Those with experience in the industry recommend getting one to two years of experience prior to seeking your own accounts and working directly for doctors, whether in your home-based business or in their office.

Many medical transcription jobs are home based. Some hospitals and clinics allow their employees to telecommute (work from home) but may require you to live in the area so you can work in the office under supervision until certain milestones in performance and quality are met.

A medical transcription listens to a healthcare provider's dictation and types it for entry into a patient's medical record.

How much you will be paid depends on what company you go to work for. Typically, transcriptionists are paid on a production basis with production measured as 65 characters (line). Pay rates range from 6 cpl (cents per line) to 14 cpl.

That depends on many things:

There are many things that impact on productivity and therefore on pay. However, the average pay for a full-time medical transcriptionist is approximately $22,000 a year.

That depends on the school, but you should estimate 9 months to a year before you graduate. If the school you select has a placement program or an agreement with employers to hire graduates, you will be more successful finding a job after you graduate.

Entry into medical transcription jobs is not easy and getting your first job can be very difficult; that is why it's very important to select a school with a good reputation, ties to the employers in the industry, and (preferably) a placement program.

MT Registry is a job listing board where employers list openings. Transcriptionists can register and enter their resume into the bank. Many employers search the resumes without posting a job opening, so it's important to register and enter your resume into the bank.