A community of 30,000 US Transcriptionist serving Medical Transcription Industry

MT Course at ALLIED med school - mom of 3

Posted: Jan 23, 2010

Has anyone heard anything about Allied Medical School's Medical Transcription course? They are approved by AHDI, the price is reasonable (not cheapest but not most expensive) and the course includes a laptop, CD materials and actual textbooks(unlike CareerStep that provides photo copies). I want to get started on my schooling but I want to make the best choice I can. Any info/feed back would be greatly appreciated.

No personal experience, but a number of MTs in training -- - SM

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-- on a mailing list to which I belong were talking about how they don't feel they're getting a very good education via Allied, that they're not getting the support they were promised and, overall, are VERY disappointed in them, feeling that they've wasted their money on a school that's far below par compared to CareerStep, Andrews, etc.

I am an Allied student - mom2tty

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I am an Allied student that is near the end of the Transcription course. I am finding it very difficult to pass the last couple of chapter assignments. They are hard to understand and the book does not cover a lot of the material in the assignments. A lot of time is spent doing research just so you can figure out what is being discussed. I feel like I am good at this but am feeling very frustrated over lower grades due to punctuation errors (COMMAS!) Sorry but I think commas are not a big deal if they do not change the meaning of a sentence! I wonder if courses from other companies have these same problems?!

Feeling the same way - Randa

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I'm currently taking the transcription course from Allied. I got through the Medical Term. class and the typing class in a couple of weeks but I totally got bogged down by the actual Transcription course. It's very discouraging and when I call in for help they don't seem to help all that much. I was doing pretty well until Lesson 8 and since then I haven't been able to get a passing score.
Mom2tty: I get really frustrated about the comma thing too because they change the rules on you every transcription! And when I asked my "adviser" about this she said "well every transcription is different" and if that is true then why do we have to train?? And then she told me that most of it is up to "my discretion" which confused me even more. Because I would transcribe VERBATIM and apparently on a lot of the transcription assignments they want you to correct the grammar. I feel the same way about commas. I think that if you get the medical words all correct and you don't change the meaning of the sentence you should be good to go.
I'm really frustrated with the whole thing, and I'm a little worried now after finding this board because everyone on here says that the jobs are going away and it's cut throat to get a job. I didn't want to waste 3 grand just to stay working at WalMart!
Ugh. I liked Allied at first when they were super supportive and always sending encouragement. But lately I have just stopped doing anything and they haven't even noticed.
Sorry for the long rant, I have really wanted to get all of this off my chest for a while.

Some docs are comma nazis too - sm -

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I have one doc who wants NO commas unless he tells me to put it in, even if MSWord tells me it needs a comma - I leave it out. He is adament. I was training someone once, a MT with many more years experience than I, when I told her to knock it off with her commas, and use less she got pretty pissed. Actually quit because I told her the doctor did not like a lot of commas. The MTSO talked her back into staying and was taken off as backup for me. Ticked me off that we had to handle her with kid gloves. --- as for a course they of course want them used properly but sometimes they are not really necessary and you can use too many. I know nothing of Allied though and their practices. Just thought the subject of commas was interesting.

Allied - kimba2

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Hi there. I'm at Allied as well. I'm on the cardiology and hematology chapter. I was doing great until the last chapter on pulmonary reports. I've passed all of them, not the first time, but the second. I was able to test out of the medical terminology, because I've already had a lot of it. I'm kind of in the same boat. I'm finding it really hard to move forward, for many reasons, not just because the stuff is getting harder, but because of what I'm reading on the boards here. I was also happy with Allied in the beginning. I'm not saying I'm not anymore, but I have nothing to compare it to. I'm going to work on it a lot today. I know where I have not put in 100%, so I'm going to get in EVERY SINGLE practice report (I know I should do that anyways!!) I did in the beginning, but I just want to get done. That's the wrong attitude to have, so I need to change it. I really enjoy doing MT, though, I'm just a little nervous about after completion. One thing at a time. And I agree about the comma thing-VERY FRUSTATING! As far as choosing Allied, I don't know. I'd maybe try Andrew's if you are FOR SURE this is what you want to do. I personally would not even bother with this field anymore. I'm going (yet again) back to school for registered respiratory therapist. I hope to get a job working as an MT, but who knows. Best of luck!

yes, less is more. It is absolutely wrong to put - sm

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a comma whenever there is a "pause" in the speech!

Everybody can choose where to make a "pause" in his speech, this rule is really outdated.

I always cringe when I am told, "you should have put a comma there, because there is a pause in the speech."

NO ! Eeeeewwww !

Allied, too - Mel268

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That's a problem I'm having with Allieds course too. Probably my only complaint. Im at the midpoint of the last half of the course and find that the first transcription assignment I turn in gets sent back to me as below passing, not because of content but because of formatting issues. One I sent in justified and it came back as "failed" because of all the "extra spaces". I've decided that the first attempt is the going to fail just so I can find out what format they want; the second attempt is always near-perfect once I have that info. My course advisor told me that it's a "trial and error" thing (which I though was horrible advice!), but I've found in the real world, most doc's give you the format they want before hand so it's a nonissue most times.

The "extra spaces" issue is also - Ann

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an integrity issue. If you are paid by 65-character line plus spaces, padding your lines with extra spaces is dishonest. It is also the primary reason that some companies do not pay for spaces. Too many "extra spaces."

It is likely that you were unaware of this, and the extra spaces were an oversight. Now you know. And best of luck to you with your studies.

oh, yes, my QA haunts me with these "extra spaces." - sm

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And she types whole sentences to tell me exactly where I put an extra space, what a waste of time, for her and me.
And every time she adds, "be careful with these extra spaces!" Geeezzz!

Allied - mel268

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Hi Mom,

I'm nearly done with my course at Allied and have been very pleased with it. It seems to be quite comprehensive and the chapters are challenging but not so difficult that you get discouraged. My main problem has been time since I work a full time job besides my full time transcription. The thing that appealed to me the most when deciding which school to go with was that they do job placement. At the time I enrolled I was not transcribing and had no experience. I've been lucky enough to get a full time position with a small company in my state who is paying me (very little!) while I finish certification; but when I finish the course I will have had a little over a years' experience in a few different specialities.

I can't speak for the other schools and programs, but I've been impressed with Allied's program. I'm a medical assistant too, and they've done a good job putting the course together. The laptop was a nice addition. I'd just bought one for myself (the one they send is fairly small), so sent that one to my mom and she's not had any trouble with it.

Good luck!

When you finish the Allied course you will NOT be certified - deb

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You need to take the certification test from the AHDI.

Allied supplies a computer only to entice students to sign up for their inferior program. Look around this board and see how many people are frustrated after finishing the Allied course. They don't help with placement because they can't - not enough companies will hire their grads.

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