Pathology
Microscopic and molecular diagnosis. The doctor's doctor.
Pathologists interpret tissue biopsies, fine needle aspirates, cytology, autopsies, and increasingly genomic data. Subspecialty workflows are very different: surgical path is sign-out and frozen sections, hematopathology is bone marrow and lymph nodes, dermpath is dermatology cases. Clinical pathology covers blood bank, microbiology, lab medicine.
Lifestyle & practice
Among the better lifestyles. Hours 45 to 55, predictable schedule, minimal call, reading-heavy workdays. Compensation $250k to $350k generalist, higher for derm and heme. Job market has tightened; training in a subspecialty is now expected.
Common fellowship paths
- Residency length
- 4 years AP/CP, often + fellowship
- Median comp
- $300k to $400k
High-signal external links curated for residents and applicants.
- College of American Pathologists ↗
Specialty society. Lab accreditation, education.
- PathologyOutlines.com ↗
Free reference site used by trainees and attendings.
- Pathology forum (SDN) ↗
Long-running medical career forum with active specialty subforums.
Positions
628
All applicants
942
Seats / app
0.67
From NRMP Charting Outcomes 2024 (most recent biennial publication). Source PDFs: MD Seniors / DO Seniors / IMG. NRMP publishes Charting Outcomes every other year, so this should refresh in early 2026 with the 2025 cycle data.
| Pool | Step 1 | Step 2 | Pubs | Research | AOA % | n |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MD_seniors | 235 | 247 | 8.4 | 3.1 | 8.9 | 213 |
| DO_seniors | 238 | 245 | 6.3 | 2.1 | — | 70 |
| US_IMG | 222 | 235 | 10.1 | 2.3 | — | 47 |
| Non_US_IMG | 232 | 240 | 12.1 | 2.7 | — | 140 |
Per-applicant-type match rates and mean Step scores published by NRMP every two years. Each row is one applicant pool in one cycle. Step scores reflect what matched applicants in that cycle achieved, not what programs require today.
| Year | Type | Match rate | Matched (n) | Step 1 | Step 2 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | MD_Senior | 95.1% | 213 | 235 | 247 |
| 2024 | DO_Senior | 83.3% | 70 | — | 245 |
| 2024 | IMG | 44.8% | 47 | — | 235 |
| 2022 | MD_Senior | 98.4% | 181 | 233 | 245 |
| 2022 | IMG | 49.5% | 51 | 219 | 228 |
| 2020 | MD_Senior | 95.3% | 182 | 233 | 242 |
| 2020 | DO_Senior | 94.9% | 56 | 220 | 234 |
| 2018 | MD_Senior | 98.0% | 194 | 233 | 242 |
| 2018 | IMG | 65.7% | 65 | 226 | 230 |
| Pool | Share |
|---|---|
| MD_seniors | 32.6% |
| DO_seniors | 11.2% |
| US_IMG | 13.7% |
| Non_US_IMG | 42.5% |