Is the CMAA certification worthwhile?

@Haleth I’m the practice administrator for a small private surgical practice. I’m the one who screens resumes when we have a position to fill. I typically ignore those certificates. With all of the degree mills out there these days, I have little confidence they mean much of anything.

My advice is to save your money, get your foot in the door at a small practice where things are more flexible and impress them with your attitude, and a stellar cover letter written specifically for that practice. If your area is anything like the pool of applicants in my area, you’ll stand out in a sea of mediocre resumes.

In a larger practice or hospital I think HR is a lot more rigid and cares more about certificates.

Do any of the ads for the jobs you want ask for that certificate? Or, say it’s a plus if you are certified? If not it’s probably a waste.

Talk to people who actually do the hiring in your area. @gorillapaws gave a really worthwhile answer since he does hiring.

The rep at the schools selling the certificate program will make you feel like it’s a ticket to getting hired, but the salespeople are not trustworthy.

It’s like I tell people who get AA degrees. Very very few employers care about an AA. Certain fields it’s worth something, and two year nursing programs are a good example of being able to get a well paying job without a 4 year degree, but for things like the business world an AA is worth practically nothing.

I think you can apply for admin positions now. You’ve been a manager, and if you have good computer and organization skills you are already qualified. You need to write up a good resume that emphasizes the skills necessary for the job you want. Your resume needs to be very good. It will be an example of your writing and visual skills.

If you like medical consider working in medical records also. I liked working there. There is some sort of certificate for medical coding. I remember the medical records manager taught a class in it on the side.