In this article, you will discover approximately how much medical assistants make while working on the job in AK. We will provide you with estimate salary figures for a large variety of cities within Alaska, and they will be listed alphabetically.
Do note, however, that the numbers below are estimates and are not concrete numbers. The salary figures were found via Indeed.com’s salary search page, as well as Salary.com, and may potentially be somewhat inaccurate or a bit out of date. Still, no salary figure you find will be completely exact, but hopefully this gives you a rough idea of how much an MA earns in each city.
It is, of course, always possible to earn more or less money than you see here, as salary numbers can be based on a variety of different circumstances.
Medical Assistant Earnings in Alaska
Below, please take a look at the salary numbers for many cities in Alaska. As mentioned before, the cities are listed alphabetically. After we have listed all the salary numbers, we’ll then go into detail about medical assisting employment and salary figures in Alaska compared to that of the rest of the country:
- Adak: $30,464
- Akiachak: $30,000
- Akiak: $30,000
- Akutan: $23,000
- Alakanuk: $27,000
- Aleknagik: $22,000
- Ambler: $15,000
- Anaktuvuk Pass: $34,000
- Anchor Point: $18,000
- Anchorage: $37,115
- Anderson: $22,000
- Angoon: $22,000
- Aniak: $31,000
- Atmautluak: $33,000
- Atqasuk: $28,000
- Badger: $20,000
- Barrow: $28,000
- Bear Creek: $18,000
- Bethel: $33,000
- Big Delta: $20,000
- Big Lake: $37,023
- Brevig Mission: $31,000
- Buckland: $30,169
- Buffalo Soapstone: $17,000
- Butte: $18,000
- Cantwell: $20,000
- Chefornak: $33,000
- Chena Ridge: $17,000
- Chevak: $36,000
- Chickaloon: $19,000
- Cohoe: $18,000
- College: $20,000
- Cooper Landing: $22,000
- Copper Center: $19,000
- Cordova: $19,000
- Craig: $22,000
- Delta Junction: $21,000
- Deltana: $20,000
- Diamond Ridge: $18,000
- Dillingham: $22,000
- Eek: $33,000
- Eielson AFB: $20,000
- Elim: $31,000
- Emmonak: $27,000
- Ester: $21,000
- Fairbanks: $36,819
- Farm Loop: $17,000
- Farmers Loop: $20,000
- Fishhook: $15,000
- Fort Greely: $20,000
- Fort Yukon: $30,000
- Fox: $22,000
- Fox River: $18,000
- Fritz Creek: $20,000
- Funny River: $18,000
- Gakona: $21,000
- Galena: $23,000
- Gambell: $14,000
- Gateway: $17,000
- Glacier View: $18,000
- Glennallen: $21000
- Goldstream: N/A
- Goodnews Bay: $25,000
- Grayling: $37,000
- Gustavus: $22,000
- Haines: $22,000
- Happy Valley: $18,000
- Harding-Birch Lakes: $21,000
- Healy: $20,000
- Homer: $18,000
- Hoonah: $22,000
- Hooper Bay: $37,000
- Houston: $17,000
- Huslia: $19,000
- Hydaburg: $22,000
- Juneau: $22,000
- Kachemak: $18,000
- Kake: $22,000
- Kaktovik: $20,000
- Kalifornsky: $18,000
- Kasigluk: $33,000
- Kasilof: $21,000
- Kenai: $18,000
- Kenny Lake: $22,000
- Ketchikan: $19,000
- Kiana: $22,000
- King Cove: $41,000
- King Salmon: $23,000
- Kipnuk: $33,000
- Kivalina: $43,000
- Klawock: $22,000
- Knik River: $18,000
- Knik-Fairview: $18,000
- Kodiak: $18,000
- Kodiak Station: $18,000
- Koliganek: $22,000
- Kongiganak: $33,000
- Kotlik: $33,000
- Kotzebue: $43,000
- Koyuk: $14,000
- Kwethluk: $30,000
- Kwigillingok: $33,000
- Lakes: $15,000
- Lazy Mountain: $17,000
- Lower Kalskag: $30,000
- Manokotak: $22,000
- Marshall: $33,000
- McGrath: $18,000
- Meadow Lakes: $17,000
- Metlakatla: $22,000
- Minto: $21,000
- Moose Creek: $20,000
- Moose Pass: $23,000
- Mosquito Lake: $22,000
- Mountain Village: $33,000
- Mud Bay: $22,000
- Naknek: $22,000
- Nanwalek: $18,000
- Napakiak: $33,000
- Napaskiak: $33,000
- Nenana: $21,000
- New Stuyahok: $22,000
- Newtok: $33,000
- Nightmute: $37,000
- Nikiski: $18,000
- Nikolaevsk: $18,000
- Ninilchik: $21,000
- Noatak: $43,000
- Nome: $31,000
- Noorvik: $42,000
- North Pole: $20,000
- Nuiqsut: $31,000
- Nulato: $21,000
- Nunapitchuk: $33,000
- Old Harbor: $18,000
- Palmer: $15,000
- Petersburg: $22,000
- Pilot Station: $33,000
- Pleasant Valley: $21,000
- Point Hope: $17,000
- Point MacKenzie: $18,000
- Port Lions: $18,000
- Prudhoe Bay: $33,000
- Quinhagak: $33,000
- Red Dog Mine: $43,000
- Ridgeway: $18,000
- Russian Mission: $31,000
- Salamatof: $18,000
- Salcha: $21,000
- Sand Point: $24,000
- Savoonga: $14,000
- Saxman: $22,000
- Scammon Bay: $37,000
- Selawik: $41,000
- Seldovia: $18,000
- Seward: $18,000
- Shaktoolik: $29,000
- Shishmaref: $20,000
- Shungnak: $16,000
- Sitka: $22,000
- Skagway: $22,000
- Soldotna: $21,000
- South Van Horn: $20,000
- St. Mary’s: $17,000
- St. Michael: $34,000
- St. Paul: $36,000
- Stebbins: $31,000
- Steele Creek: $17,000
- Sterling: $18,000
- Susitna North: $17,000
- Sutton-Alpine: $17,000
- Talkeetna: $18,000
- Tanaina: $17,000
- Tanana: $21,000
- Tazlina: $21,000
- Teller: $31,000
- Thorne Bay: $22,000
- Togiak : $23,000
- Tok: $20,000
- Toksook Bay: $38,000
- Trapper Creek: $18,000
- Tuluksak: $30,000
- Tuntutuliak: $33,000
- Tununak: $38,000
- Two Rivers: $20,000
- Unalakleet: $36,000
- Unalaska: $23,000
- Upper Kalskag: $30,000
- Valdez: $18,000
- Wainwright: $27,000
- Wasilla: $36,599
- Whittier: $22,000
- Willow: $15,000
- Womens Bay: $18,000
- Wrangell: $21,000
- Y (Susitna North, inside the Matanuska-Susitna Borough): $18,000
- Yakutat: $12,000
Alaska Medical Assistants vs the Country
According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Alaska is very unique as it pertains to medical assistants. First, Alaska actually has one of the lowest employment numbers for medical assistants—meaning that while some states like New York or California or Ohio employ a large quantity of MA’s, Alaska doesn’t.
In fact, Alaska employs anywhere from 60 to 2,160 medical assistants, a far cry from some states that employ up to 81,000 medical assistants.
But here’s where things get interesting. Although Alaska has one of the lowest numbers in terms of employing medical assistants, the state is actually one of the best in the country in terms of paying their medical assistants.
According to the BLS, Alaska is not only a top paying state for MA’s, but it actually ranks second in the country, only trailing the District of Columbia. Although it’s only an average, medical assistants make an estimated median annual wage of $39,680 in Alaska. That median annual salary averages out to be about $19.08 per hour.
Top Paying Metropolitan Areas in Alaska
But that’s not all. The BLS also breaks down medical assistant salary by metropolitan area, as well. And the findings are that Fairbanks and Anchorage are some of the best metropolitan areas in the entire country in terms of salary numbers.
Fairbanks, for example, has an annual mean wage of $40,180. Anchorage is not far behind either, with a annual median wage of $38,640. These numbers average out to about $19.32 and $18.58 an hour, respectively.
Top Paying Non-Metropolitan Areas in Alaska
For those interested in working in a non-metropolitan area—you’re in luck. The Railbelt/Southwest Alaska non-metropolitan area actually comes in at number one for being a non-metro location that pays its medical assistants the best. The average mean wage for this particular area is $42,180, which actually converts to an amazing $20.28 per hour.
The Southeast Alaska non-metropolitan area comes in second as well, paying its medical assistants an average of $41,180 per year. This averages out to be about $19.80 per hour.
Can I Make a Good Living as a Medical Assistant in Alaska?
Anyone interested in going to school to become a medical assistant ultimately will end up asking him or herself a version of this question. And while it may be a bit harder to answer this question depending on where you live and your personal or financial situation, the truth is that Alaska medical assistants have it quite good.
True, it may be harder to find a job as an MA in Alaska simply because there aren’t that many of them employed within the state when compared to other regions of the country. But the fact is that Alaska MA’s earn more than the national average per year (the national average is $31,220).
And, if you live in certain cities or within a certain metro or even non-metropolitan area, you’re going to earn more per hour and more annually than the national average. For example, if you’re a medical assistant in Anchorage or Fairbanks, there’s a good chance you might be earning up to $10,000 more annually than someone working in middle America.
So to that end, while you always have to factor in your weekly expenses and of course the cost of living in Alaska, medical assistants are compensated very well in certain parks of this state.
Is Being a Medical Assistant Good Practice for Nursing?
The short answer is yes and no. First, let’s examine why we said yes.
Being a medical assistant helps you engage with patients, insurance companies, and even doctors. To that end, you will feel comfortable with the social aspect of the job, and that’s something that will absolutely help you if or once you decide to pursue nursing school and begin clinicals.
Now, here’s why we said no. Being a medical assistant and working as a nurse are two completely different jobs. In fact, according to the BLS, registered nurses earn approximately $65,000, which is virtually double what medical assistants make. It also requires an Associates degree, while medical assistants can graduate and get a job with simply a diploma.
So these jobs are two different entities and require vastly different skills and education. While you can certainly applying for an ADN program, or a medical assistant to LPN program, it’s always important to know that you will not, in any way, be able to smoothly sail through this program simply because you worked as a medical assistant for a handful of years.
So while being a medical assistant will help you be more prepared for the social aspect of working as a nurse, the daily duties of a nurse are very different than that of a medical assistant.
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