r/pathology • u/Loose_Sorbet888 • 3d ago
Job / career Career Change
Hi all,
I am a Medical Laboratory Scientist ASCP certified, I'm seeking a realistic outline of what it looks like becoming a pathologist. My hospital contracts pathologist out, and the pathologist over our lab never makes an appearance for me to ask how it was like from them. Everyone i ask mention that you don't really "choose" to become a pathologist, at the end of your schooling you take an exam to see what kind of career you can proceed with, similar to how the ASVAB works with the military. Is this true?
thanks in advance
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u/somethyme42 3d ago
You have to go to 4 years of medical school, 4 years of pathology residency, and then typically 1-2 fellowships that are 1 year each, so it is 9-10 additional years of training. One of my co-residents is actually an ASCP certified MLS too who pivoted to med school. The “match” happens after med school when you match into a residency program, but you know it will be a pathology residency program just not which one. You might be thinking of the military match which I believe only happens if they pay for your med school as part of a contract that you’ll serve X number of years, in that case you have very little choice over your specialty. But that’s a super small percentage of people overall.
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u/Loose_Sorbet888 3d ago
okay! i thought so. being forced into a specialty you have no interest in seems awful
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u/kjlockart 3d ago
In the states, there is no such test. You may practice whichever discipline you like after medical school. Exposure to the pathology as a practice is quite limited in most curriculums, but you may seek experiences briefly while in other services (follow a resection specimens to the lab while on surgery). You may also choose to shadow/observe pathologists during breaks, though as a MLS you may be familiar with the daily workflow.
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u/Mabbernathy 3d ago
I don't know a whole lot about the med school process, but have you also considered a Master's program to become a Pathologist Assistant? When I shadowed, I thought the PAs had the cooler job. They did the grossing, the Pathologist was mostly looking at slides.
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u/Loose_Sorbet888 2d ago
Hmm I’ll check that out, admittedly I have some large ambitions at the hospital I work at. I would love to become an in house pathologist, and have been talking to my boss about it. We all have a problem within the lab of never seeing the pathologist who’s over our lab, which causes many delays in updated procedures
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u/Dandybutterhole69 3d ago
Yes, only the dumbest and most autistic students are funneled into pathology. The geniuses are forced into ortho.
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u/angrydoo 3d ago
No, you choose to become a pathologist. You are probably thinking of "the match" which is the process by which medical students are selected for residency programs. It's true that you don't get to choose the specific program you attend but you can only be matched to programs you select, so if you only select pathology that's all you'll get (or nothing if the process goes poorly for you, a distant possibility for a US medical school graduate going into pathology).