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Physicians, Pathologists: Career Overview

Diagnose diseases and conduct lab tests using organs, body tissues, and fluids. Includes medical examiners.

The Daily Work of Physicians, Pathologists Do?

Typical responsibilities of physicians, pathologists cover:

• Examine microscopic samples to identify diseases or other abnormalities.
• Diagnose diseases or study medical conditions, using techniques such as gross pathology, histology, cytology, cytopathology, clinical chemistry, immunology, flow cytometry, or molecular biology.
• Write pathology reports summarizing analyses, results, and conclusions.
• Communicate pathologic findings to surgeons or other physicians.
• Identify the etiology, pathogenesis, morphological change, and clinical significance of diseases.
• Read current literature, talk with colleagues, or participate in professional organizations or conferences to keep abreast of developments in pathology.
• Consult with physicians about ordering and interpreting tests or providing treatments.
• Analyze and interpret results from tests, such as microbial or parasite tests, urine analyses, hormonal assays, fine needle aspirations (FNAs), and polymerase chain reactions (PCRs).

What Physicians, Pathologists Need to Know

Successful physicians, pathologists combine a mix of skills and domain knowledge.

Key Skills

The abilities most central to this role, rated on an importance scale of 0 to 5:

Knowledge Areas

Related Job Titles

This career also goes by job titles like:

• Anatomic Pathologist
• Animal Pathologist
• Autopsy Pathologist
• Chemical Pathologist
• Clinical Pathologist
• Cytologist
• Cytopathologist
• DO Physician (Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine Physician)

Job Outlook

There are roughly 2,340,386 physicians, pathologists working in the United States today. Employment is projected to decline by -4.7% over the projection horizon.

Physicians, Pathologists Pay

Statistic	Value
Annual median	$120,724
Hourly median	$58.04
10th percentile	$71,947
25th percentile	$96,336
75th percentile	$145,113
90th percentile	$169,502

Wages vary widely based on experience, location, and industry.

Pay by State

State	Annual median salary
Alabama	$238,020
South Carolina	$228,850
District of Columbia	$228,300
New York	$215,740
Missouri	$213,430
Maryland	$190,370
California	$165,940

Top-Paying U.S. Regions

Compensation for physicians, pathologists shift depending on where you work. The following regions pay the most:

Region	Median annual wage	Share of U.S. jobs	Location quotient
Plains States	$171,785	8.3%	2.65
Middle Atlantic	$145,064	16.1%	1.03
Far Western US	$132,025	27.6%	1.50
Southeast	$57,867	8.5%	0.64

Highest-Paying Metro Areas for Physicians, Pathologists

Metro area	State	Median annual wage	Employment
Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH	MA	$228,050	200
Kansas City, MO-KS	MO	$225,550	90
New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ	NY	$216,420	900
St. Louis, MO-IL	MO	$199,990
Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN	IL	$106,270	220
Albany-Schenectady-Troy, NY	NY	$73,120

Which Industries Hire Physicians, Pathologists

Most physicians, pathologists are found across these industries:

Industry	Employment	Median annual wage
Health Care and Social Assistance	10,350	n/a
Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services	350	$154,800
Educational Services	350	$224,840
Wholesale Trade	30	$177,130

The table below shows some of the most common industries where those employed in this career field work.

Software Physicians, Pathologists Use

• Data base user interface and query software: Microsoft Access (hot technology)
• Spreadsheet software: Microsoft Excel (hot technology)
• Office suite software: Microsoft Office software (hot technology)
• Presentation software: Microsoft PowerPoint (hot technology)
• Enterprise resource planning ERP software: SAP software (hot technology)

What the Workplace Is Like

Daily working conditions for physicians, pathologists is shaped by the following characteristics:

• Face-to-Face Discussions with Individuals and Within Teams
• E-Mail
• Time Pressure
• Importance of Being Exact or Accurate
• Telephone Conversations

Getting Started in This Career

This career aligns with Extensive Preparation Needed (Job Zone 5), signaling the level of preparation typically expected.

Related Careers

Similar Occupations

• Medical Scientists, Except Epidemiologists (Supplemental)
• Clinical Neuropsychologists (Primary-Long)
• Anesthesiologists (Supplemental)
• Cardiologists (Primary-Short)
• Dermatologists (Supplemental)
• Emergency Medicine Physicians (Primary-Long)
• General Internal Medicine Physicians (Supplemental)
• Neurologists (Supplemental)

Degree Programs

Future physicians, pathologists commonly pursue programs in:

18 programs across 3 majors

• Multiple-Pathway Medical Fellowship Programs
• Dermatology Residency/Fellowship Programs
• Pathology Residency/Fellowship Programs

Health Professions and Related Programs

2 programs across 1 majors

• Medicine

About the Data

Data on this page comes from the following authoritative sources:

• U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics — Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) for employment and wage data by state and industry.
• BLS Employment Projections for total employment and growth forecasts.
• O*NET (Occupational Information Network) for skills, knowledge, tasks, work activities, work context, technology, and education-zone data.

SOC code: 29-1222.00 (Physicians, Pathologists).