Have you been thinking about starting a new career in the medical industry? One career that is heavily in demand is medical assistant. The Bureau of Labor Statistics projects that jobs for medical assistants will grow by a whopping 15% between 2023 and 2033. [1] If you’re doing research on whether to pursue medical assisting as a career in Northern California, here’s the information you need to know.
What is a Medical Assistant?
Medical assistants work as support for physicians in a medical office or doctors and nurses in a hospital, outpatient clinic, specialty medical office, or long term healthcare facility. They can do a wide range of administrative and clinical tasks. Medical assistants work under the supervision of a licensed physician who is responsible for their work. In any healthcare facility, medical assistants help things run smoothly, as they support the work of doctors and help them to provide the best possible quality of care to patients.
What Tasks Do Medical Assistants Do?
Medical assistants do clinical and administrative tasks in a healthcare facility. These can include:
Here are some of the administrative duties a medical assistant may be responsible for:
- Greeting patients, checking them in
- Answering the front desk phone
- Scheduling patient’s appointments and follow-ups
- Updating and managing medical records of patients
- Inputting patient's insurance information
- Preparing examination rooms, sterilizing equipment
- Taking patient vital signs (pulse, blood pressure, etc)
- Helping physicians with medical examinations (note: MA’s cannot do any invasive procedures)
- Administering vaccine injections in most states, under physician’s supervision, with required training
- Giving patients an EKG test, under physician’s supervision
- Drawing blood for diagnostic testing, with a CPT I certification, or under a physician’s supervision
- Performing basic laboratory exams
- Removing sutures or staples
- Changing wound dressings
- Performing basic laboratory exams
- Giving patients medication, if pre-measured and reviewed by doctor
A medical assistant is not allowed to practice medicine (diagnose patients, create a treatment plan, interpret test results, write prescriptions).
Salary and Wage Data for Sacramento Medical Assistant
According to May 2024 data from the BLS, medical assistants in Sacramento earned a mean annual salary of $61,380 and earned a mean hourly wage of $29.51.[1]
This was enough to rank Sacramento as the sixth highest metropolitan statistical area in the country for medical assistant salaries, behind Vallejo, Santa Clara County (San Jose and Sunnyvale), Alaska non-metropolitan areas, San Francisco-Oakland, and Santa Rosa-Petaluma. The rest of the top twelve behind Sacramento were Napa CA, Seattle WA, Fairbanks AK, Anchorage AK, Santa Cruz CA, and Modesto CA.
Data from Glassdoor as of April 10, 2025 showed a median total pay for medical assistants in Sacramento of $49,660 per year [2], with a base salary of $46,338 per year and additional pay averaging $3,322 per year.
Comparison of Medical Assistant Salary National Avg vs Sacramento
BLS data from May 2024. [1]
| National Avg | Sacramento Avg | |
|---|---|---|
| Annual Median Salary | $44,200 | $62,570 |
| Hourly Median Wage | $21.25 | $30.08 |
| Annual Mean Salary | $44,720 | $61,380 |
| Hourly Mean Wage | $21.50 | $29.51 |
How Do You Become a Medical Assistant?
In California, there is no State requirement to become certified as a medical assistant, but it is recommended. Many physicians carry medical malpractice insurance, and most policies require medical assistants to be certified, because the licensed physician is responsible for their work. Here are the steps to get certified in California.
1. Choose a Program
Find an accredited, approved program that will give you the necessary training, and teach you the knowledge and skills you need to start your career and pass your certification exam. The certification exams have a prerequisite for hands-on work experience hours before you take the exam. This is why you should choose a program that includes an externship.
2. Complete an Externship
An externship is an unpaid work experience in which the student works alongside a real medical team in a clinic, physician office, hospital or other healthcare facility. This gives the student hands-on experience and lets them see what it is like working with other medical professionals and helping patients in a real-world setting. After successfully completing the program and externship, the student can take the certification exam.
3. Pass Exam, Get Certified
Campus Sacramento prepares you for the National Certified Medical Assistant (NCMA) exam has 150-multiple choice questions. The NCMA exam is certified by the National Center for Competency Testing. Pass this exam, and you’re a certified medical assistant.
4. Apply for Jobs, Get Hired
Now it’s time to get your resume together and apply for jobs. Many medical offices, clinics, and local hospitals need medical assistants. Get working experience and you can control your career trajectory from there.
Become a Medical Assistant in About 36 Weeks
If you’re interested in a career in healthcare, and you want to get certified as a medical assistant, Campus Sacramento has a Medical Assisting training program to give you the training you need to start your career. This is a hybrid class, with much of the coursework completed online with minimal required in-person days at our Sacramento junior college. This program includes a hands-on externship at a local medical office or healthcare facility. For more information on start dates, class schedule, and financial aid, contact our Admissions team or call us at 888-675-2460.
[1] Note: The data provided above are from a source unaffiliated with Campus, formerly known as MTI College, are for informational purposes only and represent the employment field as a whole. They are not solely specific to Campus graduates and, by providing the above information, Campus makes no representation, direct or implied, or opinion regarding employability.
[2] Glassdoor, https://www.glassdoor.com/Salaries/sacramento-ca-medical-assistant-salary-SRCH_IL.0,13_IM747_KO14,31.htm , updated April 10, 2025. Accessed May 31, 2025.