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Hi So, what school would you recommend? Thanks in advance.:-)

Posted By: Not the OP. No Msge. on 2007-08-23
In Reply to: You've never taken - So

xxx


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you are ahead of the game by inquiring in advance
a lot of posts on these boards indicate people might be given false promises about jobs when the graduate. Just scroll down and read some of the posts. It is very sad. There are a few companies that are supposed to be good. I graduated 15 years ago from a business college that is no longer in business. Be careful with the short six week courses. Do not be mistaken, this is a very hard field to get into, but if you can it is very worthwhile. Be persistent but do not get taken by some of these on-line courses. Good Luck!!!
I recommend you (sm)
start with a secure FTP server for uploading and downloading your work. Shop around for the best deal and pay attention to how charges are calculated for the server space. With that in place, it won't matter where you live as your clients can upload to the server over the internet and you can download from wherever you're living!
What course do you recommend? sm
I have a friend wanting to take an MT course.  She has looked at Andrews, but cannot afford that.  Is there another course that is more reasonable in cost, but still a good reputable "school"?  Thanks.
Have it but don't recommend it
The purpose of this book is if you can only make out one word of a phrase, you can look that word up in this book and it will have a list of phrases containing that word. It definitely does not take the place of all the separate Stedman's specialty books.

The terms & phrases book has helped me out a few times, but all in all I do not recommend it unless you can get it for super cheap (like $10) somewhere. I would continue to collect the individual specialty books.
Usually here we recommend (sm)
Andrews or M-Tec. I don't know anything about Meditec, but grads of the first two I mentioned get jobs when they get out.

I've taken on an AHP newbie before, and she wasn't even ready for radiology without lots of help. It didn't teach her 1/5 of what I expected her to know.

I wouldn't recommend going FT with MT currently.

If you can do both for a while do that and then it will give you a chance to see if you like MT without having to give up the other job.  You can get an idea of what your income would be as an MT and see if you could leave on that income alone.   By working the 2 jobs you could also save some money or pay off bills so that if you did go MT full-time you would be in better shape when the lean times came around. 


 


What training would you all recommend

Hi,


I am looking into schooling.  I thought I had decided on Career steps, but after reading the board, Andrews and m-tech seem better.   Is career steps a bad decision and does anyone know if it is easy to get a job after you graduate.  I am looking to work from home only.  I have an associates of applies science degree and passed my CNA course (certified nurses assistant).  I planned on being a RN but got pregnant and am not willing to ever take him to daycare.  I need to work from home and have been looking into medical transcription for almost a year now....... Just wondering what course will get me a job the easiest and if Career Steps is a good idea?


THANKS!


charie


I don't think it is. I would not recommend this business
to anyone.   With all the work going offshore or going to VR and the line rates dropping, or not increasing with inflation, plus all the horrible platforms, etc. it just isn't the business I woulud want to retrain for. 
I would recommend Stedman's Orthopedic

Word Book.   It sounds like it isn't the exam that is the problem, but the tests/procedures, which is where a good reference source would help.  


I recommend Career Step
I am a CS graduate and found it to be reasonably priced and very in depth! It prepared me well!!!

Go to www.MTinTexas.com for more info or feel free to email me at lyndi@MTinTexas.com. :)

HTH
I would not recommend it. Being a speed typist
isn't as important as being accurate, but if you have been typing "for years" and only type 55 wpm an MT course is not going to improve that.   MT work can be very stressful.   It is difficult for a newbie to get a position and the pay isn't very good even for experienced MTs who can work full-time.  My MIL had MS and stress would make her muscles become rigid to the point she had to take some much Valium she was a zombie. 
I wouldn't recommend MT for you based on your
situation, but if you have no previous MT experience/training you would need to take a course, either by correspondance or at a local community college.   Training can take 9 to 18 months, or less depending on how much time you have to put into it, but if you are working FT you're probably looking at a year.  Then you need to either get hired by a company that will hire newbies and pay them next to nothing, or do an internship, which you may or may not get paid for and may have to pay to do. 
Call their office to see which one they would recommend for you :) nm
x
I would not recommend buying the CD versions used
because you are only allowed 2 downloads and then they don't work. 
I would not recommend Penn Foster. In order
to take any of their courses you have to have completed 8th grade, and that is about where the courses are geared to.  My teen son is taking an automotive course through them and he knows more than is in the books and he has found many errors in the books.  They emphasize that the testing is open book and if you do poorly they allow you to test again.  I don't feel like you learn much this way.   While the school itself is an accredited school in most states, I feel like it would be a waste of time and money for MT. 
I started MTing in 1979 and right not would not recommend it to anyone.

..


I would not recommend applying to Focus. That is a bad company and
t
I personally would not recommend them mainly because of the poor way they treat their staff.
/
Agree with an outside school, but I went to a business & tech school. Great experience, better
s
You CAN get a job at home, right out of school, but it has to be a GOOD school.
You should enroll in Andrews School or M-TEC. I know you don't want to spend more money, but at least you WILL be able to get a job. If you thought At Home Professions was a good course, you will be totally amazed at what you DIDN'T learn in that course that you WILL learn at the two good schools. There is no "required" curriculum for MT, anybody can open up a school, charge what they want, and teach what they want. Companies will waive the 2-years' experience requirement for graduates of Andrews School and M-TEC, but NOT for the other schools.
School?

Has anyone graduated from Thomson Education Direct and got hired anywhere?


Just wondering about choosing the right school for medical transcription course.


MT school
I attend the Andrews School. It has a very good reputation among national services--some will even waive the minimum 2-year experience requirement and allow you to test for them if you are an Andrews graduate. I have heard good things about M-Tec as well. I would suggest that you contact hospitals, nationals, etc. that you might want to work for and ask them which schools they suggest as far as turning out job-ready graduates. Good luck!
$ for MT school
No, I don't. We have debt out of our ears but you can make payments or charge it or whatever it takes. I've always had to spend money to make money. I just want to make sure I can make it back fairly soon. When I do the math it seems like you have to be pretty darn fast at transcription to earn a living. I admire the people out there doing it!
School and $$$
Hey, sorry about your ankle. Sounds like this could be a perfect time to study for MT. I'm sure I saw scholarship information that was based on financial need on one of the "3" schools...Andrews, MTEC or Career Step. Go to their websites and see! All the best to you! 
What to look for in a school
There are three things to look at in choosing a school and neither of them is money.

The first is whether national services already hire their grads and keep them longer than 6 months.

The second is what percentage of the grads score adequately on the employer's test.

The third is how many students complete the course with a grade of 95% or better on the first try.

Even if an employer is willing to hire from a school, if few grads pass his test and qualify to be hired, then the school isn't so hot. If the employer hires, but the grads can't keep the job for even 6 months, then the school isn't so hot. If the school has a high drop-out rate and many students (sometimes "most") don't make it to graduation, then the school isn't so hot. If it takes students several tries to pass, then the school isn't so hot.

You can see that just examining whether an employer will hire a grad isn't such a good measure. You also have to look at how many students get to graduation, how they got there, how many of them passed the test, and how many of those didn't get fired or quit in frustration.

You want a school whose grads are almost uniformly hired by nationals and which graduates nearly all students (all have drops, but you want a low level of those) on the first try.

Considering all that, you have two options: M-Tec and Andrews. And Andrews has a pre-admission test you'll need to pass to get in.

In your case, you should not go for a school which will allow you to skip any courses. You don't know anatomy and terminology like you'll need it for MT--what you know is what you need for billing, and that is different. Unless you hold a PhD in anatomy, you need to refresh your memory. Any school that lets you get away with not doing that does not have your best interests in mind.


School
I recently graduated from Thomson Education Direct. Recently changed to Penn Foster.... I made 49.00 month payments with no interest. Is a good school!
yes, I'm still in school ..... nm
zz
Still in school????
I assumed from your post you were a recent graduate.
school
I agree.....Accept a challenge to succeed.
School
Education Direct,,,now called Penn Foster.
Great School!
School
HHHHHHHHHHHMMMMMMM! I just graduated and landed a job within one week.!!!!
School
Are you stocking me? Your a stress ball!
Is school a must?
I have been an administrative assistant for 8 + years and I will be graduating from my Medical Office Specialist/Billing and Coding class in May. Do I absolutely have to go to school to become an MT or can I just test to get a job? Any responses will be greatly appreciated.

Shona`
re: Is school a must?
Yes! Have you mastered anatomy and physiology? Do you know pharmacology? Can you know medical abbreviations? Can you decipher various dialects of providers well enough to produce a medicolegal document? How about the body systems, brain functioning, neurology, endocrinology, cardiology, orthopedics, pulmonology, etc., operative techniques? Medical terminology of all the above specialities, plus more, then if your answer is yes, then test away. Transcription is a labor intensive occupation that requires medical knowledge, dedication, and accuracy.
Is school a must?
If you are really good at learning from a book and feel like you lack experience in just a few areas, then study that way. I got a little training but mostly I was self taught. I knew what I wanted and studied from books and listened to any dictations I could find. The hardest part is getting your foot in the door. I put applications in everywhere and was lucky to have a small MTSO let me show them what I was capable of though. If you have the extra money for the schooling, then go for it. I dont believe that it's a must though.

Good luck!
What school did you go to?
They should be able to help you, if the school was any good. If not, then you need more education from a better school.
school
I graduated from Career Step recently and I felt they thoroughly educated me on just about everything i needed to know. I took the online course and it took me about 9 months to finish.
School
NC Newbie -- what school did you attend? I assume you're from North Carolina, and so am I. Since I have done acute medical transcription years ago, I am in the process of trying to find a school for refresher courses. A lot of medical stays the same, but there are a lot of new procedures, drugs, etc.
Perhaps your school? (sm)
I would first check with your school for assistance. Many schools will offer some type of program to help get you pointed in the right direction.

If you went to one of the top three I know for sure that they offer assistance in this area.
Get your school to help you.
Your school knows which ones of the employers really like graduates of the school you attended. They know where they have been successful. If they have no employers clamoring to hire their graduates, you've got a problem. That means the employers have seen what their graduates can do and they don't like it.

Then you may have to work in a doctor's office. The pay isn't good, there are rarely opportunities for pay increases, but at least it's something.

I hope the first scenario describes you. Good luck with your new career!
The School you went to?
Career Step. I've heard of this school before, but like you I am still in the researching process for the best place to take the on-line course. How expensive was this course? Can you email me your answer. Thanks
My email address is: louisem@cinci.rr.com

Thanks again. Awaiting your response.
Where did you go to school?
Many comapnies will waive that 2-year requirement if you attended a school with a solid reputation of producing work-ready grads. Again, you get what you pay for.
school
I wouldn't go by one person's opinion.  I am going through that program and I think it is good.  It is very detailed and they teach about everything. They didn't even say what they sent the 14yr old there for anyway, maybe that particular course was bad.
The best school for you
In the MT world you will hear people talk about the Top Three. That would be Andrews, MTec, and Career Step. These are all good. The best school is the one that is going to be the most comfortable fit for you, and you will find that out by visiting their websites and forums. Like everything else in life, cost may be the determining factor. All three of these "top three" schools are good and their courses are very comprehensive, so you will have tons of work to do whichever one you choose. Be sure to choose a program which will help you find a job. It is surprising how many people enroll in courses which do not offer them any assistance at all. Courses also vary in length and instructional methods, so you'll have to decide how much time you can spend studying each day. Good luck!
Best school
A good school to look at is Janet Stiles electronically taught transcription. You can get more info at www.settinc.com
Best school
I took Career Step and it was great. I graduated within 7 months with high honors and I got a job in less than a week. If you go directly through careerstep.com you will only pay about $1350. Yeah, it sounds like a lot of money, but it's not when you actually see how much experience you get from just taking the course. I got a job that was looking for 2 years of experience.
Anyone know anything about CAI School?...sm

I have a friend who is finishing up the course and wondering if anyone here has graduated from this school. I don't really see anything here about them.


TIA!


school
I graduated from the Virtual Learning Center.
just got into school!
OK, I've been lurking around this board since 2004 can you believe it and just now started a program! I was registered in '04 but dropped it due to financial and health issues, I start EvCC's program in Spring (community college program that is linked with Career Step). Thank you everyone for all your info that has helped me make an informed choice.
school

Just wondering if anyone can give me advice on going to school  for mt. Do you think an at home program is okay?


School
I went through Career Step.  I loved it.  I graduated with Honors in Feb. 2007 and have a job already.  I would recommend it to anyone.  At least have her contact the school with questions.  Good Luck.