Career As a Pediatrician: Eligibility, Admission, Jobs & Salary

Paediatrics is the branch of Medical Science that deals with the health care of babies, children, adolescents, and young adults from birth to age of 18 years.

A medical practitioner who specializes in this area is known as a Paediatrician.

“A paediatrician is children’s specialists who diagnoses and treats injuries, dysfunctions, malignancies, infections, genetic defects and organic diseases.”

In this article we will explore in detail about career as a paediatrician, courses, eligibility criteria, admission process and job prospects.

What is Paediatrics

The word paediatrics comes from the Greek word that means “healer of the children”.

The Paediatricians are physicians who specializes in the diagnosis and treatment of health issues in infants, children, teenagers and young adults.

The other job of a Paediatric doctor (Paediatricians) is to counsel and guide the children and their parents regarding hygiene, diet and disease prevention.

Most paediatricians treat common illnesses, minor injuries, and infectious diseases, and administer vaccinations. They also treat an organic disease & various other ailments such as jaundice, tuberculosis, typhoid & growth related disorders.

In ancient India, under the Ayurvedic system of medicine, the physicians who specialized in treating children were called “Kumara Bhrtya”

Kumara” means child and “Bhrtya” means caretaker or pediatric physician. 

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Career Scope

Paediatrics is a highly specialized medicine branch offering promising career options to the aspirants. In this profession, candidates can find lucrative work opportunities in India and overseas.

In India, the healthcare system is expanding at a rapid pace, providing more opportunities to the professionals in clinical practice, public health, academic & research and medical consulting.

Because of the large number of growing of hospitals, clinics and health care centres, the demand of pediatrician is also increasing day by day.

Candidates can also start their own practice treating infants, children and adolescents. After pursuing super-specialization in the fields like cardiology, neonatology, pediatric oncology aspirants can advance in their career with good promotion and salary etc.

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How to Become a Paediatrician in India

To become a paediatrician, candidates have to pursue MD or DNB in Paediatrics. The step by step guide to become a paediatrician in India is given below:

Step 1

Complete 10+2 with Science (Biology Group) with atleast 50% marks.

Step 2

Clear NEET UG exam and enroll for a MBBS programme.

Step 3

Earn an MBBS Degree from a medical colleges recognized by the National Medical Commission (NMC).

Step 4

Clear NEET PG exam and pusue a postgraduate degree in Paediatrics, either a MD (doctor of medicine) in Paediatrics or DNB (diplomate of national baord) in Paediatrics.

Step 5

For further expertise you can clear NEET SS exam, and go for DM (Doctorate of Medicine) in Neonatology, Pediatric Cardiology.

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Paediatrics Courses in India

How I Become a Pediatrician?

To become a Pediatrician, you have to complete a Bachelor and Master’s degree in medicine.

Undergraduate Course

• Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery (MBBS)

Master Courses

• MD (Doctor of Medicine) in Paediatrics
• DNB (Diplomate of National Board) in Paediatrics

Super-Specialization

DM (Doctorate of Medicine) in Neonatology, Pediatric Cardiology.

You can also pursue fellowship training from various specializations in pediatric fields, but it will require additional years of certification and training.

Specializations of pediatric fields are:

• Child abuse pediatrics
• Child neurology
• Pediatric critical care
• Neonatology
• Pediatric oncology
• Adolescent medicine
• Pediatric cardiology
• Pediatric endocrinology
• Pediatric gastroenterology

Skill required to become a Paediatrician

• In-depth knowledge of medical science and child healthcare
• Discipline and patience
• Genuine love for children and understanding of their behavior
• Excellent communication and keen observation skills
• Ability to interact playfully and empathetically with children
• Strong self-confidence and decision-making ability

Duties of the Pediatrician

• The duty of the pediatrician is to treat infants and children.
• Your duty is to provide medical care to the patients and new born babies.
• They examine, treat and diagnoses the children with a wide range of injuries and illness.

Admission Process

How I get admission in a Pediatrics course?

The admission in a Pediatric course involves qualifying an entrance exam, followed by the counselling process.  For admission in the MBBS programme, candidates need to qualify NEET UG exam.

For admission to PG courses, MD (doctor of medicine) in Paediatrics or DNB (diplomate of national baord) in Paediatrics, candidates need to qualify NEET PG exam or  AIIMS PG 2025

For admission in super-specialization courses DM (Doctorate of Medicine) in Neonatology, Pediatric Cardiology, candidated are required to clear INI CET exam.

Through these examination, students will get admission in 3 years MD course in which candidates can choose MD (Pediatrics) to pursue career as a Pediatrician.

In India, various medical colleges & universities offer courses in Pediatrics. Most of the universities provide courses at the postgraduate level (Doctor of Medicine). Below is the list of top colleges offering MD in Paediatrics.

Top Colleges in India

Top Colleges that offer study in MD or DNB Paediatrics:

• All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), New Delhi
• Postgraduate Institute of Medical Education and Research (PGIMER), Chandigarh
• Maulana Azad Medical College (MAMC), New Delhi
• King George’s Medical University (KGMU), Lucknow
• Christian Medical College (CMC), Vellore
• Armed Forces Medical College (AFMC), Pune
• Institute of Medical Sciences, BHU, Varanasi
• Seth GS Medical College & KEM Hospital, Mumbai
• BJ Medical College, Ahmedabad
• St. John’s Medical College, Bengaluru

Career & Jobs Opportunities

Paediatrics is one of the promising career choice for doctors in India. As our country has the highest number of young population under the age 18 which is approximately 431,053,833.

With such a large population of young children, medical professionals have a vast opportunity to serve and contribute to their health and well being.

In India, the demand of proficient and talented pediatricians is growing day by day. If you have genuine interest in child healthcare and the skills to connect with young patients this can be highly rewarding career path.

Where do pediatricians work?

Pediatricians or child specialist doctor can work in government or private hospitals, nursing homes, Paediatricians clinics etc.

Professionals with good experience can start their own clinic and also provide consutancy to the patients through online and offline mode.

In the public sector, paediatricians are also hired by the Indian Armed Forces, Railways, and Public Sector Undertakings (PSUs). The pediatrician can also work as lecturer or a professor in medical colleges or universities.

How many hours does a pediatrician work?

To become a successful pediatrician, student has to be physically & mentally fit for working hours. The working hours for a pediatrician depends on their job profile and work commitments. On an average, a pediatrician may work around 48-50 hours per week.

Salary & Payscale

The salary of the Paediatrician depends on their educational qualification, experience and place of work. The entry level salary could be in the range Rs. 8 to 12 lakhs per annum.

In private sector or professionals running their own clinics typically earns higher than those employed in the government setup. The mid-level doctors with 3-5 years of experience typically make Rs. 15 to 25 lakhs per annum.

The salaries also varies with super-specialization/fellowship are likely to make more than MD (Paediatrics) or MBBS with Diploma in Paediatrics.

The senior Paediatricians with 5-10 years of clinical experience are paid in the range Rs. 18 to 35 lakhs per annum.

Professionals invlolved in private practice, makes anywhere between Rs. 6 to 40 lakhs per annum.

Books & Study Material

• Becoming a Pediatrician by Daniel Schumacher
• Child Injury Prevention by David C. Schwebel
• Autism Spectrum Disorder by Michael Fitzgerald
• Babies A to Z by Warwick Carter
• Pediatric Oral Pathology by Kavita Kholi
• Paediapaedia: An Imaging Encyclopedia of Pediatric Disease by Michael P. D’Alessandro
• Pediatric Common Questions Quick Answers by Donna M. D’Alessandro, Lindsay Huth, Susan Kinzer

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