What Are the Education Requirements for an ER Doctor?

The emergency room is the front lines of a hospital. Patients may come in with conditions as mild as the common cold or a stomach bug or for problems like broken bones or a concussion.

Other times, patients come in with life-threatening injuries or illnesses. In some cases, like car accidents or mass shootings, an emergency room may be flooded with patients all needing emergency care.

To work as a doctor in an emergency room, you'll need many years of education as well as a medical license. Keep reading to learn more about ER doctors and the requirements to become one.

What Is an ER Doctor?

ER doctors are medical doctors who specialize in emergency medicine and work in the ER. They often see a wide variety of patients with a wide variety of conditions.

People come into the ER for all kinds of medical problems. The job of an ER doctor is to determine what steps to take for each patient.

The job duties of an ER doctor may include:

• assessing patients who come into the emergency room
• diagnosing patients
• directing emergency room nurses and technicians
• ordering diagnostic tests, like blood tests or imaging scans
• performing emergency procedures like CPR or intubations
• prescribing medicine
• referring patients to specialists
• reviewing patient history and recording the visit in their medical chart
• stabilizing patients so the patients can be transported to the next area of the hospital, like the intensive care unit (ICU) or surgery

ER physicians work in the ERs of hospitals. Because emergency rooms are typically open 24/7, the doctors here may work nontraditional hours and long shifts.

Educational Requirements To Become an ER Doctor

To become an ER doctor, you'll need to complete medical school and obtain a medical license through your state. However, to get to that point, there are many other requirements you need to meet.

Below, we've outlined the basic educational requirements to become an ER doctor.

Step 1: Earn a Bachelor's Degree

Before you can go to medical school, you'll need to earn a bachelor's degree. Bachelor's degrees are four-year undergraduate degrees.

There is no specific major required for medical school, but most medical schools require that you've taken some amount of biology, chemistry, and physics courses.

As a result, the majority of medical school students earn an undergraduate degree in the biological sciences. Other common fields include the physical sciences and the social sciences.

Some colleges and universities offer pre-med tracks that help students ensure they complete medical school prerequisites regardless of their major.

Step 2: Take the Medical College Admissions Test

Nearly all medical schools require students to take and submit their scores from the Medical College Admissions Test (MCAT).

This exam is offered by the Association of American Medical Colleges and assesses your readiness for medical school. There are four sections to this test:

• biological and biochemical foundations of living systems
• chemical and physical foundations of biological systems
• psychological, social, and biological foundations of behavior
• critical analysis and reasoning skills (CARS)

You can score anywhere between 118 and 132 on each section, for a total score between 472 and 528. A strong score is typically considered anything above 511.

If you aren't happy with your score, you can retake your MCAT. An individual can take the MCAT up to seven times in their life.

Step 3: Attend and Graduate from Medical School

Once you've been accepted to medical school, you'll finally begin your medical training. Medical school usually takes four years, with the first year focused on general classroom-based medical training.

Most programs start clinical rotations in the second or third year. During clinical rotations, you'll spend a few weeks in different departments of the hospital. Common rotations include:

• internal medicine
• family medicine
• general surgery
• obstetrics and gynecology (OB/GYN)
• neurology
• pediatrics
• psychology

Many schools also let you choose some of your own rotations after you've completed the required core rotations.

During this time, you can complete a rotation in emergency medicine if your curriculum doesn't offer it as a core rotation.

Step 4: Take the United States Medical Licensing Examination

To become a licensed medical doctor, you'll need to complete the United States Medical Licensing Examination (USMLE).

This is a three-step test, and the first two steps are typically completed while you're still in medical school.

The first step covers foundational medical science, which is typically taught during your first year or two of medical school. The second step assesses your knowledge of clinical medicine.

The third and final step evaluates how well you can apply your clinical knowledge to patient management. This step can not be completed until you've finished your first year of residency.

Step 5: Complete an ER Residency

After graduating from medical school, all doctors must complete a residency in their chosen field of medicine. Residencies allow you to focus specifically on this field.

Emergency medicine residencies usually take three to four years to complete. Your first year is often called the internship year.

During your internship year, you'll have a lot of classroom learning mixed with hands-on learning under the guidance of a licensed and experienced emergency medicine doctor.

As you progress through your program, you'll be given more difficult assignments and have less oversight so you can be prepared to practice independently.

Step 6: Obtain a Medical License

All states require that physicians hold a medical license in order to practice.

Requirements vary by state. General requirements to obtain a medical license include:

• graduating from medical school
• completing residency
• passing all three steps of the USMLE

Some states also require passing a background check. Depending on your state, you may also need to complete a certain amount of continuing education hours every so often to keep your license current.

Become an ER Doctor

ER doctors work in probably the most chaotic department of a hospital. To become an ER doctor, you'll need education, training, and a license.

With our guide above, you can decide if becoming an ER doctor is the right choice for you.