Methods and apparatuses are described for wireless communications in which various association schemes may be performed for a machine type communication (MTC) device. In a long-term evolution (LTE) heterogeneous network, the MTC device may associate with a macro cell or a small cell using a narrowband MTC channel supported by the cells. Information about the MTC channel, including its frequency spectrum, may be transmitted to the MTC device using reserved bits in a physical broadcast channel (PBCH). Once the MTC device identifies the MTC channel, it may communicate with one or more cells during a frame or during a sub-frame. The MTC device may determine channel metrics of the cells from the MTC communication and may identify a cell with which to associate from the channel metrics. The association may be to a best downlink cell or a best uplink cell based on the operating profile of the MTC device.