| Important Core Job Duties (in order of importance) For the Top 5 most important - How can you build experience and skill doing these? This will help now, to begin preparing for this type of occupation. |
|
| Importance (%) | Description |
| Importance: 98 (%) | Description: Monitor and maintain aseptic technique throughout procedures. |
| Importance: 97 (%) | Description: Verify the identity of patient or operative site. |
| Importance: 97 (%) | Description: Maintain an unobstructed operative field, using surgical retractors, sponges, or suctioning and irrigating equipment. |
| Importance: 95 (%) | Description: Cover patients with surgical drapes to create and maintain a sterile operative field. |
| Importance: 95 (%) | Description: Obtain or inspect sterile or non-sterile surgical equipment, instruments, or supplies. |
| Importance: 95 (%) | Description: Pass instruments or supplies to surgeon during procedure. |
| Importance: 93 (%) | Description: Coordinate or participate in the positioning of patients, using body stabilizing equipment or protective padding to provide appropriate exposure for the procedure or to protect against nerve damage or circulation impairment. |
| Importance: 93 (%) | Description: Clamp, ligate, or cauterize blood vessels to control bleeding during surgical entry, using hemostatic clamps, suture ligatures, or electrocautery equipment. |
| Importance: 93 (%) | Description: Assist with patient resuscitation during cardiac arrest or other life-threatening events. |
| Importance: 92 (%) | Description: Determine availability of necessary equipment or supplies for operative procedures. |
| Importance: 90 (%) | Description: Gather, arrange, or assemble instruments or supplies. |
| Importance: 86 (%) | Description: Apply sutures, staples, clips, or other materials to close skin, facia, or subcutaneous wound layers. |
| Importance: 85 (%) | Description: Assess skin integrity or other body conditions upon completion of the procedure to determine if damage has occurred from body positioning. |
| Importance: 85 (%) | Description: Operate sterilizing devices. |
| Importance: 83 (%) | Description: Assist members of surgical team with gowning or gloving. |
| Importance: 83 (%) | Description: Prepare and apply sterile wound dressings. |
| Importance: 81 (%) | Description: Discuss with surgeon the nature of the surgical procedure, including operative consent, methods of operative exposure, diagnostic or laboratory data, or patient-advanced directives or other needs. |
| Importance: 81 (%) | Description: Assist in the insertion, positioning, or suturing of closed-wound drainage systems. |
| Importance: 80 (%) | Description: Adjust and maintain operating room temperature, humidity, or lighting, according to surgeon's specifications. |
| Importance: 78 (%) | Description: Transport patients to operating room. |
| Importance: 76 (%) | Description: Assist in applying casts, splints, braces, or similar devices. |
| Importance: 71 (%) | Description: Monitor patient intra-operative status, including patient position, vital signs, or volume and color of blood. |
| Importance: 70 (%) | Description: Coordinate with anesthesia personnel to maintain patient temperature. |
Associate Degree Careers and Jobs
Explore Careers and Jobs Predominantly Filled by Those with an Associate's Degree or Less - All On One Page.
Sorted by median annual U.S. salary and including percentage of job holders with Associate's Degree or less.
An associate's degree can open doors to skilled technical, healthcare, and business support roles without the time commitment of a four-year degree. For people who want a faster, more affordable path into a stable career. Compare careers ranked by salary, review degree-holder and experience percentages, and access preparation resources for each role.
Here is a short Helper Video 
.
This page will take you through 4 steps, relative to an Associate's Degree, to (1) Select a career, (2) Find active job listings, (3) Prepare for the career you chose, and (4) Provide web resources specific to the career you chose.
Step 1: Select a Career: You will be presented with a listing of Associate's Degree careers. The list may be quite long. There are two ways you might like to use this list:
1) Filter - As you enter a word, you will filter (limit) the list of careers below
2) Browse the list (Don't Filter) - You can simply browse the list of careers. There may be many that you might never have considered. This may help you to discover careers that might be of interest.
Once you have identified a career of interest, simply click on it.
Step 2: Find a Job: After you have selected a career/job title above, you will see a form asking for your location. You will see several radio selection choices to utilize the job search site of your choice.
Step 3: Prepare For a Career: In this section you will gain access to detailed information to help you prepare for the career you selected. Information includes core and supplemental duties, general and specific work activities, knowledge required, essential and transferable skills required, day-in-the-life summaries, knowledge required, software skills required, preparation required, educational requirements, training and work experience required, local salary information, certifications, professional associations, current job listings for the job selected along with multiple similar job titles, and related careers (related to what they do, what they know, and what they're called).
Step 4: Career-Specific Resources (detailed and constantly updated): Continue to scroll down the page and you will find tabs that will provide detailed (updated) links to occupational information specific to the career you selected. This information includes:
Videos: Provides a listing of video links related to this career. A great way to get a quick overview of the occupation.
Resumes: Sources for resume materials and techniques. This can help to get you started.
Job Description: Sources that provide job descriptions, which are vital to resume and interview preparation.
Interviews: Provides links that can help you to prepare for and successfully complete the job interview.
Step by Step: Provides links to resources that can help to organize the career search process.
LinkedIn: One of the best professional social media sites that provides links, opportunities, and networking specifically for careers and career development.
Step 1 of 4: Select a Career
Leading Books About Associate Degree Jobs
What jobs can you get with an Associate's Degree? Scroll through the picklist (below). These are careers related to the Associate's Degree level, with at least 30% of job holders having an Associate's Degree. - 571 specific careers are listed, with matching jobs currently available. Select those careers that may be of interest - you will then get links to matching active job listings, and detailed resources to help you prepare.
You can use this form two ways:
1) Enter a Keyword - As you enter a keyword, you will filter (limit) the listing to those careers that contain the keyword entered
2) Browse the list (Don't enter a keyword) - You can simply browse the list of careers. There may be many that you might never have considered. This may help you to discover jobs that might be of interest.
OR - leave blank and scroll through the choices:
Select a Job Title - Sorted by Annual Salary -(scroll and Select) :
Legend: Career Title Link / (% having Associate's Degree or less) / (Median Annual U.S. Salary)
Step 2 of 4: Find a Job
Job Listings for: Surgical Assistants.
Step 3 of 4: Prepare For a Career
Prepare for the "Surgical Assistants" Career
The details below will provide a pathway to your specific job goal and help you to identify an appropriate career ladder.
Surgical Assistants
Description: Assist in operations, under the supervision of surgeons. May, in accordance with state laws, help surgeons to make incisions and close surgical sites, manipulate or remove tissues, implant surgical devices or drains, suction the surgical site, place catheters, clamp or cauterize vessels or tissue, and apply dressings to surgical site.
Please click on a section below to expand and see detailed occupational information related to "Surgical Assistants":
Core Duties
Supplemental Duties
| Important Supplemental Job Duties (in order of importance)
For the Top 5 most important - How can you build experience and skill doing these? This will help now, to begin preparing for this type of occupation. |
|
| Importance (%) | Description |
| Importance: 65 (%) | Description: Insert or remove urinary bladder catheters. |
| Importance: 65 (%) | Description: Remove patient hair or disinfect incision sites to prepare patient for surgery. |
| Importance: 57 (%) | Description: Postoperatively inject a subcutaneous local anesthetic agent to reduce pain. |
| Importance: 34 (%) | Description: Incise tissue layers in lower extremities to harvest veins. |
| Importance: 30 (%) | Description: Assist in volume replacement or autotransfusion techniques. |
Work Activities
| Important General Work Activities (in order of importance)
For the Top 5 most important - How can you build experience and skill doing these? This will help now, to begin preparing for this type of occupation. |
|
| Importance (%) | Description |
| Importance: 99 (%) | Description: Assisting and Caring for Others: Providing personal assistance, medical attention, emotional support, or other personal care to others such as coworkers, customers, or patients. |
| Importance: 92 (%) | Description: Identifying Objects, Actions, and Events: Identifying information by categorizing, estimating, recognizing differences or similarities, and detecting changes in circumstances or events. |
| Importance: 91 (%) | Description: Making Decisions and Solving Problems: Analyzing information and evaluating results to choose the best solution and solve problems. |
| Importance: 90 (%) | Description: Monitoring Processes, Materials, or Surroundings: Monitoring and reviewing information from materials, events, or the environment, to detect or assess problems. |
| Importance: 89 (%) | Description: Getting Information: Observing, receiving, and otherwise obtaining information from all relevant sources. |
| Importance: 88 (%) | Description: Establishing and Maintaining Interpersonal Relationships: Developing constructive and cooperative working relationships with others, and maintaining them over time. |
| Importance: 88 (%) | Description: Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates: Providing information to supervisors, co-workers, and subordinates by telephone, in written form, e-mail, or in person. |
| Importance: 87 (%) | Description: Handling and Moving Objects: Using hands and arms in handling, installing, positioning, and moving materials, and manipulating things. |
| Importance: 87 (%) | Description: Performing General Physical Activities: Performing general physical activities includes doing activities that require considerable use of your arms and legs and moving your whole body, such as climbing, lifting, balancing, walking, stooping, and handling materials. |
| Importance: 87 (%) | Description: Inspecting Equipment, Structures, or Materials: Inspecting equipment, structures, or materials to identify the cause of errors or other problems or defects. |
| Importance: 85 (%) | Description: Updating and Using Relevant Knowledge: Keeping up-to-date technically and applying new knowledge to your job. |
| Importance: 83 (%) | Description: Evaluating Information to Determine Compliance with Standards: Using relevant information and individual judgment to determine whether events or processes comply with laws, regulations, or standards. |
| Importance: 78 (%) | Description: Organizing, Planning, and Prioritizing Work: Developing specific goals and plans to prioritize, organize, and accomplish your work. |
| Importance: 76 (%) | Description: Controlling Machines and Processes: Using either control mechanisms or direct physical activity to operate machines or processes (not including computers or vehicles). |
| Importance: 76 (%) | Description: Performing for or Working Directly with the Public: Performing for people or dealing directly with the public. This includes serving customers in restaurants and stores, and receiving clients or guests. |
| Importance: 75 (%) | Description: Judging the Qualities of Objects, Services, or People: Assessing the value, importance, or quality of things or people. |
| Importance: 75 (%) | Description: Documenting/Recording Information: Entering, transcribing, recording, storing, or maintaining information in written or electronic/magnetic form. |
| Importance: 73 (%) | Description: Processing Information: Compiling, coding, categorizing, calculating, tabulating, auditing, or verifying information or data. |
| Importance: 72 (%) | Description: Training and Teaching Others: Identifying the educational needs of others, developing formal educational or training programs or classes, and teaching or instructing others. |
| Importance: 72 (%) | Description: Interpreting the Meaning of Information for Others: Translating or explaining what information means and how it can be used. |
| Importance: 71 (%) | Description: Estimating the Quantifiable Characteristics of Products, Events, or Information: Estimating sizes, distances, and quantities; or determining time, costs, resources, or materials needed to perform a work activity. |
| Importance: 71 (%) | Description: Working with Computers: Using computers and computer systems (including hardware and software) to program, write software, set up functions, enter data, or process information. |
| Importance: 68 (%) | Description: Developing and Building Teams: Encouraging and building mutual trust, respect, and cooperation among team members. |
| Importance: 67 (%) | Description: Providing Consultation and Advice to Others: Providing guidance and expert advice to management or other groups on technical, systems-, or process-related topics. |
| Importance: 67 (%) | Description: Thinking Creatively: Developing, designing, or creating new applications, ideas, relationships, systems, or products, including artistic contributions. |
| Importance: 67 (%) | Description: Coaching and Developing Others: Identifying the developmental needs of others and coaching, mentoring, or otherwise helping others to improve their knowledge or skills. |
| Importance: 66 (%) | Description: Analyzing Data or Information: Identifying the underlying principles, reasons, or facts of information by breaking down information or data into separate parts. |
| Importance: 65 (%) | Description: Resolving Conflicts and Negotiating with Others: Handling complaints, settling disputes, and resolving grievances and conflicts, or otherwise negotiating with others. |
| Importance: 65 (%) | Description: Developing Objectives and Strategies: Establishing long-range objectives and specifying the strategies and actions to achieve them. |
| Importance: 63 (%) | Description: Guiding, Directing, and Motivating Subordinates: Providing guidance and direction to subordinates, including setting performance standards and monitoring performance. |
Specific Work Activities
| Important Specific Work Activities
How can you begin to build experience and skill doing these? This will help now, to begin preparing for this type of occupation. Specific Work Activities appear below: |
|
| Adjust building climate control systems. | |
| Adjust settings or positions of medical equipment. | |
| Administer anesthetics or sedatives to control pain. | |
| Administer basic health care or medical treatments. | |
| Administer blood or other fluids intravenously. | |
| Administer intravenous medications. | |
| Apply bandages, dressings, or splints. | |
| Assess skin or hair conditions. | |
| Assist healthcare practitioners during surgery. | |
| Collaborate with healthcare professionals to plan or provide treatment. | |
| Examine medical instruments or equipment to ensure proper operation. | |
| Implement advanced life support techniques. | |
| Maintain inventory of medical supplies or equipment. | |
| Maintain sterile operative fields. | |
| Monitor patient conditions during treatments, procedures, or activities. | |
| Monitor patient progress or responses to treatments. | |
| Monitor patients following surgeries or other treatments. | |
| Move patients to or from treatment areas. | |
| Operate diagnostic or therapeutic medical instruments or equipment. | |
| Operate on patients to treat conditions. | |
| Position patients for treatment or examination. | |
| Prepare medical supplies or equipment for use. | |
| Prepare patients physically for medical procedures. | |
| Protect patients or staff members using safety equipment. | |
| Sterilize medical equipment or instruments. | |
| Treat acute illnesses, infections, or injuries. | |
| Verify accuracy of patient information. | |
Knowledge Required
| Knowledge Required (in order of importance)
For the Top 5 most important - How can you build experience and skill doing these? This will help now, to begin preparing for this type of occupation. |
|
| Importance (%) | Description |
| Importance: 83 (%) | Description: Medicine and Dentistry: Knowledge of the information and techniques needed to diagnose and treat human injuries, diseases, and deformities. This includes symptoms, treatment alternatives, drug properties and interactions, and preventive health-care measures. |
| Importance: 78 (%) | Description: Customer and Personal Service: Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction. |
| Importance: 70 (%) | Description: English Language: Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, and rules of composition and grammar. |
| Importance: 66 (%) | Description: Biology: Knowledge of plant and animal organisms, their tissues, cells, functions, interdependencies, and interactions with each other and the environment. |
| Importance: 66 (%) | Description: Education and Training: Knowledge of principles and methods for curriculum and training design, teaching and instruction for individuals and groups, and the measurement of training effects. |
Essential Skills
| Essential Skills (in order of importance)
These are the foundational skills most central to success in this occupation. For the Top 5 most important, how can you begin building experience and confidence using these skills now? |
|
| Importance (%) | Description |
| Importance: 66 (%) | Description: Active Listening: Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times. |
| Importance: 62 (%) | Description: Speaking: Talking to others to convey information effectively. |
| Importance: 60 (%) | Description: Reading Comprehension: Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work-related documents. |
| Importance: 60 (%) | Description: Critical Thinking: Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions, or approaches to problems. |
| Importance: 60 (%) | Description: Monitoring: Monitoring/Assessing performance of yourself, other individuals, or organizations to make improvements or take corrective action. |
| Importance: 52 (%) | Description: Writing: Communicating effectively in writing as appropriate for the needs of the audience. |
| Importance: 52 (%) | Description: Learning Strategies: Selecting and using training/instructional methods and procedures appropriate for the situation when learning or teaching new things. |
Transferable Skills
| Transferable Skills (in order of importance)
These are skills that can transfer across occupations and industries. For the Top 5 most important, how can you strengthen these skills now so they support both this career and future career flexibility? |
|
| Importance (%) | Description |
| Importance: 56 (%) | Description: Coordination: Adjusting actions in relation to others' actions. |
| Importance: 56 (%) | Description: Service Orientation: Actively looking for ways to help people. |
| Importance: 54 (%) | Description: Complex Problem Solving: Identifying complex problems and reviewing related information to develop and evaluate options and implement solutions. |
| Importance: 54 (%) | Description: Operations Monitoring: Watching gauges, dials, or other indicators to make sure a machine is working properly. |
| Importance: 52 (%) | Description: Social Perceptiveness: Being aware of others' reactions and understanding why they react as they do. |
| Importance: 52 (%) | Description: Judgment and Decision Making: Considering the relative costs and benefits of potential actions to choose the most appropriate one. |
Day-in-the-Life Summaries
| Day-in-the-Life Summaries These summaries show the main types of activities you are likely to perform on a regular basis in this occupation. How can you imagine your typical workday — using these examples to see if this type of work fits you? |
| Activity: Adjust equipment to ensure adequate performance. |
| Activity: Administer basic health care or medical treatments. |
| Activity: Administer emergency medical treatment. |
| Activity: Assist healthcare practitioners during medical procedures. |
| Activity: Clean medical equipment or facilities. |
| Activity: Confer with healthcare or other professionals about patient care. |
| Activity: Evaluate patient or client condition or treatment options. |
| Activity: Follow standard healthcare safety procedures to protect patient and staff members. |
| Activity: Inspect commercial, industrial, or production systems or equipment. |
| Activity: Monitor health conditions of humans or animals. |
| Activity: Operate medical equipment. |
| Activity: Prepare medical equipment or work areas for use. |
| Activity: Replenish inventories of materials, equipment, or products. |
| Activity: Transport patients or clients. |
| Activity: Treat injuries, illnesses, or diseases. |
| Activity: Verify personal information. |
Software Skills
|
Software Skills These are examples of software tools commonly used in this occupation, organized from most to least important for your career preparation. How can you start learning or practicing the highest-priority tools so that you feel confident using them on the job? |
||||||
| Emerging Tech Skills | ||||||
| Medical software: | ||||||
| MEDITECH software | ||||||
| Office suite software: | ||||||
| Microsoft Office software | ||||||
| Presentation software: | ||||||
| Microsoft PowerPoint | ||||||
| Spreadsheet software: | ||||||
| Microsoft Excel | ||||||
| General Software Tools | ||||||
| Medical software (scroll table below): | ||||||
|
Preparation Required
| Preparation Required - How much preparation is needed to obtain this type of job? |
| Job Zone Three: Medium Preparation Needed |
| Previous work-related skill, knowledge, or experience is required for these occupations. For example, an electrician must have completed three or four years of apprenticeship or several years of vocational training, and often must have passed a licensing exam, in order to perform the job. |
| Most occupations in this zone require training in vocational schools, related on-the-job experience, or an associate's degree. |
| Employees in these occupations usually need one or two years of training involving both on-the-job experience and informal training with experienced workers. A recognized apprenticeship program may be associated with these occupations. |
| These occupations usually involve using communication and organizational skills to coordinate, supervise, manage, or train others to accomplish goals. Examples include hydroelectric production managers, desktop publishers, electricians, agricultural technicians, barbers, court reporters and simultaneous captioners, and medical assistants. |
Education Required
| Education Required - by frequency of educational attainment This shows you details about the level of education most commonly held by workers in this occupation. How can you begin planning the educational pathway that will prepare you best for this type of work? |
|
| Frequency of Attainment (%) | Level of Education |
| Frequency of Attainment: 25.0 (%) | Level of Education: Associate's Degree (or other 2-year degree) |
| Frequency of Attainment: 16.1 (%) | Level of Education: Post-Baccalaureate Certificate - awarded for completion of an organized program of study; designed for people who have completed a Baccalaureate degree but do not meet the requirements of academic degrees carrying the title of Master. |
| Frequency of Attainment: 15.4 (%) | Level of Education: Post-Secondary Certificate - awarded for training completed after high school (for example, in agriculture or natural resources, computer services, personal or culinary services, engineering technologies, healthcare, construction trades, mechanic and repair technologies, or precision production) |
| Frequency of Attainment: 13.2 (%) | Level of Education: High School Diploma - or the equivalent (for example, GED) |
| Frequency of Attainment: 10.6 (%) | Level of Education: Some College Courses |
| Frequency of Attainment: 7.8 (%) | Level of Education: Bachelor's Degree |
| Frequency of Attainment: 7.7 (%) | Level of Education: Master's Degree |
| Frequency of Attainment: 4.3 (%) | Level of Education: Post-Doctoral Training |
Training and Experience Required
| Training and Experience Required - by frequency of training and work experience attainment This section shows you how often different types of training and work experience are required for this occupation. How can you start gaining the kinds of experience and training that are most common for this type of work? |
|
| Frequency of Attainment (%) | Level of Training and Work Experience |
| Frequency of Attainment: 32.4 (%) | Level of Training and Work Experience: Over 1 year, up to and including 2 years |
| Frequency of Attainment: 27.6 (%) | Level of Training and Work Experience: Over 2 years, up to and including 4 years |
| Frequency of Attainment: 15.3 (%) | Level of Training and Work Experience: Over 6 months, up to and including 1 year |
| Frequency of Attainment: 7.0 (%) | Level of Training and Work Experience: Over 1 month, up to and including 3 months |
| Frequency of Attainment: 6.2 (%) | Level of Training and Work Experience: Over 6 years, up to and including 8 years |
| Frequency of Attainment: 5.4 (%) | Level of Training and Work Experience: Over 10 years |
| Frequency of Attainment: 3.0 (%) | Level of Training and Work Experience: None |
| Frequency of Attainment: 2.4 (%) | Level of Training and Work Experience: Over 4 years, up to and including 6 years |
| Frequency of Attainment: 0.8 (%) | Level of Training and Work Experience: Over 8 years, up to and including 10 years |
Local Salary Information
Select a State (scroll and Select) :
Please select a State to see State and National Salaries
Job Listings
Related Careers to Consider
Step 4 of 4: Career-Specific Resources (detailed and constantly updated)
This section contains detailed resources appropriate to "Surgical Assistants". Explore these resources to start learning more. Links are constantly updated, so bookmark this page.
Videos
Here is a listing of videos related to this career. A great way to get a quick overview of the occupation.
Resumes
Here are resources that allow you to see example resumes for this occupation. It may be helpful to see examples from others who have this type of experience.
Job Description
Here are resources that provide job descriptions, which are vital for resume and interview preparation.
Interviews
There are many great resources that can help guide you through the interview process. These links provide help in preparing and performing an effective interview, specific to this occupation.
Step-by-Step
Here are links to help guide you, step-by-step, to become a(n): Surgical Assistants
LinkedIn®
Here are links to various posts and groups from LinkedIn ® that relate to this occupation. Great way to start building professional contacts in the field that might be most appropriate for you.
Developed by Dr. Ralph Jagodka, Ed.D., Professor Emeritus of Business Management at Mt. San Antonio College and author of the Harvard Business Impact article "What to Do When Students Ask You for Career Advice." - Full bio. © 2026 About This Page
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