How Do I Become a Credentialing Assistant?

Credentialing assistants are individuals who make sure that people at organizations, particularly medical services companies, have the licenses that they need in order to work in their career areas and additionally ensure that these credentials are up-to-date. Professionals in this field need to be detail-oriented and have strong computer skills. They also must be very organized and be able to cope with strong deadline pressure. A person who seeks to become a credentialing assistant should complete two years of college, look for an internship opportunity, and seek certification in this industry.

If you want to become a credentialing assistant, you need to complete at least a high school diploma or the equivalent certification. Some companies, however, prefer job candidates who have completed a two-year associate degree in a relevant area such as health information technology. To get into this type of training program, you have to fill out your desired school’s admission documents as well as submit proof of having completed high school-level training. Your potential college additionally may ask to see your standardized test results as well as your high school transcript.

Courses that introduce you to the healthcare field are helpful as you seek to enter this career area. For instance, you can study the role of health information personnel in ensuring that companies achieve regulatory compliance as well as learning about mandatory licensing in this industry. This is valuable for someone who plans to become a credentialing assistant because these types of professionals are responsible for constantly verifying the necessary licenses of healthcare personnel as well as the certifications of medical service facilities through professional accrediting associations.

You can ask your college’s career services team if they know of local hospitals that are willing to let you intern at their sites. An internship gives you the chance to actually maintain up-to-date information regarding a healthcare staff’s credentials in a database and then generate related reports. The opportunity to cooperate with auditing professionals who arrive at your organization to check the validity of employees' licenses also might arise. Your practical experience will allow you to network with business leaders who could assist you with finding permanent jobs as you seek to become a credentialing assistant.

Acquiring certification in this industry will help you to become employed as well. This is available through a trade association and involves taking and passing an examination designed for a person who wishes to become a credentialing assistant. You also must plan to complete continuing education courses that keep you current on government regulations and new technologies used in this field.