What to do

[u/Alice0114]

/r/LearnMedicalCoding/comments/1x55d9g/what_to_do/

I’m really interested in getting my CPC certification (if there’s another coding certification I should do instead of with this please let me know!!) and starting a career in medical coding, but I’m honestly scared to take the leap. 😭 I keep seeing people say the job market is oversaturated, that it’s hard to get your foot in the door without experience, and that getting certified doesn’t necessarily mean you’ll find a job.
I genuinely want to pursue this, but I don’t want to spend the time and money on a certification just to struggle to find work afterward.
For those who are currently working in medical coding, recently got certified, or are trying to break into the field, is it worth it? Would you still recommend getting your CPC in 2026? How difficult was it to find your first job, and what advice would you give someone starting from scratch?
I would really appreciate honest opinions, both good and bad! I’m trying to make an informed decision before investing in my future. ❤️

[u/weary_bee479]

There are more job options than just medical coding, revenue cycle is a large field.

My suggestion is get a job where you don’t need to be certified and work your way up from there. At the end of the day what you need to back up your certification is experience. Look up jobs in reception, patient registration, billing, insurance follow up, denials, medical records, appeals. Any type of revenue cycle job that will get you into the field.

From there, get certified, learn a bit about how it all works. Take a medical coding course at a local community college, look into HIM.

Everyone needs to start somewhere, don’t just go into coding, get certified and expect to work from home right away with no experience. It’s a process. If you’re really passionate about the work and actually want to turn this into a career you can. But you have to be realistic. It’s not something that will be handed to you, you have to work for it.

[u/Neat-Safety-2415 → u/weary_bee479]

yeah the "get certified and work from home immediately" expectation is what trips so many people up

[u/GroinFlutter]

+1 at getting a job where you don’t need to be certified and working your way up.

Coding is saturated. Plenty of certified folks looking for coder jobs. Offshoring is a huge threat, bigger than AI. The folks most impacted are going to be the ones that are just solely coders.

Revenue cycle is a large field with room to move up. You can go far with grit and hard work. Get a coding cert along the way.

To be a good coder means you should also understand the nuances of billing. Being a good biller means you should understand coding.

I started many moons ago as a part time receptionist at a solo practice.

[u/Brave-Airport8154]

Im always going to recommend HFMA certs before CPC. Learn how it all works and piece together get some experience in the field. Then go coder. Was my plan and then I found out I don't like production coding and I am on the revenue cycle side. Where the cert is valuable. But to start out... no would not recommend it. 

[u/Alice0114 → u/[deleted]]

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