Medical assistant jobs in Georgia

Around 28,780 people hold medical assistant jobs in Georgia. That comes to 5.9 for every 1,000 jobs statewide, which puts the state at 6th out of 51 when you count all 50 states plus Washington, DC, according to federal wage data.

Most of this work is found around Atlanta. That metro area, which includes Sandy Springs and Roswell, has about 16,910 medical assistant positions, over half of all the jobs in the state.

Each year, Georgia's labor agency anticipates around 4,210 medical assistant openings. Newly created positions are included here, along with roles that open up as workers move on. If you plan to job hunt soon, this is the figure worth watching. Among the 50 states and Washington, DC, Georgia places 5th for annual openings, using the figures in state projections.

That field is projected to grow from 26,040 positions in 2024 to 33,080 by 2034. That works out to 27.1% growth, more than two times the national figure of 12.5%, and it puts Georgia 6th of 51 for growth. Put simply, this field is expected to keep creating positions for many years to come.

The typical medical assistant in Georgia earns $41,600 a year, about $20.00 an hour. Half of medical assistants earn more than that amount while the other half earn less, so treat it as the middle rather than an entry-level number. Nationally, the median sits higher at $45,690. For pay, Georgia comes in 36th of 51, per federal wage data.

For the middle half of Georgia's medical assistants, yearly earnings run from $36,910 to $46,870. At the bottom, the lowest-paid tenth collect $34,270 or less. At the top, the best-paid tenth receive $51,430 or more.

A metro area covers a central city plus nearby counties where people travel to work. Two of the areas listed here stretch across state lines, so their job totals include spots in Tennessee and South Carolina.

Only Atlanta pays above the national median. Each of the remaining four areas falls under the state median. Every figure in this table comes from the same federal wage tables.

You do not. The state neither licenses medical assistants nor requires an exam. Instead, work falls under something known as physician delegation. A doctor hands you certain duties and takes responsibility for confirming you have proper training for them. You can read how these rules work in the Georgia Composite Medical Board regulations.

Certain duties have supervision requirements. When you administer injections, provide nebulizer treatments, or handle sutures and dressings, a physician, physician assistant or advanced practice nurse needs to be present on site. Checking vital signs carries no such requirement.

State permits are not needed for taking x-rays either, though your workplace must provide at least 6 hours of radiation safety training before you use the equipment. Your employer is the one who must give you that training.

You can find 39 Georgia schools on this site, and every one of them submits its medical assistant graduate numbers to the federal education survey. Of those, 21 run programs accredited by CAAHEP or ABHES. Accreditation means an outside reviewer has confirmed the program meets established teaching standards.

Nationally, career schools that publish their completion times finish in a median of 9 months. The quickest take 2 months and the longest take 32. For career schools, the median published cost for an entire program comes to $17,257, covering tuition, fees and books. According to federal education data, the median in-district cost of studying full-time for one year at a public college is $4,346.

Distance education is an option at some programs, yet the supervised clinical practice portion always happens in person. Across the country, 30 programs allow this format, and 14 of those hold accreditation.

Ready to start? Go to the Georgia program page, pick one accredited program from the tables, and send the Request information form below them with your name, email, phone, ZIP code and start time to reach that school.