How a doctor is made
It takes 11 to 15 years after high school to practice medicine on your own. Here is each step, what it costs, and the other ways to work in medicine.
The path
MD or DO?
| MD (Doctor of Medicine) | DO (Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine) | |
|---|---|---|
| Schools | About 160 in the U.S. | About 40 schools, more than 60 campuses |
| Training | 4 years of medical school, then residency | The same, plus training in hands-on osteopathic manipulative treatment (OMT) |
| Licensing exams | USMLE | COMLEX (many also take the USMLE) |
| What they can do | Fully licensed physicians: any specialty, prescribe, operate | Exactly the same |
| Residency | One shared match system | One shared match system |
Medical school
- Years 1 and 2: the science of the body and disease: anatomy (often with a human cadaver), physiology, pharmacology, pathology, plus learning to take a history and do an exam.
- Licensing exam, part 1 after the first two years (now pass/fail).
- Years 3 and 4: hospital and clinic rotations through internal medicine, surgery, pediatrics, OB/GYN, psychiatry, family medicine and electives.
- The Match: in the fourth year students apply and interview for residencies; on Match Day in March they learn where they will train.
Residency: training on the job
Residents are real doctors with an MD or DO, paid a salary, working long hours under supervision. The first year is often called the internship. Length depends on the specialty:
| Specialty | Residency (years) | Optional fellowship |
|---|---|---|
| Family medicine, internal medicine, pediatrics | 3 | Internal medicine leads to cardiology, GI and others (2 to 3 more) |
| Emergency medicine | 3 to 4 | Toxicology, sports, critical care |
| Psychiatry, neurology, dermatology, anesthesiology | 4 | Child psychiatry, pain medicine and others |
| OB/GYN | 4 | High-risk pregnancy, gynecologic oncology |
| General surgery, orthopedics, ENT, urology, radiology | 5 | Trauma, hand, spine, sports |
| Plastic surgery | 6 | Hand, craniofacial |
| Neurosurgery | 7 | Spine, pediatric |
After residency, doctors take the board exam in their specialty to become board certified, and keep learning with ongoing exams and coursework for their whole career.
What it costs
| Amount | |
|---|---|
| Median 4-year cost of attendance, public medical school (class of 2026) | $297,745 |
| Median 4-year cost of attendance, private medical school (class of 2026) | $408,150 |
| Median education debt at graduation (class of 2025) | $215,000 |
Cost of attendance includes tuition, fees, health insurance and living costs. Source: AAMC.
Ways to cut the cost: in-state public schools, military programs (the Health Professions Scholarship Program pays tuition in exchange for service), the National Health Service Corps (service in an underserved area), a few tuition-free schools, and Public Service Loan Forgiveness for doctors who work at nonprofit hospitals.
Other careers in medicine
| Career | Degree | Time after high school | What they do |
|---|---|---|---|
| Physician assistant (PA) | Master's | About 6 to 7 years | Diagnose, treat and prescribe, working with doctors; can change specialties |
| Nurse practitioner (NP) | Master's or doctorate (DNP) | About 6 to 8 years | Advanced nurse; diagnose, treat and prescribe; in many states independently |
| Registered nurse (RN) | Associate or bachelor's | 2 to 4 years | Bedside care, education, coordination |
| Nurse anesthetist (CRNA) | Doctorate | About 8 years | Gives anesthesia |
| Pharmacist | PharmD | About 6 to 8 years | Medicine expert; checks doses and interactions; gives vaccines |
| Dentist | DDS or DMD | About 8 years | Teeth and mouth |
| Optometrist | OD | About 8 years | Eye exams, glasses, some eye disease |
| Paramedic | Certificate or associate | 1 to 2 years | Emergency care in the field |
Sources
Checked November 11, 2026.