Education

• All pediatricians are physicians. In most cases, someone who wants to train as a pediatrician must graduate from college with a major in a pre-medical course of study, such as chemistry or biology. Some medical schools will admit candidates who have only completed three years of college-level study. The first two years of medical school typically involve classroom instruction and laboratory work in such subjects as anatomy and physiology, chemistry, biology, pharmacology, pathology, medical law and ethics, psychology, and microbiology. The final two years of medical school are usually spent in clinical rotations as the student performs the tasks of a doctor under the direct supervision of a licensed physician.
  
  

Training

• A doctor who wishes to practice as a pediatrician must complete a three-year residency program at an accredited institution, according to the Children's Hospital at the University of Maryland Medical Center. Accredited pediatric residency programs provide health care training covering the full spectrum of childhood development, from birth and infancy through young adulthood.
  
  

Specialization

• Approximately 60 percent of all pediatricians practice general pediatrics, while the remainder continue their studies in a pediatric specialty such as pediatric cardiology, pediatric nephrology, adolescent medicine or pediatric oncology. Pediatricians who have completed their residency and specialized training, and who pass a comprehensive examination process, can become certified by the American Board of Pediatrics.
  
  

Considerations

• The total post-secondary education and experience required to become a pediatrician is typically 11 years, including college, medical school and residency. Pediatricians work with a variety of other health care professionals including registered nurses, other doctors, and specialists, as they care for and treat children and adolescents. Most pediatricians work in private doctors' offices, although approximately 20 percent work in hospitals and outpatient care facilities. The mean annual income for pediatricians in the United States was $161,410 as of May 2009, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.