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Major · Health Professions

A catchall CIP for specialized allied-health programs

Allied Health and Medical Assisting Services, Other (CIP 51.0899) is the catchall for allied-health and medical-assisting programs that don’t fit a named sub-discipline. About 1,062 students complete it across just 32 institutions, with five-year median earnings of $45,906 — and program content varies considerably by institution.

Schools offering
32
Annual completions
1,062
Typical degree level
Associate's + Bachelor's
Median earnings (5yr)
$46k

About this major

Allied Health and Medical Assisting Services, Other (CIP 51.0899) is the catchall code for allied-health and medical-assisting programs that don’t fit one of the named sub-disciplines. The CIP definition is deliberately broad — any instructional program in allied health and medical assisting services not listed elsewhere — which means the actual curriculum varies considerably by institution. One program might emphasize patient-care technician training, another a generalist allied-health bachelor’s with pre-professional electives, another a hybrid of MA and community-health content. The CIP code alone doesn’t tell you what the program teaches; the institution’s course list does.

The major fits students whose target institution offers something the named CIPs don’t cover cleanly — for example, a bachelor’s-level allied-health pre-professional pipeline toward PT, OT, or PA graduate programs, or a specialized regional curriculum tied to a specific employer or health system. It also fits students who want a flexible bachelor’s in healthcare without committing to a single named clinical credential. The major rewards careful program-by-program comparison, willingness to verify graduate-school prerequisites course-by-course, and clarity about whether the goal is direct entry-level employment or a launching pad toward a graduate clinical credential.

One grounded observation about scale and structure: 1,062 students complete this CIP across just 32 institutions — a small producer base for a healthcare CIP, with two large research universities (Ohio State at 484 completions, University of Connecticut at 242) accounting for nearly two-thirds of national output. Bachelor’s grads earn $66,034 versus $45,304 for associate’s-only completers — the gap is wide and suggests the bachelor’s-level versions tilt toward administrative or pre-professional pathways while associate’s versions land in direct patient-care support work. The named SOC, healthcare support workers, all other, pays $46,050 with +3.5% projected growth and a high-school-diploma typical entry — a signal that the headline outcome from this CIP is a generalist support role, not a credentialed clinical track.

Section 3 · Careers

Where this major leads

Occupations most often associated with this major, from the federal BLS+O*NET crosswalk. Job-growth projections and median wages are national.

Occupation Median wage Job growth Typical education
Healthcare support workers, all other $46k +3.5% High school diploma or equivalent
Section 4 · Earnings

Earnings at a glance

Median graduate earnings from the federal College Scorecard, 5 and 10 years out.

Median 5-year earnings

$46k

Associate's vs Bachelor's — early-career earnings

Associate's

$45k

Bachelor's

$66k

Who this major is for

Good signs this major fits: the specific institution you’re considering offers a bachelor’s-level allied-health pre-professional program that satisfies prerequisites for PT, OT, PA, or nursing graduate school; you want flexibility to combine clinical, administrative, and community-health content rather than commit to a single named clinical credential; you’ve already verified the program’s course list and confirmed it matches your downstream graduate-school requirements; and the program has institutional support — clinical placements, advising, graduate-school feeder relationships — that a named CIP wouldn’t offer at that school.

Reasons to pause: the catchall CIP carries no standardized credential, so program quality and content vary by institution and the CIP code alone signals nothing to employers or graduate admissions committees. The named SOC outcome is healthcare support workers, all other ($46,050) with a high-school-diploma typical entry — meaning the labor market doesn’t treat this credential as gating access to higher-wage clinical roles. If your goal is a defined clinical credential, named CIPs almost always win: Medical/Clinical Assistant (51.0801, 4,799 completions, CMA/RMA pipeline), Physical Therapy Assistant (51.0806, 5,324 completions, licensed PTA), Occupational Therapist Assistant (51.0803, 3,140), Pharmacy Technician/Assistant (51.0805, 1,189). If the parent worth-it page on medical-assisting is more useful for outcome comparison, follow that link before committing.

Section 6 · Where to study

Top colleges for Allied Health and Medical Assisting Services, Other

Ranked by annual completions at the associate's or bachelor's level — a proxy for program scale.

College Location Assoc. Bach. Total
Ohio State University-Main Campus Columbus, OH 0 484 484
University of Connecticut Storrs, CT 0 242 242
Black River Technical College Pocahontas, AR 77 0 77
Brigham Young University-Idaho Rexburg, ID 37 0 37
Plaza College Forest Hills, NY 32 0 32
Cedarville University Cedarville, OH 0 31 31
Pennsylvania Western University California, PA 28 0 28
Thomas Edison State University Trenton, NJ 27 0 27
Mount Wachusett Community College Gardner, MA 24 0 24
Columbus State Community College Columbus, OH 18 0 18
Section 7 · Explore sideways

Related majors to explore

Physical Therapy Assistant

5,324 completions/yr

Medical/Clinical Assistant

4,799 completions/yr

Occupational Therapist Assistant

3,140 completions/yr

Health and Medical Administrative Services, Other

1,950 completions/yr

Pharmacy Technician/Assistant

1,189 completions/yr

Mental and Social Health Services and Allied Professions, Other

977 completions/yr

Respiratory Therapy Technician/Assistant

385 completions/yr

Clinical/Medical Laboratory Assistant

331 completions/yr

Considering this direction?

We've taken a hard look at the debt, earnings trajectory, and degree-level tradeoffs for the Allied Health and Medical Assisting Services, Other field. Read our verdict before you commit.

Is Allied Health and Medical Assisting Services, Other worth it? Read verdict
Section 9 · Frequently asked

Common questions

What does this catchall CIP actually cover?
The CIP definition is deliberately broad: any instructional program in allied health and medical assisting services not listed under a named sub-discipline. In practice, that means the curriculum varies considerably by institution — one school’s program might emphasize patient-care technician skills, another’s might focus on community health worker training, and a third’s might be a general allied-health bachelor’s with a specialization track. Read the institution’s actual course list and clinical-rotation requirements; the CIP code alone tells you very little.
How does this compare to Medical/Clinical Assistant (CIP 51.0801)?
Medical/Clinical Assistant (51.0801, 4,799 completions) is the named, much larger sibling — a defined credential with consistent national curriculum standards, CAAHEP/ABHES accreditation pathways, and a recognized CMA or RMA certification at the end. The catchall (51.0899) lacks that uniformity. If your program is an MA program, schools sometimes code it under the catchall when they want to combine MA training with other allied-health content. Verify what credentials the program prepares you for — CMA, RMA, CCMA, or none — before committing.
What jobs are realistic from this major?
The named SOC is healthcare support workers, all other ($46,050 median, +3.5% projected growth, high-school-diploma typical entry) — a generalist support role rather than a credentialed clinical track. Bachelor’s-completion grads from this CIP earn meaningfully more ($66,034) than associate’s-completion grads ($45,304), suggesting that the bachelor’s-level versions tilt toward health-administration or supervisory roles. Off-list outcomes typically follow whatever specialization the program emphasized — patient care, public health, community health, or administrative support.
Why are the top two producers Ohio State and UConn?
Ohio State University leads with 484 completions and University of Connecticut follows with 242 — an unusual pattern for a CIP catchall. These are large research-university bachelor’s programs that bundle allied-health content into a generalist bachelor’s, often as a pre-professional pipeline toward physical therapy, occupational therapy, physician assistant, or nursing graduate programs. The remaining producers are smaller community colleges and for-profits with associate’s-level patient-care or medical-assisting programs. The two patterns are different products under one CIP code.
Is this a good pre-professional path to PT, OT, or PA?
It can be, especially at the bachelor’s-level large-university version (Ohio State, UConn) where the curriculum often satisfies prerequisites for PT, OT, or PA graduate programs. Verify with the destination program’s specific course requirements — anatomy, physiology, organic chemistry, biochemistry, statistics — because catchall CIPs don’t guarantee any specific course coverage. The named pre-professional pipeline CIPs (Pre-Physical Therapy 51.1109, Pre-Occupational Therapy 51.1107) are more explicit about that pathway.
Should I prefer a named CIP over this catchall?
Usually yes, unless the specific program at the institution you’re considering offers something the named CIPs don’t. Named credentials — Medical/Clinical Assistant (51.0801), Physical Therapy Assistant (51.0806), Occupational Therapist Assistant (51.0803), Pharmacy Technician (51.0805), Health Information Technology (51.0707) — come with standardized curricula, accredited programs, and recognized national credentials. The catchall gives you flexibility but no signal value. Pick the catchall only if the specific program’s content matches your goals better than any named option.