“Allen School began my professional journey in the medical field. I learned valuable information in the program that helps me understand and grow in my professional life. Allen School taught me a skill that I have come to learn is so very valuable! In October 2009 I was hired to do scanning for a local physician’s office. As I grew in my scanning position I started to understand how to apply coding and billing and how it worked in the setting of the physician’s office. I decid-ed to go back to school and graduated as a medical assistant in 2011, knowing and understanding medical coding and billing actually helped me to pass some of my medical assistant classes! I was promoted to a referral specialist a few months afterward. Most people think that medical referrals are simply picking up the phone and making a phone call. “There is a lot more to it than anyone realizes. I use coding on a daily basis. You need to know CPT codes to order tests or to pre-certify a test with a patient’s insurance company. You need to know ICD codes in order to give a diagnosis code to a physician’s office, order a test or also pre-certify a test with an insurance company. Coding is used throughout the medical field, it is very valuable. Personally my career has been very rewarding, I can’t complain about the pay—it is very rewarding. “Despite what I had heard about online school, it is very demanding. You need to keep yourself focused on your daily work. Your success will depend on your self discipline. Some people feel as if you can’t get a good education unless you are in a classroom and I can assure you that is not the case. When going to school online you have to prove that you know what you’re doing. I have several friends that I still keep in touch with! We like to keep in touch and see how each other are doing. You get close with your classmates – you spend a lot of time together in class! “Don’t ever be afraid to ask questions. Don’t feel “stupid” because you need something to be made more clear to you. You may not be the only one who is sitting there with that question and you may need to understand what is unclear in order to build on something else you learn the following week!”