Tips On How To Increase Your Salary As A Physician Assistant
These days the economy is still rough. Without a doubt, a career in high demand and great income potential is paramount. One of the best industry for employment is health care. Despite the economy, job growth in the health care field is continually growing at a fast rate. One of the best career tracks is a physician assistant. A physician assistant is an authorized practitioner of medicine practicing under the supervision of a doctor.
Physician assistants have the potential to earn a high salary. For seasoned physician assistants and graduates, job opportunities are abundant in this career field as an increase of up to 40% is expected according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Currently, $65,000 per year is the mean salary for a physician assistant in the United States. There are many factors that influence a physician assistant salary just like most jobs. The most influential factor is how much experience you have. An entry level physician assistant can expect a physician assistant salary of $60,000 or less per year and in contrast, a seasoned physician assistant can make a whooping $90,000 or more per year.
Specialty involves learning new skills and therefore, can affect your salary. Physician assistant specialized in the field of Cardiovascular, Emergency Medicine and Dermatology can earn around $100,000 per year. Specialties such as Endocrinology and Public Health are among the lowest paid of about $80,000 per year.
Demographic is another factor that can affect your pay. Demand for physician assistants are high in New York City, Houston, San Francisco and Los Angeles so they are some of the highest paying cities. Lower pay is expected in more rural areas of the United States such as Arkansas and Kansas. The higher pay is primarily to accommodate for the higher cost of living in those areas. In rural areas, getting a good job is harder due to the smaller job market.
In addition, another factor that will affect your salary is the types of facility that you work in. Physician assistants working at a hospital tend to receive a lower salary then those working at private clinics. For example, the mean salary for those working in large medical practices is over $100,000 per year and in contrast, the mean salary for those working in hospitals is around $90,000 per year. The specialization of the doctor that you work with will also affect your salary. The highest pay is with trauma and emergency medicine at $80,000 per year and the lowest is with obstetrics and pediatrics around $65,000 per year.
As you can see there are many ways to increase your physician assistant salary. Having the most recent and updated certifications for your physician assistant degree can command a higher rate of pay. As a graduate, your initial salary potential is determined by your level of education. Your salary will improve as you gain more clinical experience.
For more details on how to increase your physician assistant, don’t forget to visit: Physician Assistant Salary