 |
| Salary range | Between $25,000 And $44,000 | Between $26,000 And $47,000 |
| Highest paying City | Westfield, MA | - |
| Highest paying state | Massachusetts | - |
| Best paying company | UC Santa Barbara | - |
| Best paying industry | Non Profits | - |
There are a few differences between a unit assistant and a student medical assistant-externship in terms of educational background:
| Unit Assistant | Student Medical Assistant-Externship | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 39% | Bachelor's Degree, 45% |
| Most common major | Nursing | Medical Assisting Services |
| Most common college | - | - |
Here are the differences between unit assistants' and student medical assistant-externships' demographics:
| Unit Assistant | Student Medical Assistant-Externship | |
| Average age | 37 | 37 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 30.0% Female, 70.0% | Male, 23.8% Female, 76.2% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 10.0% Unknown, 4.7% Hispanic or Latino, 19.1% Asian, 9.5% White, 55.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.8% | 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% |
| LGBT Percentage | 6% | 6% |