WINSTED, CT – November 4, 2020 – Northwestern Connecticut Community College’s Medical Assisting Program was recently ranked fourth best of the twenty-five Medical Assisting Programs available in Connecticut that were evaluated by MedicalAssistantAdvice.com, an online resource that has been serving medical assisting students and professionals since 2012. The rankings were based on factors such as, graduation rate, net price, admission rate, retention rate number of enrolled students and the reputation of the school.
Two CSCU sister schools, Quinebaug Valley Community College and Norwalk Community College were ranked number one and number two respectively, in Connecticut.
Nationally, 1241 schools that are currently offering medical assisting education were assessed. Each school had to meet minimum entry requirements for evaluation. The school must offer either a certificate, diploma or associate degree program in medical assisting. The complete list of accredited medical assistant programs was gathered from CAAHEP – Commission on Accreditation of Allied Health Education Programs and ABHES – Accrediting Bureau of Health Education Schools. Admission rate, graduation rate, and average net price was collected from the Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) and College Navigator, both of which are hosted by the National Center for Education Statistics. In addition, student ratings and reviews were accumulated from websites such as niche.com, facebook.com, gradreport.com and ratemyprofessors.com.
Professor Jane O’Grady, Program Coordinator, Allied Health & Medical Assisting Programs at NCCC asserts, “Medical Assistants play an integral role in health care delivery because of their rare blend of knowledge, competence, and versatility. Our dedicated instructors provide the best clinical and administrative patient-centered training. I could not be prouder of Northwestern, my instructors, or my students.”
Dr. David Ferreira, Dean of Academic & Student Affairs at Northwestern Connecticut Community College adds, “The pandemic has highlighted the need for high quality medical assistants. I am proud that our program at NCCC is recognized for the superb training of our frontline essential workers in Northwestern Connecticut. Congratulations to our exceptional faculty for their hard work.”
Medical assistants work alongside physicians, mainly in outpatient or ambulatory care facilities, such as medical offices and clinics. Medical assisting is one of the nation’s fastest growing careers, according to the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics, attributing job growth to the following: Predicted surge in the number of physicians’ offices and outpatient care facilities, technological advancements, growing number of elderly Americans who need medical treatment. Medical assistants are cross-trained to perform administrative and clinical duties.
For more information about Northwestern Connecticut Community College’s Medical Assisting Program, please contact, Professor Jane O’Grady at jogrady@nwcc.edu.
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