Although not mandated by federal or state law, certification, in today’s job market, is a basic necessity. Certification gives your potential employers and patients, the assurance that you have successfully proven your knowledge and skills through rigorous examination and evaluation.
We believe that education is the foundation for a solid knowledge-base and skill set. Our goal is, through written examination and clinical evaluation, to determine competency, which should be forged at the academic level and developed through clinical experience and actual knowledge application.
In order to create the written exam, NCMA followed the psychometric development principles. The purpose of any examination is to test specific knowledge within the discipline. Each certification exam created by the National Certification Medical Association, has been developed through the collaboration of “Subject Matter Experts” or SME’s utilizing an “Outcome Based” curriculum. Each certification exam offered by our agency has an independent advisory board which includes subject matter experts from that particular field.
In order to determine what the structure and content of the exam should be, the National Certification Medical Association refers to a job-task analysis. This is the foundation upon which the content validity of any professional certification process begins. The study identifies the core knowledge areas and critical work functions that are common across all professionals. Basing the examination specifications on the aforementioned results ensures the assessment procedures will be a practical and realistic reflection of the skills, knowledge and abilities required for competence in this profession.
Clinical Science Written Exam
This part of the examination assesses whether you understand and can fundamentally apply important concepts of basic science as a clinical medical assistant, with special emphasis on phlebotomy, electrocardiography and emergency medical procedures.
Clinical Skills Practical Exam
This part of the examination assesses your application of medical knowledge, evaluate yours clinical skills, and your understanding of clinical science which is essential for the provision of patient care as a clinical medical assistant and includes emphasis on phlebotomy and electrocardiography.

Frequenly Asked Questions
In the US, a license or certification is NOT required in the following fields:
- Clinical Medical Assisting
- EKG/Cardiac Monitoring
- Phlebotomy
- Ultrasound
National Certifications, also known as industry Credentials, are not federally mandated, which means you do not need to have a national certification in order to get a job. Additionally, throughout the US, there are numerous private credentialing agencies, who assess field competency and knowledge. There are government institutions, such as the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services, and Health and Human Services, whom have established preferences of credentials for medical billing purposes.
Every school always says their students are the best; that’s where credential agencies come to play a role in the competency evaluations. Education is the foundation for knowledge and clinical skills, and it is our goal to determine the competency of the student forged by the academic institution.
The NCMA’s foundation is to uphold field standards, guidelines, and protocols at a national level. We are the only credential issuers that evaluate both skills and knowledge in two forms of assessments: written examination AND practical skills evaluation. When you pass our two-part examination, you can be guaranteed that you have mastered the skills required in your field of study.
All credentialing agencies in the US are private membership companies, whom are NOT tied to, or owned, by the government. Only states are allowed to license people, personnel, and professions, however most states do not require licensure for a vast amount of allied healthcare professions. Industry credentialing agencies, however, utilize the recognition of a registry credential to acknowledge that an individual does in fact meet the required standards of their professions.
Our requirements exceed standards as the goal of our examinations is to properly qualify individuals, in hope to reduce medical error, and unqualified practitioners and educators.
While other credentialing agencies promote their accreditation, name, or membership, we choose to remain the only agency which offers onsite clinical lab set-up for competency evaluations. We do not mail examinations to academic institutions, or arrange for a computer written assessment, rather, we provide the proctor alongside the exams. Our proctors are academic professionals with vast experience in the field. We choose this method to ensure security, credibility and privacy of our examinations and assessments. Call us old fashion, but we believe that the passing of an exam should truly mean you can properly manage your patients, instead of being full of knowledge you can’t apply.
The NCMA understands that sometimes life happens, however, we can not allow your lateness to affect the test-takers that show up on time. If you are late, you will NOT be able to enter the examination that day. You will however be permitted to take the examination on the next schedule day for no extra cost to you. Please note, this courtesy is a one-time only offering, and will not be allowable in certain cases.