Medical Transcriptionists
Transcribe medical reports recorded by physicians and other healthcare practitioners using various electronic devices, covering office visits, emergency room visits, diagnostic imaging studies, operations, chart reviews, and final summaries. Transcribe dictated reports and translate abbreviations into fully understandable form. Edit as necessary and return reports in either printed or electronic form for review and signature, or correction.
- O*NET-SOC code
31-9094.00 - Preparation Job Zone Three: Medium Preparation Needed
Wages
Median annual wage, U.S.$40,410
Employment, U.S.41,550
Median hourly wage$19.43
| 10th | 25th | Median | 75th | 90th |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| $28,250 | $34,150 | $40,410 | $48,000 | $55,950 |
By state (50)
| State | Employment | Median annual | Location quotient |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alabama | 410 | $35,340 | 0.73 |
| Alaska | 110 | $48,360 | 1.25 |
| Arizona | 700 | $36,550 | 0.81 |
| Arkansas | 280 | $35,100 | 0.82 |
| California | 5,860 | $45,050 | 1.20 |
| Colorado | 610 | $43,080 | 0.80 |
| Connecticut | 390 | $48,190 | 0.86 |
| Delaware | $34,070 | ||
| District of Columbia | 70 | $45,110 | 0.38 |
| Florida | 2,650 | $42,050 | 1.00 |
| Georgia | 950 | $28,330 | 0.73 |
| Hawaii | $44,310 | ||
| Idaho | 400 | $38,140 | 1.76 |
| Illinois | 970 | $45,490 | 0.60 |
| Indiana | 790 | $41,400 | 0.92 |
| Iowa | 180 | $45,010 | 0.43 |
| Kansas | 420 | $35,390 | 1.08 |
| Kentucky | 690 | $39,000 | 1.29 |
| Louisiana | 420 | $38,040 | 0.81 |
| Maine | 80 | $48,600 | 0.49 |
| Maryland | 230 | $39,900 | 0.32 |
| Massachusetts | 400 | $36,910 | 0.41 |
| Michigan | 1,130 | $37,280 | 0.96 |
| Minnesota | 270 | $50,030 | 0.34 |
| Mississippi | 300 | $38,600 | 0.96 |
| Missouri | 310 | $37,480 | 0.40 |
| Montana | 80 | $41,340 | 0.61 |
| Nebraska | 230 | $45,880 | 0.83 |
| Nevada | 210 | $39,350 | 0.50 |
| New Jersey | 1,710 | $39,020 | 1.49 |
| New Mexico | 210 | $37,480 | 0.89 |
| New York | 2,710 | $43,260 | 1.05 |
| North Carolina | 1,020 | $39,300 | 0.78 |
| North Dakota | 120 | $44,660 | 1.04 |
| Ohio | 680 | $37,060 | 0.46 |
| Oklahoma | 560 | $27,740 | 1.22 |
| Oregon | 510 | $46,280 | 0.97 |
| Pennsylvania | 1,130 | $41,510 | 0.70 |
| Rhode Island | 80 | $34,790 | 0.62 |
| South Carolina | 390 | $33,870 | 0.63 |
| South Dakota | 240 | $46,070 | 2.00 |
| Tennessee | 1,450 | $44,720 | 1.65 |
| Texas | 7,520 | $42,900 | 2.00 |
| Utah | 210 | $39,630 | 0.45 |
| Vermont | $33,030 | ||
| Virginia | $35,130 | ||
| Washington | 620 | $38,690 | 0.66 |
| West Virginia | 90 | $37,440 | 0.47 |
| Wisconsin | 590 | $49,150 | 0.75 |
| Wyoming | 40 | $48,100 | 0.47 |
Similar occupations
Similarity is our measure: the cosine of importance x level over all 120 O*NET skills, knowledge areas and abilities. It is not an O*NET finding. More.
Circles are the 20 most similar occupations, coloured by Job Zone. Lines join pairs where one is among the other's 10 most similar; darker lines are pairs O*NET also lists as related. Drag a circle to move it out of the way; select one to open it.
| # | Occupation | Job Zone | Similarity |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Secretaries and Administrative Assistants, Except Legal, Medical, and Executive | 1-2 | 0.936 |
| 2 | Court Reporters and Simultaneous Captioners | 3 | 0.933 |
| 3 | Executive Secretaries and Executive Administrative Assistants | 3 | 0.930 |
| 4 | Office Clerks, General | 1-2 | 0.926 |
| 5 | Title Examiners, Abstractors, and Searchers | 1-2 | 0.924 |
| 6 | Proofreaders and Copy Markers | 4 | 0.921 |
| 7 | Receptionists and Information Clerks | 1-2 | 0.921 |
| 8 | Legal Secretaries and Administrative Assistants | 3 | 0.920 |
| 9 | Paralegals and Legal Assistants | 3 | 0.910 |
| 10 | Word Processors and Typists | 1-2 | 0.908 |
One skill away
Among the 50 occupations most similar to Medical Transcriptionists, those at the same Job Zone or lower, where exactly one skill rated at least 3 in importance needs a level more than 0.75 points higher (on O*NET's 0-7 level scale). Our definition. Change the thresholds.
| Occupation | Skill to build | Level gap | Similarity |
|---|---|---|---|
| Title Examiners, Abstractors, and Searchers | Coordination | 0.88 | 0.924 |
| Insurance Claims and Policy Processing Clerks | Service Orientation | 1.25 | 0.908 |
| Medical Secretaries and Administrative Assistants | Service Orientation | 1.25 | 0.905 |
| Medical Records Specialists | Service Orientation | 1.00 | 0.901 |
| Correspondence Clerks | Service Orientation | 1.00 | 0.898 |
| Switchboard Operators, Including Answering Service | Service Orientation | 0.88 | 0.894 |
| File Clerks | Service Orientation | 0.88 | 0.892 |
| Bookkeeping, Accounting, and Auditing Clerks | Mathematics | 2.38 | 0.888 |
| Telephone Operators | Service Orientation | 1.12 | 0.874 |
Software to learn next
Software used by at least 3 of the 20 occupations most similar to Medical Transcriptionists, excluding software Medical Transcriptionists already lists and any you named. Ranked by how many of them use it, weighted by how much more common it is among them than across all occupations (lift). Our ranking.
| Software | Similar jobs using it | Lift |
|---|---|---|
| Filing system software | 4 of 20 | 46.2x |
| Billing software | 6 of 20 | 12.6x |
| Intuit QuickBooks | 9 of 20 | 4.9x |
| Google Workspace software | 6 of 20 | 10.7x |
| Medical procedure coding software | 7 of 20 | 7.2x |
| IBM Notes | 9 of 20 | 4.0x |
| Appointment scheduling software | 5 of 20 | 11.5x |
| Medical condition coding software | 6 of 20 | 6.9x |
| Alpha Software Alpha Five | 3 of 20 | 46.2x |
| IBM Check Processing Control System CPSC | 3 of 20 | 46.2x |
Skills
From O*NET data. Importance is rated 1 to 5 and level 0 to 7.
| Skill | Type | Importance | Level |
|---|---|---|---|
| Active Listening | Essential skill | 4.12 | 4.12 |
| Reading Comprehension | Essential skill | 4.00 | 4.00 |
| Writing | Essential skill | 3.88 | 3.62 |
| Monitoring | Essential skill | 3.12 | 2.88 |
| Critical Thinking | Essential skill | 3.00 | 3.12 |
| Speaking | Essential skill | 3.00 | 3.12 |
| Time Management | Transferable skill | 3.00 | 2.75 |
| Judgment and Decision Making | Transferable skill | 3.00 | 2.62 |
| Active Learning | Essential skill | 2.88 | 2.88 |
| Social Perceptiveness | Transferable skill | 2.75 | 2.75 |
| Complex Problem Solving | Transferable skill | 2.62 | 2.50 |
| Coordination | Transferable skill | 2.50 | 2.12 |
| Learning Strategies | Essential skill | 2.12 | 2.12 |
| Service Orientation | Transferable skill | 2.12 | 2.00 |
| Instructing | Transferable skill | 2.12 | 1.62 |
| Persuasion | Transferable skill | 1.88 | 1.38 |
| Systems Analysis | Transferable skill | 1.88 | 1.38 |
| Systems Evaluation | Transferable skill | 1.88 | 1.38 |
| Negotiation | Transferable skill | 1.88 | 1.25 |
| Management of Personnel Resources | Transferable skill | 1.75 | 1.12 |
| Mathematics | Essential skill | 1.75 | 1.00 |
| Quality Control Analysis | Transferable skill | 1.62 | 1.12 |
| Operations Analysis | Transferable skill | 1.62 | 0.88 |
| Operations Monitoring | Transferable skill | 1.50 | 0.75 |
| Science | Essential skill | 1.50 | 0.62 |
| Programming | Transferable skill | 1.38 | 0.50 |
| Management of Material Resources | Transferable skill | 1.12 | not rated |
| Operation and Control | Transferable skill | 1.12 | not rated |
| Technology Design | Transferable skill | 1.12 | not rated |
| Equipment Maintenance | Transferable skill | 1.00 | not rated |
| Equipment Selection | Transferable skill | 1.00 | not rated |
| Installation | Transferable skill | 1.00 | not rated |
| Management of Financial Resources | Transferable skill | 1.00 | not rated |
| Repairing | Transferable skill | 1.00 | not rated |
| Troubleshooting | Transferable skill | 1.00 | not rated |
Knowledge (33) and abilities (52)
| Name | Importance | Level |
|---|---|---|
| English Language | 4.54 | 4.53 |
| Administrative | 4.25 | 5.25 |
| Computers and Electronics | 3.84 | 4.03 |
| Medicine and Dentistry | 3.02 | 2.56 |
| Customer and Personal Service | 2.70 | 2.64 |
| Telecommunications | 2.11 | 1.16 |
| Administration and Management | 2.06 | 1.99 |
| Mathematics | 1.81 | 1.52 |
| Biology | 1.79 | 1.01 |
| Education and Training | 1.73 | 1.19 |
| Production and Processing | 1.64 | 1.18 |
| Psychology | 1.62 | 1.29 |
| Therapy and Counseling | 1.54 | 0.76 |
| Communications and Media | 1.52 | 0.84 |
| Personnel and Human Resources | 1.49 | 1.15 |
| Law and Government | 1.34 | 0.99 |
| Mechanical | 1.32 | not rated |
| Sociology and Anthropology | 1.29 | not rated |
| Public Safety and Security | 1.28 | not rated |
| Economics and Accounting | 1.21 | not rated |
| Foreign Language | 1.12 | not rated |
| Engineering and Technology | 1.11 | not rated |
| Geography | 1.11 | not rated |
| Philosophy and Theology | 1.11 | not rated |
| Physics | 1.11 | not rated |
| Chemistry | 1.09 | not rated |
| History and Archeology | 1.01 | not rated |
| Transportation | 1.01 | not rated |
| Building and Construction | 1.00 | not rated |
| Design | 1.00 | not rated |
| Fine Arts | 1.00 | not rated |
| Food Production | 1.00 | not rated |
| Sales and Marketing | 1.00 | not rated |
| Name | Importance | Level |
|---|---|---|
| Oral Comprehension | 4.25 | 4.88 |
| Written Comprehension | 4.12 | 4.12 |
| Speech Recognition | 4.00 | 4.25 |
| Written Expression | 3.88 | 4.12 |
| Near Vision | 3.88 | 3.88 |
| Oral Expression | 3.75 | 4.00 |
| Information Ordering | 3.25 | 3.00 |
| Selective Attention | 3.12 | 3.12 |
| Category Flexibility | 3.12 | 3.00 |
| Finger Dexterity | 3.00 | 3.12 |
| Deductive Reasoning | 3.00 | 3.00 |
| Inductive Reasoning | 3.00 | 3.00 |
| Problem Sensitivity | 3.00 | 3.00 |
| Perceptual Speed | 3.00 | 2.88 |
| Speech Clarity | 3.00 | 2.88 |
| Flexibility of Closure | 2.88 | 2.88 |
| Manual Dexterity | 2.62 | 2.25 |
| Arm-Hand Steadiness | 2.25 | 2.12 |
| Auditory Attention | 2.25 | 2.12 |
| Far Vision | 2.25 | 2.12 |
| Speed of Closure | 2.25 | 2.12 |
| Control Precision | 2.12 | 2.12 |
| Memorization | 2.12 | 2.00 |
| Time Sharing | 2.12 | 2.00 |
| Wrist-Finger Speed | 2.00 | 1.75 |
| Number Facility | 2.00 | 1.62 |
| Fluency of Ideas | 1.88 | 1.75 |
| Hearing Sensitivity | 1.88 | 1.50 |
| Mathematical Reasoning | 1.88 | 1.50 |
| Originality | 1.88 | 1.50 |
| Visual Color Discrimination | 1.75 | 1.12 |
| Visualization | 1.75 | 1.12 |
| Trunk Strength | 1.50 | 1.00 |
| Dynamic Strength | 1.25 | not rated |
| Stamina | 1.25 | not rated |
| Gross Body Coordination | 1.12 | not rated |
| Gross Body Equilibrium | 1.12 | not rated |
| Multilimb Coordination | 1.12 | not rated |
| Depth Perception | 1.00 | not rated |
| Dynamic Flexibility | 1.00 | not rated |
| Explosive Strength | 1.00 | not rated |
| Extent Flexibility | 1.00 | not rated |
| Glare Sensitivity | 1.00 | not rated |
| Night Vision | 1.00 | not rated |
| Peripheral Vision | 1.00 | not rated |
| Rate Control | 1.00 | not rated |
| Reaction Time | 1.00 | not rated |
| Response Orientation | 1.00 | not rated |
| Sound Localization | 1.00 | not rated |
| Spatial Orientation | 1.00 | not rated |
| Speed of Limb Movement | 1.00 | not rated |
| Static Strength | 1.00 | not rated |
Software used
Examples from O*NET data. "Hot" and "in demand" are O*NET flags for technologies often listed in job postings.
- Microsoft ASP.NET hot
- Microsoft Access hot
- Microsoft Excel hot
- Microsoft Office software hot
- Microsoft Outlook hot
- Microsoft PowerPoint hot
- Microsoft Windows hot
- Microsoft Word hot
- eClinicalWorks EHR software hot
- Allscripts healthcare automation software
- Boston Bar Systems Corporation Sonnet
- Bytescribe Development Company WavPlayer
- Calendar software
- Corel WordPerfect Office Suite
- Crescendo Systems Corporation MedRite-XL
- Crescendo Systems DigiScribe-XL
- Database software
- Electronic medical record EMR systems
- Email software
- Emmaus MPWord
- FileMaker Pro
- Healthcare common procedure coding system HCPCS
- Integrated Systems Management OmniMD
- MedQuist DocQment Enterprise Platform
- Medical terminology databases
- Narratek Smartype
- Nuance Dragon NaturallySpeaking
- PCC EHR
- Patient billing software
- Precision Data Solutions VoicePower
All 43
- Prognosis Innovation Healthcare ChartAccess
- SpectraMedi EasyFlow
- Speech recognition software
- SpeedType
- SpeedUp Trans
- Spellex AccuCount
- Sylvan Software Complete Medical Pharmaceutical Spell Checker
- Sylvan Software DropChute Pro
- Sylvan Software ShortCut
- Web browser software
- YouTube
- dBASE Plus
- g-net solutions MTP
Where it concentrates
Metro areas ranked by BLS location quotient: the occupation's share of the area's jobs divided by its share of all US jobs. Above 1 means more concentrated than the nation. Metros employing fewer than 100 are left out.
| Metro area | Employment | Location quotient | Median annual |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chico, CA | 120 | 5.94 | $50,020 |
| Johnson City, TN | 100 | 4.40 | $39,430 |
| Gainesville, FL | 160 | 4.00 | $47,420 |
| Charlottesville, VA | 100 | 3.37 | $38,250 |
| Lafayette, LA | 150 | 3.06 | $38,040 |
| Knoxville, TN | 340 | 3.03 | $37,860 |
| Sioux Falls, SD-MN | 140 | 2.83 | $46,930 |
| San Antonio-New Braunfels, TX | 780 | 2.60 | $27,400 |
| Memphis, TN-MS-AR | 330 | 2.04 | $47,470 |
| Boise City, ID | 200 | 1.91 | $39,690 |