How to become a pediatrician

A pediatrician is a medical professional who specializes in children's health. A pediatrician will provide the necessary care to keep kids happy, healthy, and on the road to adulthood with relative ease.

Pediatricians come from many different educational backgrounds and training experiences.

https://www.umhs-sk.org/blog/how-to-become-a-pediatrician

*Required Tests

The tests to become a pediatrician are :

• The Medical College Admission Test (MCAT) which is what prospective med students must take before medical school acceptance.

• Step 1 of the USMLE of COMLEX

• Step 2 of the USMLE or COMLEX This part is known as Clinical Knowledge (CK) or Clinical Education (CE) for Osteopathic Schools

• Step 3 of the USMLE or COMLEX which is taken some time during residency.

• Board Certification - After completing residency

*Time Requirements

The amount of time to become a pediatrician varies depending on the exact pathway chosen and where a person enters the pathway. There are extensive requirements to become a pediatrician that may vary slightly by state, but there are options no matter what state you live in even if it becomes more difficult in some states than others to become a practicing pediatrician. The general route to become a pediatrician includes four years in college to complete your bachelor's degree, four years in medical school, three to six more years of residency training in pediatrics after medical school. Certification by the American Board of Pediatrics is a step that some people choose to proceed with.

* Licensing Requirements

Becoming a pediatrician can include graduating from medical school, passing the USMLE Step 1 exam to become a physician, applying for certification by the American Board of Pediatrics.

* Education Requirements

Aspiring pediatricians need at least four years of undergraduate coursework and four years in medical school that will involve months of clinical rotations working in children's hospitals with students rotating through this hospital setting under supervision during their final year of medical school. After medical school, there are three to six more years of residency training (which is like apprenticeship learning) required with this experience supervised by attending physicians who are certified by the American Board of Pediatrics with most residencies based at university-affiliated teaching hospitals. There are only 2 options for how to become a pediatrician and they all begin with getting accepted into an Osteopathic or Allopathic medical school.

* Work Environment

Working as a pediatrician can become your full-time job or part-time depending upon how many hours per week you become employed with this career. Pediatricians work all different kinds of schedules; some people become on call, some become scheduled for specific days and hours during the weekdays, while others become available for after-hours emergencies only.

* Income

Pediatricians become paid an average of $161,000 per year which can become higher or lower depending upon where they become employed at. Being employed by a children's hospital will often become the highest paying employment setting for this profession while some private practices become more lucrative than working with insurance companies through independent contracting arrangements.

* Advancement Opportunities

* The following are examples of average salaries compiled by the Bureau of Labor Statistics in May 2010:

- Pediatricians become paid $161,020 per year on average (more than the median salary)

- Family Physicians become paid $165,470 per year less than pediatricians at $150,000 per year (more than the median salary)

- Internists become paid $156,850 per year less than pediatricians at $146,120 per year (more than the median salary)

- General Surgeons become paid $229,350 per year more than pediatricians at $187,200 per year (more than the median salary)

* Requirements and Training to become a Pediatrician: