Portland Community College | Portland, Oregon

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Medical assistants work directly with patients and providers such as doctors, physician assistants, and nurse practitioners. Medical assistants are an integral member of the healthcare team. You can find them working within large healthcare organizations or small private practice clinics, and within primary care or specialty settings.

The Oregon Employment Department forecasts that medical assistant job openings will increase by 23.3% through 2032.

Why choose Medical Assisting at PCC?

Here are some unique offerings that we provide for our students:

• Our classes are offered at east- and west-Portland locations.
• Our flexible classes are offered both in-person and online.
• The program lasts 9 months.
• The program has a guaranteed admissions process.
• A new cohort starts every term!
• Many of our instructors have graduated from the program.
• There are opportunities for paid externship – get paid while completing clinical hours!
• On average, 93% of our students are employed within a month after graduation.
• On average, 95% of our students pass their national exam.
• Our fall 2023 graduates made an average starting salary of $48,270 per year.
• The total cost of the program is low compared to the majority of medical assisting programs in the area.

Our focus is on helping our students become well-rounded, competent, and employable medical assistants. Instructors in the program have gone through the program themselves, which allows for a different experience than you may find in other programs. We understand that success isn’t always linear. We believe that every student who comes into the program can be successful. While we can’t do the work for you, we can be there to support, mentor, and guide you through.

We regularly assess the program for areas of improvement. We take into account emerging trends in healthcare, direct feedback from current students, as well as input from healthcare organizations in the area.

Our program is well-regarded for shaping high-quality medical assistants. Employers note that they see a difference in our graduates compared to other programs. We believe this is due to our in-depth curriculum that focuses on person-centered care, the way we support and engage our students, as well as the growth mindset we have as a program.

Nationally accredited

Our program is accredited by the Commission on Accreditation of Allied Health Educational Programs (CAAHEP) in collaboration with the American Association of Medical Assistants. Our graduates are eligible to take the CMA (AAMA) national certification examination, conducted by the Certifying Board of the American Association of Medical Assistants.

Successful graduates

PCC’s Medical Assisting program places a high focus on student success. According to our most recent annual report data, over the last five years (2020-2024*), we had an average 93.17% retention rate, 92.67% national exam passage rate, and 84.94% job placement rate!

*This data includes information during the COVID-19 pandemic, in which the program saw a large decline in job placement and national exam passage rates. 

Award information

Degrees and certificates by number of terms to complete

Award	Length (attending full-time)	Financial aid eligible	Currently accepting students?
Certificate: Medical Assisting	1 year		Limited entry, see how to apply to Medical Assisting

What will you learn?

• Clinical procedures: Venipuncture, blood pressure, EKGs, injections, wound care, and much more!
• Administrative procedures: Documenting in an electronic health record system (EHR), scheduling appointments, scrubbing a patient’s chart, and much more.
• Communication skills: Person-centered communication, working through communication barriers, trauma-informed care, patient interviewing, culturally competent care, and much more.
• Employability skills: Working on a team, professionalism, resume writing, interview preparation, national exam prep, and much more.

What will you do?