Your Guide to Medical Assistant Schools in Memphis, TN

Memphis anchors one of Tennessee's largest healthcare corridors, with Methodist Le Bonheur, Baptist Memorial, St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, and Regional One Health all hiring medical assistants across outpatient clinics and specialty departments. That employer base keeps local demand steady, but program options within commuting distance are limited to a small set of campus-based schools.

Because choices are few, the details matter more: accreditation status, total cost after aid, clinical hour requirements, medical assistant certification requirements by state, and whether evening or hybrid scheduling fits your work life. This guide breaks down each factor, from the medical assistant job outlook in Memphis to certification exam pathways, so you can compare programs on the criteria that actually affect your career.

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Memphis's Healthcare Landscape and What It Means for Medical Assistants

Healthcare dominates the Memphis job market, making the metro one of the most dependable regions in Tennessee for medical assistants seeking stable employment. The city's concentration of major health systems, specialty hospitals, and outpatient clinics creates consistent demand for clinical medical assistants across Shelby County and the surrounding tri-state area.

Major Employers Driving MA Demand

Memphis anchors its healthcare economy around several large systems. Methodist Le Bonheur Health operates multiple hospitals and dozens of outpatient locations throughout the metro. Baptist Memorial Health Care maintains a strong regional presence with facilities ranging from acute care hospitals to neighborhood clinics. St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, while focused on pediatric oncology, also employs clinical support staff across its campus. Regional One Health serves as the area's safety-net hospital and Level I trauma center, handling high patient volumes daily.

Beyond these flagship institutions, primary care practices, urgent care chains, and specialty clinics blanket Shelby County. Many medical assistants find their first positions in family medicine offices or multispecialty groups rather than large hospitals.

What Tennessee Law Allows (and Restricts)

Tennessee does not require medical assistants to hold a state license or register with any board.¹ Your authority to perform clinical tasks comes directly from physician delegation.¹ Under this model, you may take vital signs, perform phlebotomy, apply simple dressings, gather patient histories, and administer certain injections when a supervising physician assigns those duties.¹

However, Tennessee law explicitly restricts some drug administration tasks. What medical assistants cannot do includes administering IV medications, blood products, chemotherapy, insulin, controlled substances, anesthetics, or any medication requiring dosage calculation.² You also cannot independently diagnose conditions, prescribe treatments, interpret lab or imaging results, or provide medical advice without physician oversight.¹

Despite no state certification requirement, employers across Memphis overwhelmingly prefer candidates holding a medical assistant certification Tennessee such as the CMA, RMA, or NCMA. Hiring managers view certification as proof that you completed an accredited program and passed a standardized competency exam.

Employment Opportunities Beyond Memphis City Limits

Students completing externships in Memphis often find placements or jobs in neighboring communities. Southaven, Mississippi, sits just across the state line and hosts clinics affiliated with Memphis health systems. Germantown, Bartlett, and Collierville offer suburban practices serving growing populations. West Memphis, Arkansas, rounds out the tri-state footprint, giving medical assistants multiple options for commuting and career growth without leaving the metro.

Flexible Scheduling: Online, Hybrid, and Evening Options in Memphis

For many Memphis medical assistant students comparing medical assistant training programs, the real scheduling question is not campus versus online but evening lab classes versus online coursework. Both can work, but they make different demands on your week, your commute, and your medical assistant externship placement.

What Memphis-Area Schools Actually Offer

• Concorde Career College Memphis: The clearest evening option. Its Medical Assistant diploma lists morning, afternoon, and evening medical assistant classes, with rolling admissions and monthly start dates.¹ Campus offices are open Monday through Thursday 8 a.m. to 7 p.m., Friday 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., and Saturday 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., but Saturday office hours do not confirm weekend class sections.²
• Health-Tech Institute of Memphis: Offers day or evening scheduling, but classes are on campus only. The program does not advertise an online option, and weekend availability is not stated.³
• Delta Technical College in Horn Lake: Provides day and evening classes. No weekend or online format is mentioned.⁴
• University of Memphis: Offers a 100% online certified clinical medical assistant course, but this appears to be a short-term training course rather than a full diploma or degree.⁵ The University of Memphis Medical Assisting program has a Fall 2026 start date of August 3, 2026, but its published materials do not specify day, evening, online, or hybrid scheduling.⁶
• Southwest Tennessee Community College: Has a Medical Assisting program, but current public materials do not confirm evening, weekend, online, or hybrid options. Contact admissions directly.

Some Memphis-area evening courses advertised online are CNA programs, not medical assistant programs. Double-check the program title before enrolling. A true hybrid format is not clearly confirmed in current public materials for Concorde, Southwest, or Health-Tech, so ask before assuming blended delivery.

Online Still Means In-Person Hours

Even if didactic coursework is online, clinical hour requirements remain in person. Memphis students in an online program still need a local clinical partner for the externship, so the schedule is not 100% remote. If you are considering an online course like the University of Memphis certified clinical medical assistant offering, ask where the clinical component is completed and whether that site is accessible to you.

Commuting and Campus Location

Memphis traffic patterns can make a 5 p.m. class feel different from a 9 a.m. class. Several campuses are near I-240, I-40, or Poplar Avenue, so check drive times during the hours you would actually attend. Delta Technical College in Horn Lake may be convenient if you live in Southaven or northern Mississippi. Ask about satellite locations in Germantown, Bartlett, or Southaven, but do not assume those sites offer the full MA schedule every term.

Weekends are not a guaranteed fallback. No Memphis-area program in the available materials confirms weekend MA sections, so if weekends are essential, call the school and ask for a current term schedule before applying. A West Memphis, Arkansas listing mentions day, evening, and weekend availability.⁷ That listing is across the bridge and not a Memphis school catalog.

Certificate Vs. Associate Degree: Which Path Fits You?

Both certificate and associate degree programs in the Memphis area prepare you for the same national medical assistant certifications. The main trade-off is time and breadth: certificates get you into the workforce sooner, while associate degrees add general education and transferable credits. Program-level earnings by credential level are not reported in the available federal data, so this comparison sticks to the structural differences.

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Tuition and Financial Aid: What Memphis MA Programs Actually Cost

How much will a medical assistant program in Memphis actually cost after financial aid, and what kind of loan payments should you expect?

That is the first question most prospective students ask, and the answer depends heavily on the school, the aid package you qualify for, and whether you tap into Tennessee-specific medical assistant grants. Here is what the numbers look like for the two accredited medical assistant trade schools serving the Memphis metro area.

Net Price After Aid

Both Concorde Career College campuses, one in Memphis and one just across the state line in Southaven, MS, offer an Associate of Applied Science in Medical Assisting. The institution-wide average net price (what students typically pay after grants and scholarships are applied) gives you a useful starting point for budgeting:

• Concorde Career College, Southaven: Approximately $23,591
• Concorde Career College, Memphis: Approximately $24,563

Keep in mind these are averages across all students at each campus, not a personalized quote. Your actual cost could be higher or lower depending on your financial situation, enrollment status, and the specific aid you receive.

How Much Need-Based Aid Is Available?

One helpful indicator is the share of students receiving federal Pell Grants at each school. At both Concorde campuses, roughly 87 percent of students receive Pell funding. That is a strong signal that these institutions serve a student body with significant financial need and that most enrollees qualify for substantial federal grant dollars before taking on any loans.

Median Graduate Debt

Program-level debt figures are not yet available for these specific medical assisting tracks. However, the institution-wide median debt at graduation for both Concorde campuses sits around $9,500. That is relatively modest compared to many career-training programs, and on a standard ten-year repayment plan it translates to manageable monthly payments, typically under $110 per month depending on your interest rate.

Tennessee Reconnect: A Cost Reducer Worth Exploring

If you are 24 or older and pursuing an associate degree or eligible certificate, Tennessee's Reconnect grant can cover tuition and fees not already paid by other state or federal aid. This is a last-dollar grant, meaning it fills the gap after Pell and other scholarships are applied. It can dramatically cut your out-of-pocket costs at eligible Tennessee institutions. The Southaven campus is located in Mississippi and would not qualify for this particular state grant, so Memphis-area adults should weigh that geography carefully when choosing between the two locations.

Practical Takeaways

• Request a personalized net price estimate from each campus before committing. The averages above are a starting point, not a guarantee.
• File your FAFSA as early as possible. With such a high percentage of students receiving Pell Grants at these schools, there is a strong chance you will qualify for need-based aid.
• If you are an adult learner, check your eligibility for TN Reconnect before enrolling. It could reduce your costs to nearly zero at qualifying Tennessee schools.
• Factor in the total loan burden, not just tuition. A median debt around $9,500 is manageable on an entry-level medical assistant salary, but every dollar you can cover with grants instead of loans makes your first years in the workforce easier.

Externship and Clinical Hour Requirements at Memphis Schools

An externship is the unpaid, supervised clinical rotation you complete at a real healthcare facility before you graduate. It is where classroom skills, drawing blood, taking vitals, rooming patients, documenting in an EHR, get tested in front of actual patients and providers. For most Memphis-area medical assistant students, this is the single most important part of the program.

What Concorde Career College Memphis Requires

Concorde Career College Memphis is the Memphis program with clearly published externship requirements. Students complete 230 total externship hours, split across two courses (Externship I and Externship II) at 115 hours each. That falls within the typical range for a certificate-level medical assistant program.

Placement is handled by the school. Concorde's Director of Clinical Education and Extern Coordinator assign each student to a site, and students are not permitted to turn down the assigned placement. Possible site types include physician's offices, dental offices, hospitals, clinics, and long-term-care facilities. Concorde does not name specific partner facilities in its catalog, and it does not guarantee a particular location, a particular facility, or that the length and location won't change before you start. It also does not guarantee post-externship employment.

What Other Memphis-Area Programs Publish

For other schools in the Memphis metro, including Southwest Tennessee Community College, published externship hour counts and named clinical partner sites are not currently available in program materials we can verify. If you are considering one of those programs, ask the admissions office directly for the required clinical hour total, whether the school arranges placement or expects you to secure your own site, and which local employers regularly host their students.

Why the Externship Matters More Than You Think

Externships are unpaid, but treat yours like a working interview. In allied health, the externship is the number one pipeline to a first job: preceptors become references, and clinics that already trained you on their workflow and EHR would rather hire you than start fresh with a stranger. Show up early, ask for feedback, and by week six the front desk should know your name.

Questions to Ask Yourself

Certification Exam Prep: CMA, RMA, and NCMA Pathways

Your choice of Memphis medical assistant program directly determines which national certification exams you can sit for after graduation. Understanding these pathways before you enroll saves time and keeps your career options open.

Three Main Certification Exams

The certified medical assistant exam from the American Association of Medical Assistants is the most widely recognized. To qualify, you must graduate from a program accredited by either CAAHEP or ABHES.¹ The exam costs around $155 for AAMA members (roughly $200 for non-members) and covers general medical knowledge, administrative tasks, and clinical procedures in a computerized format. Recertification happens every five years through continuing education requirements or retesting.

The RMA certification from American Medical Technologists accepts graduates from both CAAHEP and ABHES programs, giving you flexibility if your school holds either accreditation. Exam fees fall in the $125 to $150 range, and recertification follows a three-year cycle with continuing education requirements.

The NCMA from the National Center for Competency Testing has the broadest eligibility requirements. Beyond CAAHEP and ABHES graduates, NCCT accepts candidates with qualifying work experience or training from certain non-accredited programs. This makes it accessible to career changers, though some employers specifically request CMA or RMA credentials.

Which Memphis Schools Qualify You for Which Exams

Two local programs hold current CAAHEP accreditation: the University of Memphis Healthcare Career Academy² and Southwest Tennessee Community College³. Graduates from either school can sit for the CMA exam immediately and also qualify for the RMA.

National College campuses in Memphis and Bartlett were historically ABHES-accredited⁴, though their accreditation status as of 2026 should be verified directly with the school or ABHES before enrolling. If current, ABHES accreditation would qualify graduates for both the CMA and RMA exams.

Planning for Exam Success

Neither AAMA nor AMT has published school-level pass rate data for Memphis programs in recent reports. When evaluating schools, ask admissions offices directly for their certification exam pass rates and whether they offer dedicated CMA exam prep sessions. Strong programs typically build review modules into their final semesters, helping students test confidently within 60 days of graduation.

Budget around $150 to $200 for your initial exam, plus ongoing recertification costs every three to five years. Many employers reimburse certification fees after hiring, so factor this into your job search strategy.

Career Outlook and Earnings for Memphis Medical Assistants

Medical assistant hiring in the Memphis metro reflects a broader healthcare shift toward team-based outpatient care, where the role now blends scheduling, rooming, and basic clinical tasks.

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the Memphis, TN-MS-AR metro area had about 3,550 medical assistants employed in May 2021, with a median hourly wage of $17.48 and a mean annual wage of $35,980.¹ Those numbers are not current: they predate recent wage pressure in healthcare support roles, so treat them as a conservative baseline rather than a live market rate. The same BLS table does not include a Tennessee statewide median for medical assistants in the data available to this page, so a direct Memphis-versus-state comparison cannot be made from that source.

What New Graduates Should Expect

For program-level earnings after finishing, the two Concorde campuses serving the Memphis area list an Associate of Applied Science in Medical Assisting. The available federal data does not yet publish first-year or second-year median earnings for those completers, so a true new-graduate salary cannot be sourced from the scorecard. What it does show is a 10th-percentile earnings benchmark of $31,599 for former students several years after entry, which tells you that even lower-earning graduates in these programs have been able to find paid work, but it is not a starting wage.

Growth and Advancement in Memphis

Nationally, BLS projects medical assistant employment to grow 12 percent from 2024 to 2034, faster than average across all occupations.² Memphis should feel that pattern because the metro's large hospital systems and expanding outpatient clinics rely heavily on medical assistants for patient flow. A 12 percent national growth rate suggests steady entry-level demand, but local competition and employer hiring preferences still matter.

Medical assistants looking for career advancement often add phlebotomy training or EKG credentials, specialize in areas like podiatry or dermatology, or move into lead MA and clinic coordinator roles. An associate degree can support those moves because it includes general education credits that transfer toward nursing or healthcare administration later. In Memphis, that makes the choice between a certificate and an associate degree partly a question of whether you want the fastest path to a job or a credential with more built-in runway.

Accredited Medical Assistant Programs Serving Memphis Students

Below are the top medical assistant programs serving Memphis students. Each card highlights campus location, credential level, net price after aid, and schoolwide graduation rate where data is available. Verify current CAAHEP or ABHES accreditation directly with the program, since directory status can change.

How to Choose the Right Medical Assistant Program in Memphis

What should I actually look for when comparing medical assistant programs in Memphis?

With several options across the metro area, narrowing down the right fit can feel overwhelming. The good news is that a short checklist of decision factors, drawn from everything covered in this guide, will help you cut through the noise and land on a program that sets you up well.

Start With Programmatic Accreditation

This is the single most important factor, and it is the number one mistake prospective students make: confusing institutional accreditation (which keeps the school's doors open) with programmatic accreditation from CAAHEP or ABHES (which determines whether you can sit for the CMA exam through AAMA). Before you fill out an application, confirm that the specific medical assistant program holds programmatic accreditation. If admissions staff cannot answer that question clearly, treat it as a red flag.

Weigh Cost After Financial Aid

Tuition sticker prices across Memphis programs vary widely, but the number that matters is your out-of-pocket cost after grants, scholarships, and any employer tuition assistance. Ask for a net price estimate in writing. Compare that figure across at least two or three schools before committing.

Evaluate Schedule and Externship Quality

Consider how a program's schedule fits your life. Evening, weekend, or hybrid formats can make all the difference if you are working while enrolled. Then look at externship details: where are students placed, how many clinical hours are required, and does the school have formal partnerships with Memphis-area employers? Memphis's large healthcare employer base, from major hospital systems to specialty clinics, creates strong externship and hiring pipelines, but those pipelines flow primarily through accredited programs with established relationships.

Ask the Questions Most Students Skip

When you visit a campus or attend an information session, go beyond the brochure. Ask admissions directly about:

• Recent certification pass rates: Programs confident in their outcomes will share this data. If they dodge the question, take note.
• Employer partnerships: Find out which clinics and health systems regularly hire graduates.
• Clinical placement support: Will the school arrange your externship, or are you expected to find one yourself?
• Post-completion earnings: Ask whether recent graduates are finding full-time positions and what starting pay looks like in the Memphis market.

Put It All Together

A quick decision checklist looks like this:

• Programmatic accreditation (CAAHEP or ABHES) confirmed
• Total cost after aid fits your budget
• Class schedule works with your current obligations
• Externship sites are in reputable Memphis-area facilities
• The program can share concrete data on certification pass rates and graduate employment

Running every program you are considering through these five filters will save you time, money, and frustration. Memphis has legitimate, well-connected programs, but you owe it to yourself to verify the details before signing an enrollment agreement.

Frequently Asked Questions About Medical Assistant Schools in Memphis

These answers reflect the Memphis area programs covered in this guide. Always confirm current costs, schedules, and accreditation directly with the school, because details can change between catalog years.