Research what it takes to become a pediatrician. Learn about the average salary of pediatricians, including salary ranges for different years of experience, as well as typical duties and employment outlook to find out if this is the career for you.
What Is a Pediatrician?
Pediatricians are doctors who treat infants, children, and teenagers. As a pediatrician, you make work in general or primary care and treat common illnesses and minor injuries in children. Primary care pediatricians also administer vaccines and do yearly check-ups. You could also choose to specialize in pediatric surgery or focus on a particular type of illness, like cancer within children. As a pediatrician, it is likely that you will correspond regularly with parents as well as other medical staff. The following chart gives an overview of this career.
<table border="1"><tr><td> <b>Degree Required</b> </td><td> Doctoral</td></tr>
<tr><td> <b>Training Required</b> </td><td> Internship and residency</td></tr>
<tr><td> <b>Licensure/Certification</b> </td><td> License required, certification optional</td></tr>
<tr><td> <b>Key Responsibilities</b> </td><td> Talking with patients and their parents, examining patients, giving vaccinations, prescribing medicine</td></tr>
<tr><td> <b>Job Growth (2020-2030)*</b></td><td> -2%</td></tr>
<tr><td> <b>Median Salary (2020)*</b></td><td> $177,130</td></tr>
</table><p><i>Source: *U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.</i>
</p><h3 id="section---WhatCanPediatriciansExpectToEarn">What Can Pediatricians Expect to Earn?</h3><p>December 2021 figures from <i>PayScale.com</i> reveal that the median salary for pediatricians who have 5 years of experience or less is $146,026. For those with 5 to 10 years of experience, it is roughly $161,719. Those with 10 to 20 years earned a median salary about $165,379 and those with more than 20 years of experience earned a median salary of about $176,407.
</p><p>According to May 2020 data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), most pediatricians worked in physicians' offices, holding 30,200 jobs. These pediatricians earned a median salary of $177,130. Over 6,850 pediatricians worked in hospitals and earned a median salary of $169,090.
</p><p>Also according to the BLS, pediatricians in the following states earned the highest average salaries in 2020, all exceeding $255,000: Nebraska, Alaska, Utah, New Hampshire, and Wisconsin. The bottom five states for pediatricians' salaries were: Nebraska at $131,250, Kansas at $132,850, Louisiana at $152,350, Georgia at $152,980, and Florida at $158,270.
</p><h3 id="section---WhereCouldIWork">Where Could I Work?</h3><p>According to the BLS, physicians' offices, general medical hospitals, outpatient care centers, colleges and universities and specialty hospitals are the largest employers of pediatricians. Approximately 30,200 people worked as pediatricians in May 2020. Employment projections for pediatricians in general were expected to decline by 2% from 2020 to 2030.
</p><h3 id="section---WhatJobDutiesWillIHave">What Job Duties Will I Have?</h3><p>As a pediatrician, your main responsibility will be to provide medical care to people from their birth through late adolescence. Duties might entail diagnosing patients through direct examination, performing lab tests, reviewing clinical records and consulting with colleagues, prescribing medications, monitoring the results of treatment and conducting follow-up examinations. You can provide general care or focus on a sub-specialty, such as neonatology, pediatric surgery or pediatric audiology. At a hospital you may also be responsible for developing patient care policies and procedures, managing a staff of caregivers and coordinating pediatric services with other medical providers.
</p><h3 id="section---WhatAreSomeRelatedAlternativeCareers">What Are Some Related Alternative Careers?</h3><p>Aspiring pediatricians chose the pediatrics specialty while in medical school. You also have the option of choosing a different specialty, like obstetrics and gynecology, which involves caring for pregnant women and the female reproductive system. Another option is psychiatry, a specialty that focuses on mental health. You may also be interested in specializing in surgery. Surgeons typically focus on one area of surgery, like neurological or cardiovascular.</p>
