Check into your local community college.
Posted By: just me on 2006-02-05
In Reply to: Best? Which of the top 3??? - Schools MT
You will get an excellent MT education and it won't cost you an arm and a leg. What people say about the "Big 3" schools is a lot of hype. JMO
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training.....go to your local community college sm
and check out their training program.
I went to a Community College
/
Not all of them! Community College
can be great if you find one with a well rounded program. I went to a CC and was hired by a national before I even graduated. Don't knock community colleges. There are some that have really great programs. You just have to do your research.
there is a Community college in BC . . .
That partners with the CanScribe program I think, their fees might be different or that way you might qualify for some financial aid $ from the Canadian gov't based on income level, worker retraining, displaced homemaker, etc. It's online so you don' have to be there. Basically what I'm doing on the other side of the border through EvCC. I forget which college it is but it is on the Career Step Canadian info link. Good luck!
community college
You may want to research Career Step through one of the community colleges that offer the program. Some colleges offer financial aid and instructors. It seems to be worth looking into.
Yes, Community college is better
I'm doing the CS program through Everett community college and I would definitly say it is better than doing CS alone. I have instructors I can email/call at anytime if I need help, plus, you get more assistance that way!
Everett Community college.
I attended Everett Community College online. They utilize the Career Step program and also you have teachers and classmates, and deadlines. It was a very good program and I have had no problem getting a job right out of school. Actually, I have three working accounts right now. I was able to get a Stafford Student loan and there are many options on repayment. Please to any seasoned transcriptionist, please do not nit pick at this email, I just woke up.
4 CMT instructors of community college course? I don't think so
4 CMT instructors of community college course? I don't think so. Prove me wrong.
Someone below said 4 CMTs instructed their community college MT course. That is so hard to believe since CMTs can make more transcribing than teaching and community colleges are hurting for money. When they get money, it doesn't go to the MT course. There may be 1 or 2 exceptions. Would you post the name of your school and the web site so we can give them the credit they deserve?
I went to Randolph Community College and
the instructors do not have their credentials listed on the website. You would have to email each on individually, and I'm not giving out names on a public forum. I'm sorry that you don't believe me, but I'm not going to lose any sleep over it. I know I got an excellent education from 4 CMTs among other instructors in my program.
The Community College I went to offers
a CMT exam after completing the program. It costs $150.00. I'm not sure of all the details though. I'm considering taking it, but haven't made up my mind yet.
I went to a community college and was hired
by a national one month before I graduated. You do not have to go to one of the "Big 3" to find a job in this business. You have to keep applying, keep sending in resumes, and TEST, TEST, TEST. That's what I did. It's not easy, but it can be done if you stick with it.
I went the community college route...
3 terms, September to June, got a certificate in medical transcription. I then went an additional term and picked up a medical office specialist certificate and also took some coding classes and passed the coding test that same year. Within 2 months I had an in-house transcription job (the first and only transcription job I applied for) worked there 3 years, did every type of report and all radiology reports, and have been at home for 2 years now. My current employer (which is a very good national) hired me without even having me take a test of any kind, just did the phone interview, so my community college certificate has not hurt me in the least. Good luck in whatever you decide.
Everett Community College
I am starting the MT program at Everett Community College in January and was wondering if anyone has had experience with this school and if so, what did you think about it? I know their curriculum uses the Career Step program, but just wondered what people thought of it being presented in the way it is at Everett. Thanks!
San Juan Community College
Hello,
I am interested in taking the Career Step program, but trying to decide whether to go through San Juan Comm College. I would like to know if anyone has taken the CS course through the college and if they felt prepared.
Thanks!
Everett Community College
Hi Julie, I am a student in the medical transcription program at Everett Community College. I am in my second semester and have been able to get financial aid (that I don't have to pay back) for my first 2 semesters. They also offer Federal Student Loans that anyone can get. The program is great but definitly not easy! The instructors are also awesome. Let me know if you have any questions!!
http://www.everettcc.edu/programs/bat/medtrans/index.cfm?id=300&linkFrom=Search
Community college course or online? Your opinions? sm:)
Hi. I'm new to the board, and would like your opinions on which you think is a better education: local community college here which offers an MT certification course (3 semesters in length) or online with either CS or M-Tec?
I am self disciplined, but still may stay more focused if I have deadlines, and classes to go to. I'm not sure...
Have any of you found more value in one choice or another? Thanks in advance for your time/input! :) Anne
Mt. Hood Community College in Gresham, OR SM
I completed their 2-year program, and it was excellent. The person in charge of the program is a CMT and she had another CMT working with her.
Chickadee
Career Step thru Everett Community College
I ams starting this program Spring quarter (April). I am able to use Veteran's Dependents' Educational Benefits for this so it is paid for 100% (my Dad is a disabled Vietnam Vet). If you qualify for Veteran's aid (spouses and kids do in some cases too), worker retraining (were you laid off? has your field been outsourced overseas like manufacturing?) displaced homemaker (did you get divorced or widowed and need viable job skills?), or just low enough income that you would be eligible thru FAFSA (federal student financial aid) then you can get aid for this program. If you have to pay out of pocket tho, choose Career Step directly.
There are a couple other programs out there run thru Comm. Colleges, one in AZ, one in WI.
Community College Career Step Training
The fact is that most students who take Career Step training via Everett Community College or San Juan Community College do so, because they cannot afford to pay for Career Step out of their own pockets. No matter where they obtain the training, it is still quality training. Even if they don't get their first job via the Spheris or any other fast track, they will still be able to find a job if they work hard.
I did a community college certificate and immediately started working as an IC
I always recommend the community college route because it is VERY inexpensive compared to the MT schools. You can always do an MT school after your community college work if you think you really need it.
I am NOT a certified medical Transcriptionist (CMT) because that can only be obtained through AAMT. I DO have a certificate of completion of the MT course through my community college though. I have found it to be more than adequate for me to work as an IC MT, and my teacher has been very willing to help me with problems and questions that I can't figure out myself through these wonderful MT boards!
Good luck!
A woman told me this week her community college "certified" her as an MT.
I think the problem is the people who are teaching those courses don't know the difference. It isn't really a lie. They just don't know better. Of course they also shouldn't be teaching a subject they know little or nothing about, but that's for another thread, another time.
Could be poor MT material to start with - my absolute best MT came from community college and
I've had some Andrews, M-Tecs that couldn't even pass the first grammar screening.
I went to a local college here.. and now...
I started off with $19/h plus incentive. Now, I make $22/h plus incentive at a local hospital. Yes it can be done.
How about seeing what's available thru your local college? Might be able to take
s
I went to my local Commuinty College
took all my courses online. Much less expensive than those "other schools" and the program I was in was more intensive than the others. I was hired by a national before I even graduated.
Best bet is local college for MT training
Please do not waste your money on those "fast track" schools that promise you training in 6 months to a year. I did one, and then had to go to the local college to get my real training along with a 2-year mentoring program typing OPs. Money used to be good (I was making $90,000 to $100,000) but now I cannot even make enough money to cover expenses (call-in system, phone lines, office rent, reference books, AAMT membership, DSL, voice file equipment, C-phone equipment, transcribers for local clients, stationary, constant software upgrades and reference book upgrades, business license, etc. Get the picture? Oh yeah, the most expensive of all--the medical expenses from 16 surgeries from all my work injuries as a Transcriptionist with 4 more surgeries to go and all the doctors, prescriptions at $1400 a month with insurance, insurance premiums, electric, etc. The list goes on. I truly wish I could get out.
Local college is best way to go plus a great mentor!
Wow, $6,000? I spent a fortune on a lousy school too before I went to the local college. I worked for the lady on the advisory board who trained me with a fine-tooth comb. It was the hard but best way to go. Besides, I got to dissect cadavers! Good luck!
check with local hospitals
I contacted a local hospital (SW Michigan) and was told that they hire MT students and graduates. But they also said that all you really need is physiology, medical terminology, anatomy and typing skills. Seeing how you have a strong medical background, you might want to check into something like that.
Check with your local hospitals
Sometimes they offer training if you have the basics. There is a hospital in my area that will work with you for up to a year until they feel you are ready to be on your own. Definitely worth checking out.
check with local offices
I agree with the above poster. It may sound mean, and I don't mean it to sound that way, but a course through Penn Foster doesn't mean much to employers and doesn't even come close to the education offered by the top schools. I would try to start local if you can, get some experience in, then check out some of the bigger companies if that is what you want.
How long have you been away? Might need a refresher course from a local college or business school.
s
check your local hospitals' job boards
You might find MT jobs posted there that aren't ever advertised anywhere.
My coworker had no experience, but took a job in the secretarial float pool at the hospital while she was finishing her online MT schooling. When a swing-and-evenings part-time slot became available (posted on the jobs board, but never advertised elsewhere), the MT manager was willing to give her a shot and roll her out on easy stuff first. Two years and a bazillion questions later, she's turned into quite a good MT, I must say, and just last month she began working from home. :)
I also had to take the bad (weekends and swing and all holidays) shift to get my foot in the door when I first started. It's the nature of the biz.
Also, I would highly, highly, highly recommend you work in-house, sitting pretty much knee-to-knee with a seasoned pro who can mentor you... as you both are paid hourly. A newbie working on production all alone at home will be making less than minimum wage. I hope I'm not crushing your dreams; just giving you a dose of realism. You need a mentor.
Best wishes to you all.
Might want to take a medical terminology class at a local college. Anyone nearby to mentor with? nm
s
Take a medical terminology class - one class - at a community college (sm)
You don't have to sign up for the whole program, just take a medical terminology class and learn it inside and out. Get some medical terminology CDs and listen to them in your car. Find places with in-house transcriptionists to let you test and start out working in-house so that you will have help. It is very hard the first couple of months but gets much easier after that. I was a secretary, took anatomy and physiology and some other pre-nursing classes. Decided not to be a nurse, took a medical terminology class and that was it. Studied a lot, listened to tapes, went and tested, worked in house a few months. Have been doing this 12 years now.
Don't forget your local papers and local Temp. Agency or Manpower office. nm
s
Why not try local MTSO's or local doctors' offices
That's how I started out when I first became an MT. I found a very small local MTSO who gave me a chance and now I work for a local company and have been there for two years. It might be worth it to take a look. I basically trained at the MTSO's office for about a month so there was no testing involved at all. Just learning along the way. Good luck whatever you decide.
If you want to work local, take local course. Otherwise, online is the way to go.
Most msjor national MT companies will not be familiar with what kind of training you get locally, but they are familiar with Andrews and M-Tec training, and will waive the 2-year experience requirement for grads of those schools. A local hospital or doctor's office would be more familiar with a local MT training program than they would with national online MT schools.
The "expensive" online options really aren't all that expensive in the long run when you realize what an excellent education you get, not to mention help finding a job afterwards.
CS vs. CS-Using Community Colleges
If a community college uses the Career Step program, is that as good as the CS program itself?  I'm asking because more financial aid is available through the college, but if the program isn't as good as using CS directly I will go the direct route. Thank you.
most of my MTs come from Community Colleges
This insistence on Andrews or M-Tec makes me very uneasy. I've been responsible for hiring and training thousands of MTs and even I don't know these two schools that well and I rarely see graduates from there. I know they have good student support. I do see lots of graduates from Career Step. BTW, the Career Step grads are not well prepared for employment- not at all. Not like you'd think from reading current posts. Most of my past hires from Career Step failed to stick with it. Only a small percentage could hold up- bad typing skills- but good on terminology.
Most of our employees (MTs) are either graduates of community colleges or staffing schools that we contract with. If Andrews and M-Tec were as dominant as you read here, I'd expect the only good MTs to have come from those schools and I don't. I didn't go there. I've done fine. I've never had a problem being hired in my early days as an MT. I went to a community college and they used HPI publications.
I think this insistence on a "big three" is very misleading. As a person who hires and trains, I know you don't need to attend one of these 3 schools to get a job. Attitude has far more to do with it than book training anyway. We'd much rather have a graduate with a poorer education who has a great attitude than the reverse. The education can be improved quickly while the attitude is impossible to change.
I will just take your word for it that these 2 schools have great classes, but why all this drum beating when there are untold numbers of excellent community college programs and also staffing schools. How about Mentoring Internships too? There are lots of resources that my MTs have used to become well educated.
However, there are "schools" that are nothing but internet marketing machines. It is obvious who they are. They are the ones who sell diplomas for almost anything. New students should definitely beware of those. Medical Transcription is too difficult to learn from a mail order house. You can't sit in isolation at home and learn medical transcription very easily and that is the big trap, IMO. This is not like getting your real estate license and only needing to pass 1 test to get a job.
That's my view from my corner of the world.
Local hospitals
Have you checked with your local hospitals? There is one near me that will hire you with or without a formal training program behind you. They work one on one with you to train you. The pay is good too. It might be something for you to check out. You also might want to send resumes to local doctor offices.
online vs local job
Where I live the local votech school has a very high placement rate and if I wanted to work in house, I would start by taking their MT course. My local school's course is far from complete though, and there is no way a national company would hire me with just that course and no experience.
I have no idea what the local employers would think about an online program. We're kind of in the sticks and they really rely on the local tech school to pump out grads that can do the work the local companies need them to do. Its practically tailored to the needs of the local economy.
I'm going with an online program because I want to be sure I can gain employment, and I want thorough training.
Not sure how much this helps.
Local Clinics
Have you tried applying at local clinics or is there a small MTSO in your area? I got my first job as an IC by applying to all the Transcription companies in my area. Now I work as an employee for a Nephrology Clinic also local. Good luck.
You may have to work in a local sm
service, maybe even at their office in order to get work with 6 months of experience. If you do manage to find an online company to offer you work (that is not a scam), consider yourself extremely lucky.
Was your local course a single class or
a curriculum? How long did the training take?
I'm deciding on whether or not to train locally here or online with Career Step.
The advice you've been given sounds really good. I hope it helps you! Hang in there! :)
Did you find the job in a local ad or on a web site? Thanks! nm
x
I replied to an ad in my local newspaper.
Work for Local Company
I work as an IC for a small local company at the moment.
Have you tried your local hospital or physicians?
I work for my local hospital and my supervisor hired "newbies" all the time. However, some clinics or hospitals require you to do a little onsite time before going home, at least mine did. I had to meet a certain productivity rate and QA rate before I was "turned loose".
I'm not sure if you are wanting to work for a national company or not from home. Since I have no experience with that someone else may be able to guide you in that direction. I just know around here, having tons of experience isn't really needed to be hired locally.
You can always try on-line local paper ads...sm
I see them all the time and not really looking for experience, but for schooling and skill in Word. Call hospitals and listen to their employment listings or even look them up on-line. There are tons of ways to find work, not just with the big companies. I once looked in my yellow pages and found a neighborhood MT needing help. I just called her and asked, and she said yes! Good luck!
The "affilation" with the local hospital may or may not....sm
...hurt you for future employment with other companies. Make sure you check out whether this school is reputable with other employers. I do not think the price is too high, if you consider it as an investment toward future income. Good luck! :)
local or online school?
I live in Spokane, WA, and I'm considering studying MT
to become a transcriptionist. I am very much attracted to the idea of studying at home at my own pace. I am deciding
between 3 distance learning schools:
1. Andrews 2. M-Tec 3. Career Step
I have read that Andrews and M-Tec are very good (both
cost under $4,000) and that Career Step doesn't prepare one well for the MT profession (costs under $2,000).
After I spoke to a former student at the Spokane
Community College MT program she advised that she wouldn't spend more than $1,500 on the MT training and strongly recommended Spokane Community College.
Here's my dilemma:
The SCC program takes 4 quarters. If I signed up on January 3, 2008, I would be done at the end of 2008 - the program takes the whole calendar year.
The online options are self-paced, and because I only work part-time, I imagine I would be done a lot sooner, maybe in 6 months.
The former student at the SCC also explained that if I attend a local program = Spokane CC, I will have a much better chance of getting a job locally.
However, at this point in time I don't know if I will be staying in Spokane for the foreseeable future (it depends on my husband's job situation) and might be moving out of Spokane sometime at the second half of 2008.
I have a Master's degree in English. I'm mentioning this because I know a good portion of a MT program is language study.
Would you please give me advice on what to do? Take the Spokane Community College course or one of the expensive online options?
Thank you very much.
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