Physicians, Pathologists
Healthcare Practitioners and Technical
Most of the work happens at a microscope and a lab bench rather than at a bedside, including for those who serve as medical examiners. The job is to study organs, tissues, and fluids—using methods such as histology, cytology, clinical chemistry, and molecular tests—to identify disease and explain what it means. Reports go to surgeons and other physicians; consults cover which tests to order and how to read them, and staying current means reading the literature and talking with colleagues. It suits people who like close, methodical analysis of samples and precise written conclusions more than ongoing patient visits.
Typical education: Post-Doctoral Training
Annual Median Wage in Field (2025)
$312'400
Median Wage Market Position
$312'400
What you might do
- Examine tissue samples under a microscope
- Diagnose disease from organs and body fluids
- Write reports summarizing pathology findings
- Tell surgeons what the samples show
- Analyze cultures, urine tests, and similar results
- Advise colleagues on tests and treatments
Skills that matter
- Studying microscope slides for disease
- Writing reports of analyses and conclusions
- Tracing how a disease started and spread
- Interpreting PCR and other lab assays
- Keeping up with pathology literature
- Discussing findings with surgeons and physicians
AI & the future of this role
Slide reading and pattern detection are areas where AI tools could take on more routine review. Complex cases, autopsy work, and sign-out liability still call for expert judgment, so prospects look steadier than pure image screening alone.
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Includes O*NET® 30.3 Database information by USDOL/ETA under CC BY 4.0; modified by LostInCareer. Wage/outlook from BLS. Attribution details