According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS, 2015), the national average wage for Medical Transcriptionists was $34,890 in May 2015. For other information, you can visit the BLS web page to learn the average pay and employment statistics for the state in which you expect to work.
Find Medical Transcriptionist Salary Info For Your State
- Alabama
- Alaska
- Arizona
- Arkansas
- California
- Colorado
- Connecticut
- Delaware
- District of Columbia
- Florida
- Georgia
- Hawaii
- Idaho
- Illinois
- Indiana
- Iowa
- Kansas
- Kentucky
- Louisiana
- Maine
- Maryland
- Massachusetts
- Michigan
- Minnesota
- Mississippi
- Missouri
- Montana
- Nebraska
- Nevada
- New Hampshire
- New Jersey
- New Mexico
- New York
- North Carolina
- North Dakota
- Ohio
- Oklahoma
- Oregon
- Pennsylvania
- Rhode Island
- South Carolina
- South Dakota
- Tennessee
- Texas
- Utah
- Vermont
- Virginia
- Washington
- West Virginia
- Wisconsin
- Wyoming
Career training to become a medical transcriptionist is offered at the postsecondary level. As an initial step, you need to have earned a high school diploma or its equivalent in order to apply to a training institution. Many community colleges and vocational schools across the country offer training in the field. Some schools also offer online courses. Training programs may be at the certificate level or associate degree programs.
Certificate programs typically take one year to complete, while associate degree programs are designed to be completed in two years. Students take courses in anatomy, Business English, healthcare documentation, medical terminology, ICT in records keeping, legal issues in healthcare documentation, physiology, and risk management. Students also learn how to use word processing software to perform transcription work. There is great emphasis on grammar and punctuation as competence in these areas promotes efficiency in transcribing. Most medical transcriptionist training programs incorporate an internship program for students. An internship offers students with the opportunity to build vital hands-on transcription experience.