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Children's Hospitals
Boston Children's Hospital, Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, Texas Children's Hospital
Pediatricians, General
General pediatricians care for infants, children, and teens through routine checkups, illness visits, and ongoing management of childhood conditions. The work is different from many other doctor roles because it blends hands-on medical care with a lot of parent counseling, growth tracking, and prevention. The tradeoff is a long training path and high responsibility in exchange for strong pay and close, long-term relationships with families.
Also known as PediatricianGeneral PediatricianPhysician, PediatricsStaff PediatricianPediatrics Physician
Median Salary
$210,130
Mean $222,340
U.S. Workforce
~43K
1.2K openings per year
10-Year Growth
+0.8%
46.4K to 46.8K
Entry Education
Doctoral or professional degree
+ None experience
What This Role Looks Like in Practice
Pediatricians, General sits in the Healthcare category. In practical terms, this role combines day-to-day execution, cross-team coordination, and consistent decision-making under real business constraints.
U.S. employment is currently about ~43K workers, with a median annual pay of $210,130 and roughly 1.2K openings each year. Based on BLS projections, total employment is expected to grow from 46.4 K in 2024 to 46.8K in 2034.
Most hiring paths start with Doctor of Medicine (MD) or Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine (DO) plus pediatrics residency, and employers typically expect none of related experience. Many careers in this track begin around Resident Physician, Pediatrics and can progress toward Medical Director, Pediatrics. High-value skills usually include Pediatric Diagnosis & Treatment Planning, Electronic Health Records (Epic, Cerner & Athenahealth), and Growth Charts & Developmental Screening Tools, paired with soft skills such as Critical Thinking, Judgment and Decision Making, and Speaking.
Core Responsibilities
- Check children's growth, development, and overall health during routine visits.
- Order tests, review results, and figure out what is causing a child's symptoms.
- Explain diagnoses, medicines, and treatment plans to parents or guardians in clear language.
- Give families practical advice on nutrition, vaccines, exercise, hygiene, and disease prevention.
Keep exploring: more Healthcare careers or browse all job titles.
A Day in the Life
01 Check children's growth, development, and overall health during routine visits.
02 Order tests, review results, and figure out what is causing a child's symptoms.
03 Explain diagnoses, medicines, and treatment plans to parents or guardians in clear language.
04 Give families practical advice on nutrition, vaccines, exercise, hygiene, and disease prevention.
05 Follow children with ongoing conditions like asthma or attention problems and adjust care when needed.
06 Coordinate with nurses, therapists, and other doctors while keeping medical records accurate and up to date.
Industries That Hire
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Private Pediatric Practices
Pediatric Associates, US Pediatric Partners, Pediatrix Medical Group
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Academic Medical Centers
Mayo Clinic, Cleveland Clinic, Stanford Health Care
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Community Health Systems
Kaiser Permanente, Ascension, AdventHealth
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Telehealth and Virtual Care
Teladoc Health, Amwell, Included Health
Pros and Cons
Advantages
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Pay is strong for a primary care role, with a mean annual wage of $222,340 and a median of $210,130.
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You build long-term relationships with families and often watch children grow from infancy through the teen years.
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The work mixes prevention, diagnosis, and coaching, so the day is varied instead of repetitive.
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There is steady need for trained doctors, with about 1.2 million annual openings when replacements are included.
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The job has a clear professional path: medical school, residency, licensure, and board certification.
Challenges
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The training path is long and expensive, and you cannot practice independently without medical school and residency.
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Growth is almost flat, with only 0.8% projected employment growth from 46.4K to 46.8K by 2034, so there is limited expansion in the field.
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A lot of time goes into documentation, test review, and coordination with staff, which cuts into face-to-face patient care.
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The emotional load can be high because you are treating sick children while also managing anxious or overwhelmed parents.
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Despite the six-figure pay, general pediatrics usually does not match the earnings of more procedure-heavy specialties, so compensation can feel limited relative to the training and responsibility.
Career Progression
Resident Physician, Pediatrics
0-3 years
$65K-$85K
Early-career doctors work under supervision, seeing patients, learning hospital and clinic routines, and building confidence in child exams and treatment decisions.
General Pediatrician
4-10 years
$195K-$245K
This is the main practice stage, where the doctor handles routine care, sick visits, parent counseling, and follow-up for ongoing childhood conditions.
Senior Pediatrician THIS ROLE
10-18 years
$245K-$315K
Experienced pediatricians take on more complex cases, mentor junior clinicians, and may manage larger patient panels or broader clinic responsibilities.
Medical Director, Pediatrics
18+ years
$315K-$410K
At this level, the focus shifts toward leadership, quality improvement, staffing, and clinic strategy alongside less direct patient care.
Education Paths
Doctor of Medicine (MD) or Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine (DO) plus pediatrics residency
The dominant route, with 78.3% of workers in the post-doctoral training category, which usually means medical school followed by residency.
Doctoral degree in medicine with advanced clinical training
A significant share of workers, 20.43%, are listed at the doctoral degree level before or alongside the required clinical training.
First professional degree plus residency and licensure
A small minority, 1.27%, are listed at the first professional degree level, which still has to be followed by residency and state licensure.
Medical degree plus board certification in pediatrics
This is a realistic alternative credential path after residency, especially for employers that expect board certification even though it is not shown as a separate education level in the distribution.
Key Skills
Technical
Pediatric Diagnosis & Treatment Planning 92%
Electronic Health Records (Epic, Cerner & Athenahealth) 87%
Growth Charts & Developmental Screening Tools 85%
Immunization Schedules & Preventive Care Guidelines 84%
Diagnostic Testing, Labs & Imaging Interpretation 83%
Telehealth Platforms & Patient Messaging 78%
Soft Skills
Critical ThinkingJudgment and Decision MakingSpeakingActive ListeningReading ComprehensionComplex Problem Solving Job Outlook and Trends
+0.8%
Projected growth (2024-2034)
1.2K
Annual job openings
Employment is projected to rise from 46.4K to 46.8 K over the next decade, representing 0.8% growth. Around 1.2 K openings per year include both newly created roles and replacement hiring from turnover.
Remote availability is currently Rare. Demand remains strongest where employers need practical domain knowledge plus modern workflow and data skills.