Surgeon how long does it take

What are the surgical specialties? Read Next How do I select the best residency program for my specialty? Back to Top. General surgery training plus two additional years. Four years: Three years entirely in obstetrics and gynecology, plus one elective year. One year of general surgery training plus five years of neurological surgery training. One year in a broadly-based, patient-related program, plus four in orthopaedic surgery.

The most common medical school prerequisites are:. During your premed years, you should also work on the extracurriculars for medical school , which are the activities and experiences that will help you stand out from the pack and catch the attention of admissions committees when they look at your medical school resume. Your preparation to become a doctor begins way before you obtain a bachelor's degree. Your undergraduate years are important for gaining experience in clinical settings, shadowing a doctor, participating in research groups, and serving your community.

These experiences can help you build some of the skills future physicians must have and that must be honed outside the classroom. Once accepted, you will enter the next four years of your journey towards becoming a doctor. The four years you will spend in medical school are divided into phases. The first two years are known as pre-clinical or pre-clerkship and include mostly coursework. During these two years you will develop science and clinical skills in a classroom setting.

When you finish your second year of med school, you must take the USMLE Step 1 , a one-day examination intended to assess your understanding of the principles and mechanisms related to health, disease, and therapy. The next two years are more hands-on. The clerkship phase of medical school includes clinical rotations for several weeks at a time and learning from doctors in a hospital.

Year three is comprised of core rotations at the school, which expose you to different fields of medicine. While you will continue to be exposed to core rotations in your fourth year, you will also be allowed to choose a particular field or specialty for your rotations. By the end of year four you will have to pass USMLE Step 2, which includes both a one-day examination and interaction with patients.

After finishing medical school, you must complete a residency program. Your first year will be spent as an intern, with up to six years additionally, depending on the medical specialty you choose.

For instance, residencies in Family Medicine, Internal Medicine, and Pediatrics are three years long. Plastic Surgery residency is about six years and Neurosurgery is seven years. You will be matched into a residency program using a computer algorithm that considers both your preferences and the preferences of the programs. You should be aware which are the most competitive residencies and be realistic about your chances of getting in when you compile your list of preferences.

This licensing exam evaluates if you can practice medicine without supervision. When you pass this test, you can obtain a medical license in your state.

After you finish your residency, you can apply for a job as a doctor or you can go into a fellowship. We Can Help! Fellowships are optional by this stage you've become a doctor already! But if you decide to get more training on a subspecialty area of clinical practice, education, or research, you might consider a medical fellowship. To apply to a fellowship of your choosing, you must have completed a residency in the specialty you want to focus on and demonstrate significant clinical skills and experience in that area.

Check out how long it takes to become a doctor in the US and Canada:. The steps outlined above assume that you go straight from high school to college to medical school to residency and into your job as a physician or medical scientist. But that is not always the case. There are many non traditional medical school applicants who take a different pathway to becoming doctors. If you would like to hear about our students' experiences getting into medical school as non-traditional applicants, check out our blog.

Some specialities allow trainees to begin speciality training at ST1. Surgeons then move on to speciality training, which is a further 6 years. The flowchart below simplifies this. Jul 9, Becoming a Doctor. What subject do I need to study to become a Doctor? Thinking about becoming a Doctor?

We could not encourage you more! Some surgeons go into higher education, supervising residents and training the next generation of surgeons. Surgeons may also conduct research to contribute to the body of knowledge in their field.

Surgeons should make many contacts throughout their long medical training, and their professional network should be a good source of information on openings that may be a good fit.

There are many job boards online that cater to physicians and surgeons, and hospitals and practices use recruiters to reach out to surgeons as well. Some surgeons use locum tenens agencies to find temporary work filling in for surgeons who have taken a leave from their positions. Locum tenens work can be a good way to gain experience in a wide variety of settings.

The American College of Surgeons and the American Board of Surgery can be good resources for those who want to learn more about the education and training required to become a surgeon. The American College of Surgeons also offers resources on its website that explain the demands and rewards of a career as a surgeon. How to Become. Find an Online School. Looking for an Online Degree? Search Over 17, Online Programs:.

What kind of training is required to become a surgeon? Are there any certification or licensure requirements?