How To Become A Forensic Pathologist: What It Is and Career Path

What is a forensic pathologist and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

2 min read

There is more than meets the eye when it comes to being a forensic pathologist. For example, did you know that they make an average of $27.52 an hour? That's $57,239 a year! Between 2018 and 2028, the career is expected to grow 16% and produce 117,800 job opportunities across the U.S.

ScoreForensic PathologistUS Average

Salary

4.5

Avg. Salary $57,239

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability level

7.9

Growth rate 16%

Growth rate 0.3%

Diversity

3.4

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 0.76%

Asian 6.59%

Black or African American 8.67%

Hispanic or Latino 11.43%

Unknown 4.31%

White 68.24%

Gender

female 52.38%

male 47.62%

Age - 46

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 3.00%

Asian 7.00%

Black or African American 14.00%

Hispanic or Latino 19.00%

White 57.00%

Gender

female 47.00%

male 53.00%

Age - 46

Stress level

7.9

Stress level is high

7.1 - high

Complexity level

7.8

Complexity level is challenging

7 - challenging

Work life balance

5.0

Work life balance is fair

6.4 - fair

Key steps to become a forensic pathologist

Explore forensic pathologist education requirements

Most common forensic pathologist degrees

Bachelor's

66.7 %

Doctorate

20.0 %

Certificate

13.3 %

Start to develop specific forensic pathologist skills

Skills	Percentages
Body Fluids	100.00%

Complete relevant forensic pathologist training and internships

Accountants spend an average of 3-6 months on post-employment, on-the-job training. New forensic pathologists learn the skills and techniques required for their job and employer during this time. The chart below shows how long it takes to gain competency as a forensic pathologist based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real forensic pathologist resumes.

Research forensic pathologist duties and responsibilities

Supervise and manage pathology, microbiology and biochemistry laboratory.
Work independently under protocols for treatment to provide STI risk assessment, treatment, and prophylaxis including emergency contraception.
Work independently under protocols for treatment to provide STI risk assessment, treatment, and prophylaxis including emergency contraception.

Prepare your forensic pathologist resume

When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your forensic pathologist resume.

You can use Zippia's AI resume builder to make the resume writing process easier while also making sure that you include key information that hiring managers expect to see on a forensic pathologist resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.

Choose from 10+ customizable forensic pathologist resume templates

Build a professional forensic pathologist resume in minutes. Browse through our resume examples to identify the best way to word your resume. Then choose from 10+ resume templates to create your forensic pathologist resume.