community college. those online courses/schools are not very good and
Posted By: jusme on 2008-11-19
In Reply to: New to MT - Sarah
very expensive.
but don't do it just to work at home.
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- New to MT - Sarah
- community college. those online courses/schools are not very good and - jusme
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Either one are 9 month courses at the local community college..worth a shot!
!!!
Your local community college. Just as good and a heckofalot cheaper!
How about your local community college and save a heap of money & get just as good of an education?
The schools are in the business of "selling" their courses.
Of course they are going to "sell" the profession as fastest growing, make great money staying at home, etc.
Universities with the best free online courses
http://education-portal.com/articles/Universities_with_the_Best_Free_Online_Courses.html
I also went to a community college
and never had any problems finding a job. In fact, I got my first job at home before I was even finished with school. I took all my classes online and have worked from home for the past 3 years here with my kids. I say go for it!
Andrews School or M-TEC online are excellent courses. See inside.
If you complete one of those courses, you should have no trouble finding a job working from home. They are a bit more expensive than some of the other courses, but MANY companies will waive their 2 years' experience requirement for grads of those two schools. Do not be suckered in by cheaper schools, MT companies know which schools supply good training and which ones don't.
Given by a community college? What school is
z
Your local community college...
It will cost a **** of a lot less, and your education will be just as good. Many will tell you that you only get help in job placement, externship, be ready to work, etc. via Andrews, etc., but that's just not true because they just don't know any better. Besides, that's a great sales pitch/gimmick, isn't it?
In learning this field, you need a classroom setting and hands' on experience/instruction. You'll see exactly what I mean when you get in the thick of it, or even starting out in learning it, for that matter.
I was fortunate with community college
I took courses through my local community college's continuing education program. The instructors were people who worked in the medical field during the day and taught at night. By doing exceptionally well in the classes and being a model student, I was recommended by a couple of the instructors and got a start at the office where one instructor worked before I even finished my transcription class.
Once I got my foot in that first door, I've been working steadily and successfully ever since. I had only a couple of classes under my belt!
The approved schools are probably the best chance for work after graduation, but opportunities can arise wherever you train.
I went through Bellevue Community College
Also the CareerStep program online with once a month meetings if we lived close. Got a Sallie Mae grant. Got hired by MQ right out of school (after testing). Careerstep is one of the best schools and one of the only ones you can get hired straight out of school. I would not really recommend transcription anymore, though. It is not the job it used to be, paywise. Coding is still good pay I hear.
I went to a local community college
I started working for a small local MTSO.
Local community college nm
x
Everett Community College
online has a transcription course and since it is a community college, should be able to get financial aid. Try that. Google it.
I actually borrowed a set from the library at the community college here.
I used them as long as I needed to, then returned them.
Check out your local community college -SM
I can't speak for all of them, but the one I went to offered externship programs and job placements for their best and brightest students. An acquaintenance of mine also got her MT training at a local college, and they did the same thing. Be careful, however, of the online courses. They cost a lot of money - much, much more than your local college, and you won't get the hands-on training or be able to get your questions answered in a flash with them as you would in an actual college setting. Also, an associate's degree at a college is much more impressive than admitting you received your training via an online course. That, to me, just sounds so "fly by night." 
I vote for local community college.
If you attend a community college, it helps to network. If you do on-line training, you won't have the social part of your training. Also, it helps to try and find an on-site position at first to gain the knowledge although since you are already in a clerical position, you probably know more about anatomy and the hospital/medical setting than you even think. I wish you all the best. Another good thing about a local community college is that sometimes they know of great jobs because the teachers are also employed or know of jobs. You will have a certificate of training in an MT program, but a certified MT is done through the AAMT or whatever it is now, and is not worth the money in my opinion. You wind up after paying a few hundred dollars getting to put CMT after your name, but not when you transcribe a report. For example, even CMTs cannot put XXX/xxx, CMT if you catch my drift. 
I graduated from a local community college. sm
Had my first job before graduation but it was in-house with hourly pay and great benefits. Those are very hard to find anymore. I worked in-house for my first 2 years and then went on maternity leave picking up side work through a company for more income. Realized I was tripling my money going from hourly to production by that time, turned in my notice, and never looked back. Been at home ever since. If at all possible, in the beginning I would recommend to anyone to work inhouse even if it is for a transcription company. The value of having other "ears" is definitely not something to take for granted. I also learned as much as I could while getting that hourly pay as time is money when on production. I have to say I probably would not be near as proficient of an MT today had it not been all those hours learning and having another ear around to help out when stuck.
You bring up a point too though that I haven't really thought about before....With all the transcription being outsourced out of the office, it is only going to get much more difficult for anyone to get those breaks and get the required "experience" as a beginner.
I'm going to a local community college for culinary arts, I'm 52. nm
xxx
When I said vo-tech, I meant community college just in case you were wondering (nm)
nm
Went to community college too..had a job in-house within 2 months, the first and only place I applie
//
If you want to work at a local hospital or doctor's office, go to community college. Otherwise
if you want to work from home, for a national company, you need to take the course from either Andrews School or M-TEC. It does you no good to save money by taking the Penn Foster course, because most companies will NOT hire grads from that school, it is a poor course and does NOT prepare you sufficiently for MT work.
Online Schools
How can you knock what you don't know? How do you know that Andrews and M-Tec aren't graduating qualified MTs? No one said that a graduate knows everything straight out of the gate. I'll bet the grads from the vo-tech school didn't either. But, Andrew and M-TEC teach how to research (major plus!), fine tune grammar that should have already been learned, and teach how to take constructive criticism with a positive attitude-all in order to teach how not to make the same mistake over and over. As an Andrews grad (and current Editor for a mid-sized MTSO), I have seen grads from the other schools, and they require a huge amount of "schooling" on the job as compared to the top 2 schools. JMO.
Christine
Online schools....
Well, I don't know about any online for LPN or RN, but if you Google your state and BSN/MSN, you should pull up quite a few. I actually found a few within 30 minutes of me that have the BSN and MSN programs online. Not all MSN programs will be online because if you specialize, you will have clinicals.
Pharmacy tech 15 weeks, polysomnography 7 month course at local community college..worth a shot!
!!!
Not bogus, there are good courses..
Some are scams. Career Step is not a scam. However, really nobody makes decent money starting out. I used to train MTs, some from Career Step. Most made close to minimum wage at first. They were also limited in the number of reports and work types at first and hours worked. They had the basics but didn't have the overall experience so it takes a lot of time and patience from both the trainer/mentor and the MT. But these MTs are the ones that usually do well. If you start out with a national and are just handed a job and not given a trainer/mentor per se, you will not learn much and will likely fail the QA reviews but hopefully they will give good feedback and you can learn that way. Newbies don't usually do well with that kind of situation in my experience. So finding a company that is willing to take on trainees and mentor them as a first job is a good idea. The pay is also not like it used to be and even after training if you have a job with a national paying 6 cpl you would only be making around 9 an hour based on 150 lph. In my experience I have rarely seen a newbie getting over 150 lph accurately until maybe after a good six months of heavy mentoring/close monitoring by an experienced MT. JMO. Hope that helps.
There are a few good schools. sm
My top vote would be for the MT Advantage advanced program. There are only a couple other schools that even come close.
This is not a good choice. There are too many good schools
that have proven their worth. Andrews, MTEC and even Career Step, but I would not choose a school that has spammed the internet in every crack there is as the one you have mentioned. Find some graduates and see what they have to say. Go to mtchat.com and do a search of this school.
Any For Real Good MT Schools in Houston?
I'm looking for a real good MT school or some sort of MT on the job training or willing to train a person to work out of home. Have been LVN since 1984 but now disable, need something to do out of home. Please reply, disability not enough income. Thanks!
Lon
What are good Medical Transcription Schools?
The response I got when asking about the credibility of MTAtHome.com wasn't very good. So now I'm wondering, what are some good Medical Transcription schools that you can do online. I'm looking for an online program. Can anyone send me in the right direction? I definately don't want to be jipped by a school that is not credible, which will then affect whether I get employment or not. Thanks for your responses.
-Hunter DuRant
I don't know how good online...
would be for coding. I took coding at the community college level; instructor had his own company that did coding and I learned from one of the best in my area. The test is pretty difficult and long. I took it twice; missed the first time by one question and passed the second time with no problem. You have to keep your credentials up in order to keep your certification. I have not done any coding at all, just MT for the past 5-1/2 years, but am going to brush up on by coding skills just in case!
Can somone recommend a good health insurance plan for my son who is in college? *sm*
He needed one more class for his bachelor's degree and because he is not considered full-time, he is no longer covered on my plan. Thanks.
I know people who have not had such good luck online
But good for you!!!
need a good online medical dictionary
that I can use without having to download it because I'm not allowed to download anything and I can't intall my stedman's.
Anyone recommend a good, reliable online...sm
pharmacy that they, themselves had used.. with no ripoffs? I know there are many reputable ones out there but also many scamful, dangerous ones. I know they are generally not cheap, but I need to know I'm getting what I ordered.
Reference for Op reports, anyone know of any good online ones??
Having a tough time with Ops - does anyone know of some good reference sites to refer to?
It's both the schools and co.'s fault. Schools are trying to kick em' out as soon as they
"graduate" and companies are very willing to hire anyone who says "they went to this school or that." I know. I've been there as a former instructor.
I truly believe that not everyone has what it takes to become a good MT. And I mean good. You absolutely cannot guess on anything - and I would stress this over and over to my students at all times. You have to know how to spell, and you have to have basic, or beyond basic, grammar knowledge.
My classes would normally start out at 15 to 17. And by the end of the first week it would go down to about 10. And then after that I would graduate around 8 or so. I would tell them straightforward that this job entails - the skills you must have to do this work - and I probably did turn a few of them away. But when they had it, and I knew they could do this work (I could usually tell by the first 5 papers they turned in) then I would encourage them over and over. I would call them, meet with them, and tell them to stick it out, and that I thought they had found their "spot" in life....That's what my MT instructor did for me many years ago and I am so grateful for her.
I know these gals and guys want to be at home with their young ones - hey, I do too! But as an editor also, I believe that some are just not cut out for this.
Also, I find acute care a lot less challenging than actual clinic work! I have been editing clinic work here lately and boy have I found that to be challenging. It is very, very specific. If they can do clinic work no problem, then they should train on acute care too.
Just my humble opinion.
Oh, as for VR. No, newbies cannot do that right now. You need people with editing background who know thousands upon thousands of words to edit VR. I don't think schools care about training them for VR - just graduate them with the basic knowledge and get a job doing clinic work! Yeah, if it were that easy!
so is a good grammar book found at any bookstore or online--sm
for HALF the price and their guidelines do not change every six months in them. You know, you people hate AAMT because of them selling the american MT out and condoning outsourcing to China, but then you turn around and buy into their money grabbing scam of their BOS book, which changes its mind every six months just to make you buy another book. How blind!!
Bare Minerals IS available at ULTA online,Sephora online...(sm)
...and you don't have to sign up for a makeup "club," or anything. I totally agree with you that this makeup is great for all the basic purposes (coverage, lasting), but their slogan is "Makeup so healthy you can sleep in it." There is a delay in time between when you can apply your powder after moisturizer, but it is really worth it.
To go with your powder I recommend the "pump brush" offered at some of the cosmetic online stores. You fill the handle with your powder mixture (I mix two different powders, changing it up or down according to how much sun I've been getting) and the pump brush will distribute some to the bristles, tap and have at it! This is great for carrying it with you to minimize the loss into the lining of your handbag!
I cannot recommend Bare Minerals enough. I used to be a MAC convert, and have tried everything from Chanel to Maybelline--this product does not disappoint.
MT courses and pay
I was hoping to get some recommedations for online courses and find out what the going rate is for a new MT per year.
I do medical coding & billing right now, but would like to work from home since I am a single mom of 3. The only thing is I currently make $44,000 per year and cannot make much less then that because of mortgage and bills. Thanks for any info.
Best on-line courses?
Hello,
I'd like to take an on-line transcription course, does anyone recommend one over another? Thanks!
Kirsten in CO
Have you taken MT courses yet? Or are you just jumping in on your own? nm
x
I never took any special courses, but I had
worked a total of almost 15 years in a hospital, first in billing, where we had to code all the diagnoses and ops ourselves, and then in another hospital in rehab, where part of my duties were transcription for that dept and some of their various clinics. After my second child was born, I quit the hospital and a friend who had 20 years in transcription taught me what I needed to learn. I got hired by one of the first company's I applied with, and have been doing this for seven years now, and love what I do!
Taken courses, but not much hands-on experience as of yet. n/m
m
courses with Career Step
Have you seen the new issue of Women For Hire and the article about MT, how you can be making up to $32/hour and "you control how much you make." They also suggest you go to AHDI website for more info.
What are the best at home medical billing courses out there?
Have a friend who is interested in training to become a medical biller/coder from home and I really have no idea where to tell her to start. Can anyone help?
I'm studying coding too. I've been looking at different courses plus I bought SM
Step by Step Medical Coding by Carol J. Buck along with the workbook that goes along with it. So while I'm trying to decide on a school, I can be studying on my own. According to the AHIMA website though with my years of experience as an MT, I am eligible to take the certification exam without having to complete a formal coding course. Transcription is considered part of the HIM department and thus if you have worked in any position in HIM, you are qualified to take the test.
So, I may find that studying on my own will benefit me better than paying money for a course I'm not sure about. I also have the benefit of tuition reimbursement with my employer and I may take advantage of that if I find a program I like.
So, I'm with you! Let me know what school you decide on or what avenue you decide to take. Might help me make the decision in the long run!
Assciate in Arts, medical secretarial curriculum. 2 years with courses in sm
anatomy and physiology, biology, clinical biology (taking and processing lab tests--drawing blood on each other!!), filing, skills on all types of office machines, English composition, accounting, psychology, economics, medical terminology/transcription, and, of course, typing. In the second year we did internships at local city hospitals.
I went into transcription after working as a medical secretary for 7 years in a very large clinic.
You have to go outside the community....
nm
Community hospitals
Hi. I just recently got outsourced by my local community hospital which I had worked for for 8 years, the third hospital where I've lost my job to outsourcing.
We were paid hourly from $9-$15 hourly. We had to have a minimum line count of 135 an hour based on a 7-hour day, so 980 63-character lines a day was exceeding standard, worked every 4th weekend and rotated holidays. I loved it. Then they outsourced to Spryance and most of the work in the entire Dayton Ohio area went overseas. There are only a few transcriptionists left working for the hospitals.
Who is to say that these people are pillars of the community?
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