B.C. needs more medical office administrators and Langara College’s first concurrent study language-supported Medical Office Administrator (MOA) class shows how occupation-specific, English training and support can help students build healthcare communication skills while earning their credential.
This August, snəw̓eyəɬ leləm̓ Langara College celebrates a milestone: the graduation of its first class of Medical Office Administrator (MOA) students who completed their studies with occupation-specific English language support.
This matters because British Columbia’s medical offices are hiring, with WorkBC projecting 2,610 job openings between 2025-2035, and Langara has built a faster way into this career path.
The result: students build medical communication skills while earning their credential, not before it, which allows them to get into the workforce sooner and with more confidence. And you can be next.
Langara built Occupation-Specific English Language Learning (OSELL) Pathways for students who need English language support to access a demanding, healthcare program that fits how learners live and work: “OSELL courses run fully online and emphasize flexibility,” explains Alison Marshall, program coordinator. “Students complete up to 16.5 hours of independent, self-paced learning and have weekly meetings with instructors where they can ask questions, practice speaking and pronunciation, and reflect on progress with classmates.”
“The most common reason students enrolled in OSELL was to build the confidence and communication skills needed to succeed in both the MOA program and in their future healthcare careers.”
— Alison Marshall, program coordinator
Medical office administration requires complex language and communication skills and medical terminology to liaise with patients and healthcare professionals. Language support helps students meet that requirement from day one.
Marshall says common challenges for students starting with lower-intermediate English levels include “understanding and pronouncing medical terminology, communicating confidently with patients and colleagues, and navigating Canadian workplace expectations in fast-paced situations.” She adds that medical language can feel like “a whole other language in itself.”
Langara’s approach targets that pressure point directly. In the first two OSELL courses, students work on professional communication and build confidence using medical terminology through practical tasks such as transcription, documentation, email writing, and role-playing common patient interactions. In the final course, learners focus on the transition to the workplace with activities like resume writing and interview practice.
Because the program stays online and largely self-paced, students keep moving through their MOA credential without falling behind in language.
The English-language learning model is now expanding to a broader healthcare pathway. Like OSELL, the new General Health English Language Learning course is funded by the Ministry of Post-Secondary Education and Future Skills, under the English Language Learning Pathways to High-Priority Careers Program. Because the English language courses are grant-funded, eligible students do not pay tuition for the language component.
Marshall says the course will support MOA, the new Advanced MOA, and Dental Reception Skills for now, with more healthcare directions under development.
Langara’s first language-supported MOA cohort reaches graduation with a clear message: access works when it removes the specific barriers that block participation.
The story doesn’t stop at one class. As the language-support model expands through the General Health ELL, Langara widens access to healthcare administration training and helps deliver essential services in the communities that need them most.
Our General Health English Language Learning course can be a foundational piece of your training. Designed to help you gain practical skills, grow your communication, and move closer to your career goals, the course now supports our Medical Office Administrator, the new Advanced Medical Office Administrator, and Dental Reception Skills programs.
Learn more today.
