Medical Secretaries and Administrative Assistants
Perform secretarial duties using specific knowledge of medical terminology and hospital, clinic, or laboratory procedures. Duties may include scheduling appointments, billing patients, and compiling and recording medical charts, reports, and correspondence.
What it pays
Medical Secretaries and Administrative Assistants earn a median of $22.08/hr — about $46,000 a year. The lowest-paid 10% earn $17.27/hr; the top 10% earn $29.10/hr. (Annual figures are approximate: hourly × 2,080.)
Medical Secretaries and Administrative Assistants earn a median of $22.08/hr — about $46,000 a year. The lowest-paid 10% earn $17.27/hr; the top 10% earn $29.10/hr. (Annual figures are approximate: hourly × 2,080.)
What you'd actually do
- Answer telephones and direct calls to appropriate staff.
- Schedule and confirm patient diagnostic appointments, surgeries, or medical consultations.
- Complete insurance or other claim forms.
- Greet visitors, ascertain purpose of visit, and direct them to appropriate staff.
- Transmit correspondence or medical records by mail, e-mail, or fax.
- Maintain medical records, technical library, or correspondence files.
How you get there
Typical entry-level education: High school diploma. Overall preparation: some preparation (Job Zone 2 of 5).
The feel of the work
The work is mostly indoors; you're around people constantly; precision matters — small details carry weight. (Compared against the other 818 careers in the guide.)
Working for yourself
About 0% of medical secretaries and administrative assistants are self-employed.
Who it tends to fit
This work tends to fit people who are organized and detail-focused, people-focused and take-charge.
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Quick questions
- How much does a medical secretaries and administrative assistant make?
- The median pay is $22.08 per hour — roughly $46,000 a year, with the real range running from about $17.27/hr (10th percentile) to $29.10/hr (90th percentile). Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
- Do you need a degree to be a medical secretaries and administrative assistant?
- The typical entry-level education is: High school diploma. Overall preparation level: some preparation (Job Zone 2 of 5).
- What does a medical secretaries and administrative assistant actually do all day?
- Answer telephones and direct calls to appropriate staff. Schedule and confirm patient diagnostic appointments, surgeries, or medical consultations. Complete insurance or other claim forms.
Wages: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, OEWS. Tasks & interests: O*NET. Career pathways shown in the app are draft archetypes — verify before relying on them. Trailhead is a free career guide for students — honest numbers, no hype.
Trailhead is operated by FLEXVermont LLC. It is intended for high-school students age 13 and older, and the educators and families who support them, and is not directed to children under 13. Trailhead is provided for general informational and educational purposes only. It does not offer professional, financial, or career advice, and its wage figures and pathways are estimates that may not fit your situation — they should not be relied on as the sole basis for any decision.
Trailhead is operated by FLEXVermont LLC. It is intended for high-school students age 13 and older, and the educators and families who support them, and is not directed to children under 13. Trailhead is provided for general informational and educational purposes only. It does not offer professional, financial, or career advice, and its wage figures and pathways are estimates that may not fit your situation — they should not be relied on as the sole basis for any decision.