What are the highest paid medical residency programs in the US? I’m making an internal bet that if you’re reading this, there’s an 85% likelihood that you’re Indian. If you’re white, or something else but not Indian and reading this, then you’ve got a God complex. If you’re Indian and not a doctor yet, then you’re insecure and you’re trying to secure a self-descriptor that will instantly make you a God among those who know you’re a doctor. But the white doctors will still think you’re shit – remember that.
Now you know what I think of Indians. And doctors. And white doctors. Just kidding. If you are worried about racism, check out our article about the 10 least racist states in America.
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We love doctors and doctors love helping people, not getting rich! Those who don’t come from money must understand that it’s a major investment to go into medicine. So it’s only natural for most of them to get insight into the 13 highest paid medical residency programs in the US. Of course, this doesn’t have to mean anything later on, as future medical practitioners are poised to earn much more, even in fields which traditionally tend to offer less money initially. If you are wondering which medical specialties are the best-paid ones, here’s our list of Top Ten Best-Paid Medical Specialties.
As you are about to see, differences between medical residency programs can be substantial and those short on cash might appreciate a bonus of some $10,000 at the end of a fiscal year. If money is a resident’s primary concern during the time of the given program, however, this list will likely be appreciated by some of them. If not, try to take a look at the bigger picture. Things do tend to change over time and the best-earning residencies don’t necessarily have to become best-earning jobs in the medical field.
In order to compile the list, we used the latest available info from multiple sources. The Association of American Medical Colleges publishes a yearly survey of resident/fellow stipends and benefits since 1968. Their survey doesn’t give the info on which residency programs are the most lucrative in terms of remuneration, but offers quality info on all 8 post-MD years from up to 247 medical institutions in the U.S. You can check their list for 2014 (latest available one) here. In order to pinpoint the residency programs with the highest salaries, we had to resort to other sources of information. Medscape conducts their own survey every year as well, but they are collecting the info directly from residents instead of getting it from medical institutions like the AAMC does.
This type of info is more liable to be flawed given the nature of the source, but it is still the best way to determine which of the residencies qualify for the 13 highest paid medical residency programs in the US (people lie equally across the board, get it?). Here are their respective lists for years 2014 and 2015, and we’ll calculate the salaries based on average info from both of them. This allows us to see the changes in salaries between the years, but yet again, the source of the info might not be as accurate as it should be. For instance, a resident’s salary depends on the region in which the resident conducts his/her practice. Maybe Medscape has managed to collect info on a specific residency program with its better-paid region being predominant in the sample in one year, and lower-paid regions being dominant in another year. This creates discrepancies of considerable size in some fields, but the average result is still our best bet at giving you the nationwide info. After all, differences between residency salaries aren’t that high in the end. A few hundred dollars per month might not mean much in the end. One also has to take into account the cost of living. Salaries and the cost of living usually go hand-in-hand, hence residents that earn more (in certain regions) will usually have to spend more on their basic needs correspondingly.
13. Pathology
Average residential salary: $56,000
We start the list with pathology. This field of medicine is both challenging and rewarding as pathologists tend to do more research than most of their colleagues. They, however, don’t earn as much as most residents in other fields, but they still tend to earn more than dermatology, urology or pediatrics practitioners.
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12. Neurology
Average residential salary: $56,000
Not to be confused with psychiatry – neurology does deal with disorders of the nervous system, but on more physical level. Neurologists deal with brain disorders which tend to have physical (somatic) impact on the body. Parkinson’s disease, stroke, and multiple sclerosis are fine examples of what neurologist has to deal with during his or hers residency.
11. Psychiatry
Average residential salary: $56,000
It wouldn’t be fair for psychiatrists to earn more than neurologists do, with the two fields being so closely connected. Psychiatry also deals with mental illnesses, but psychiatrists focus their resources on disorders of mood which tend to happen without any physical signs. Depression, anxiety, schizophrenia and bipolar disorders are fine examples of psychiatrists’ fields of expertise.
10. Ophthalmology
Average residential salary: $56,000
Another medical field for medical practitioners and first tongue-breaking term for common folk on this list of 13 highest paid medical residency programs in US; ophthalmology is a branch of medicine that focuses on the eyes. Ophthalmologists certainly have a keen eye for money, as well as for other people’s eyes, since they tend to earn more than most of their colleagues in their initial years as doctors.
9. General Surgery
Average residential salary: $56,500
General surgeons have one of the most responsible jobs in the entire medical field. Residents too will one day share the responsibility, hence it is no wonder that they earn slightly more than some of their colleagues. Whether it’s enough, however, we can’t say. You only have to bear in mind the fact that the residential program and the actual specialty later on don’t have to be the same in terms of earnings.
8. Diabetes and Endocrinology
Average residential salary: $57,000
Endocrinologists are here to deal with patients’ endocrine system. The most common problem in this field is diabetes. The endocrinology field establishes a diagnosis and tries to find specific treatment for diseases related to hormones.
7. Plastic Surgery
Average residential salary: $58,000
Most people (husbands of wives who’ve given birth to a few kids would be at the top of that list) would think that plastic surgery takes the number one spot on this list of the 13 highest paid medical residency programs in the US. This is still a residency program, and as such, doesn’t yield a full potential, salary-wise. However, as you are about to see, even fully trained plastic surgeons (specialists) don’t tend to earn the most. Their job is also an aspect usually mistaken in public opinion. Yes, they are here to make you more beautiful to say it simply, but their most important role is to correct and eliminate both body anomalies caused by unfortunate accidents and life-threatening or undesirable conditions.
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6. Cardiology
Average residential salary: $59,000
Cardiologists are becoming more and more important as we reach new levels of technological advancement. Stress, and unhealthy food due to a lack of time tend to lead towards a number of cardiovascular diseases. Cardiology deals with heart diseases and diseases of other parts of the cardiovascular system, like blood vessels. It’s no wonder why cardiology is a much-sought field for residents as they tend to treat a vast number of people, earning hefty salaries along the way.
5. Gastroenterology
Average residential salary: $59,500
In the same way that cardiology focuses on the cardiovascular system, gastroenterology (another one of tongue-breaking terms) focuses on a patient’ digestive system. The gastrointestinal tract consists of a number of organs responsible for consuming and digesting food, as well as absorbing nutrients and expelling unwanted waste. With food being an essential part of our lives, it is clear to see why gastroenterologists are important as well.
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4. Oncology
Average residential salary: $60,000
Oncologists are specialists that deal with tumors. Oncology residents have years of training before them (much like any other resident), but might ultimately find their call disheartening at times. It’s all fine while tumors are benign, but malicious tumors can be hard to remove, especially at later stages. This is why the oncologist’s treatment success ratio can be much lower than that of other specialists.
3. Radiology
Average residential salary: $60,000
Radiologists deal with diagnoses which can’t be obtained externally. They are experts at reading images that come out of X-rays, CT scanners, MRI scanners or ultrasound alike. These images give radiologists an insight into what’s happening inside a patient’s body when symptoms are absent from their skin.
2. Pulmonary Medicine
Average residential salary: $60,500
Part of the internal medicine specialty, pulmonary medicine deals with respiratory tract diseases. Pulmonologists mostly deal with diseases of the lung, which is the largest organ of the respiratory tract. This is why tuberculosis, asthma and pneumonia will be the most common terms in a pulmonary medicine resident’s career.
1. Critical Care
Average residential salary: $63,500
Critical care residents earn by far the most of any residency program in the US. This is arguably the medical branch with the most responsibility, and as such clearly deserving of such a salary. Hours may be longer than in other fields, shifts are sporadic, and the daily tension is unforeseeable. Things that critical care residents see during their residency might change their life. Still, with great responsibilities come great rewards as critical care residents and specialists alike tend to save the most lives of all medical practitioners.
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You have to remember that this list of 13 highest paid medical residency programs in the US only deals with residents’ salaries. They depend on many factors including the region, hospital, residential year, gender, etc. However, residencies that are best-paid don’t always transition into the best-paid specialties. For instance, reports suggest that orthopedics specialists earn by far the most, while an orthopedics residency didn’t even make it to the list.
